Watershed IPA
Oakshire Brewing

 

good IPA

Six pack of cans picked up on sale at Grocery Outlet in Kenmore, Washington.
PKGD AUG 21 2019. Poured in to a pint glass.

Look- Clear golden straw color, decent frothy white head that recedes rather slowly, moderate spotty lacing. Solid carbonation streaming as it sits.

Smell- Citrus (tangerine, grapefruit and lemon), melon, resinous pine, honey/caramel malts. Hints of pineapple and light grassy/floral notes.

Taste- Fairly standard IPA profile. Citrus, pine, earthy hops and sweet malts, a bit of tropical fruit.

Feel- Medium/light bodied. Crisp, semi-dry with a light lingering bitter finish, pretty well balanced. Average carbonation on the tongue.

O- A pretty solid west coast style IPA, really easy drinking, check it out if you spot it.

 

Copper and clear filtered, with a little carbonation and a finger of white head.

Smells of citrus and pine, Carmel, and very faint hints of tropical fruit.

It tastes of light tea, malt, and a bit of pill like bitterness.

Light body with little carbonation.

I got this in Medford Oregon, and I’m drinking it in Redding California December 16, 2018.

 

 

 

Spot on IPA. Well done!

 

 

 

 

Can stamped "173" which makes it a late June batch if that's a Julian date. Slightly hazy pour, light lacing and low carbonation. Light, bready aroma. Ok, it's an IPA, so expect hop forward and malt to back them up -- and it meets the test. Nice hop bite and a well rounded ale. Pleasant mouthfeel and just the right finish. We find ourselves liking this beer a lot. It might be considered more in the Pale Ale territory by the hop-heads, but we're happy where this one ends up.

 

22oz bottle served in pint glass. Beer is pale yellow in color, with mid white head, and crystal clear. Aroma is sweet and citrusy. Flavor is decidedly on the drinkable side of high ABV/IBU (single) IPA. There's considerable sweetness from unfermented sugars to balance out the 70 IBUs. Drinkable, but not that flavorful. More like the flavor profile of an IPA, even an English IPA, superimposed on American Pale Ale, with the volume turned up 10%.

Reviewed from notes. The appearance is a hazy golden orange colored body with a three foamy lumpy head that lasts at least three minutes before dieing concavely into almost perfect valley. A fair amount of lacing is left in the wake of the fall. The smell has large amounts of hops producing a glorious amount of bitterness yet a faint malty background comes through moreso as it warms. The taste is bittersweet - combined ever so nicely between the hops and the malts. It has a grapefruit aftertaste, and a dry finish. The palate is about a light to medium, and comes across mostly sessionable. She’s carbonated just a tad underneath for the style but very good to me as it gets a bit creamy here and there. Overall, this is a pretty good AIPA that I would have again.

 

Brief initial impression from a pull-tab can acquired as part of a six pack for $10.00 USD.

6.70% ABV.

APPEARANCE: Vibrant yellow/pale-copper body. Clear, filtered, clean, inviting.

Head is white, frothy, creamy, and enticing, boasting a good retention (~8-10 minutes).

Looks well-carbonated and is appealing for an IPA. I'm eager to try it.

AROMA: Malt sweetness and hop bitterness keep each other in balance judging by the aroma. Floral hop aromatics, delicate albeit vague fruit, citrus pulp, fruit juice, pale malts. I don't detect the caramel malts advertised on the label (and that's a good thing).

Mild and timid, but attractive.

TASTE & TEXTURE: Citrus fruit, floral hops, zest, and a little hop resin combine to good effect, balanced out by innocuous pale malt sweetness. It's not the most pungent brew hopwise and it doesn't boast the best depth of flavour I've encountered in an IPA, but its balance alone makes it well worth trying and there's enough here to keep discerning drinkers interested.

Doesn't go for too much alcohol content, sitting pretty at a modest 6.70% ABV.

Flavour duration is good. Flavour intensity is average. I love that it isn't trying to beat drinkers about the head with hop bitterness.

Has a nice push-pull between dryness and wetness, but even though it tends towards the dry end of the spectrum it's still refreshing. Medium-bodied, a little coarse, and of apt heft and thickness. Overall presence on the palate is pretty good, but this fails to elevate the beer as whole - dragging a bit on the palate - or to accentuate specific flavours. I'd prefer the mouthfeel more refreshing, light-bodied, soft, and juicy. Carbonation is good but not ideal.

OVERALL: Remarkably drinkable work from a brewery I've frankly never heard of. I nabbed a sixer expecting some nice-but-not-great casual drinking fare, but I got more than I bargained for, an IPA well worth revisiting in spite of its tendencies towards a more dry and coarse mouthfeel than I'm normally a fan of. The packaging may look somewhat generic, but inside the can is an IPA that manages to stand out from the crowd without relying on gimmicky hipster hop marketing or the like. Well-priced fare I'd recommend to anyone who enjoys the style, even if it isn't up there with world class beers in the style - or even more widely available expressions thereof from the likes of Deschutes, Lagunitas, Ballast Point, Bear Republic, or the like.

High B- (3.48) / WORTHY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

12oz can. Poured out a clear, golden orange color with a small, white head of foam. It smelled of pineapple, orange peel and grapefruit. Nice tropical fruitiness and sweet caramel with a sharp, piney bitterness.

 

 

 

 

This is a solid IPA, and one I drink often. Poured 12 oz can into standard pint glass. Clear, golden amber color. Beautiful, foamy head with nice retention. Very nice lacing. The aroma is grain, oats, honey, peach and tropical fruit. The flavor is well balanced, a medium body, and the hops is citrus and dank. The malt is in the finish, leaving a sweet, pleasant aftertaste. Juicy and resinous without going overboard. A fine go to beer.