Trade Winds IPA
Gulf Brewery

 

Immediately on the pour, the head cascades out of the bottle like a madman, determined to make its impression on the beer as a whole. The result is a ludicrously large meringuey, pale-orange head of foam, forming a crufty, rocky bubble above the beer itself. Body is really quite dark for an IPA, a seriously deep amber hue, hazed and murky. Eh.

Nose is... unfortunately, rather unpleasant. Big sweet molasses and churned butter characters, giving a sweet and slightly nauseating aroma to the beer. Minimal hops, although a touch of earthy, tea or almost rancid chocolate character comes through, perhaps attributable to some (old) English hops. Wow. That's really, quite genuinely unpleasant.

Taste is perhaps a bit better, but perhaps only because it's lighter. Still, the rank, sweet butter character, and the hint of malty chocolate come through, but they're thinned enough to let whatever passed for hop bitterness expose itself. It's certainly not a matter of the hops cutting through, because these are weak and bleak as well. Feel is vague, salty and flat.

Very, very unimpressed. Surely, you can do better than this? This is a thin, lacklustre beer, bordering on truly offensive. This is weak for any style, let alone an IPA.

Please try again.