Farmington River Hop River IPA
Ipswich Ale Brewery

Nice head. Nice aroma. Nice beer not amazing. Average at best. Very drinkable. Dark Amber coloring. Great Brewery. I'll explore the rest of the line.

 

Had this as a cask ale at the Grill Next Door.

I love IPA's. They're my beer of choice.

However, I did not like this beer. Although I'm sure they used fresh hops both in the wort and during dry hopping, it reminded me of pine sol. The plant smell and taste (pine trees) was a bit over-whelming.

Would not order again.

 

 

 

 

This brew was served from the tap at The Boxcar Cantina in Greenwich, CT. It arrived in standard pint glasses as a dark amber color. There was no head to speak of, and thus no lacing. There was a mild haze throughout, and the carbonation was lighter. The nose sang of malts which were toasty and metallic. Dried apricots and cranberries added sweetness and fruitiness. Additionally, fruity and floral hop inclusions were there through the back. Buttery notes, with salt and synthetic chemical phenols rounded out the back. Our first impression was that this is pretty mild. As we sipped, bitter grass and floral hops hit first. Metallic, grainy malts mixed in, giving even more bitterness. There were watery, metallic malts through the middle, with light apricot, much like Magic Hat #9. There was more bittering rind of lemon on the back, with more citric hops and metals. Chemically, aspirin bite came through, with a puckering sour finish. The aftertaste was buttery, metallic of green peppers, toasted of caramel, and bitterly of grass. The body was medium, and the carbonation was way up there. The mouth was lightly coated, with astringency of grain. There was decent froth and bubble, but this became a bit overwhelming. The abv was appropriate, and the beer drank easily with the meal (enchiladas and mini burritos).

Overall, what we enjoyed most about this brew was the ease of drinkability and the refreshing nature of the beer. The mild hop inclusions and malt profile make this an easy beer to enjoy. It goes well with a spicy meal, but the metallics, underwhelming hops, and overbearing carbonation make us search for more.

 

 

Draft at Delaney's. Serviceable IPA. An understated bitterness, drying. Orange body with some white head.Ho-hum flavour for the style of an American IPA. Still drinkable.Nothing stands out, unoffensive. I should get some hop aromas and am not.OK if only beer on for the night but its not.

Acquired this one from TheManiacalOne so a big THANK YOU goes out to him!

A: This beer pours a murky copper color with a thin offwhite film that sits on top. Leaves a decent amount of wispy lacing on the side of the glass.

S: Nose is quite off. Some piney hops touch of caramel malts but they're sharp and distracting.

T: Taste is overbearingly sweet of caramel malts. Minor hints of citrus hops are present. This beer is not well balanced and that malt flavoring dominates any hint of hops.

M: Medium body, medium carbonation, somewhat creamy with a dry finish.

D: This beer is far too malty to be representative of an American IPA. It may fall more in line with an APA. Flavors are somewhat harsh. I would pass on this one in the future.

I am getting spoiled being able to start drinking in the afternoon lately, lol. I cracked this one open with a couple slices of pizza for lunch. Served cold and poured into a pint glass, this one was consumed on 12/27/2009.

Wicked pour, very, very nice I have to admit. Deep amber color, with loads of copper hints to it that really set it apart from the crowd. Thick, sticky head forms on the top and just drips down the sides of the glass, coating the entire thing on the way down, really just wonderful looking. Deep, resin filled aroma. Loads of pine, with caramel malts, touches of rich hop notes a plenty come wafting through the air. The first sip was alot fuller then I thought it would be, really full bodied for an IPA, with a smoothness that was very welcome. Nice touches of fruit start biting through the hops as you work your way down the glass and the smooth, mellow balance between the malt was superb. Very rich and easy drinking it made a wonderful start to the afternoon.

Overall very solid. I was not expecting it to be as good as it was and was quite shocked. A must try ipa.

Poured from a 12oz bottle into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a deep golden brown color, with a thin off-white head that fades quickly and leaves a thin lace on the glass.

S: The aroma is of caramelized malts, hops and some citrus.

T: The taste starts out a little malty with sweet flavors of caramel and citrus. Then a decent hops presence comes in but doesn't over-power you with too much bitterness. The hearty malt character provides a good balance. The after-taste is slightly sweet.

M: Smooth and crisp, medium body, medium carbonation, finish is slightly sticky.

D: Tasty, goes down easily, not too filling, decent kick, good representation of style, there are a lot of other IPA's I would pick first but this is still a solid beer to drink for a while.

Pours a three finger cream head that fades slowly, leaving some lace. Cloudy brown/amber color. Light-medium carbonation and medium bodied. Piney hops and paint thinner nose. Flavor starts with sweet malt but quickly goes to hop and finishes with a paint thinner aftertaste. IPAs are not my favorite but this one needs a lot of work. Overpriced at $1.50 for a 12oz bottle from Manchester Wine and Liquors Manchester, CT.

I got this brew as an extra in a trade with TheManiacalOne, Thanks Mark!

12oz bottle served in a standard pint glass.

Murky amber color with a thin white head that did leave a few spots of lacing.
Some grassy hops and caramel malt in the aroma.
Taste is solid malt backbone with some grassy and floral hop flavor to it.
Medium bodied with a fair amount of carbonation.
It's not offensive but having tried it, I wouldn't purchase it if it was available locally.

Bought a sample pack recently of the Farmington River brands from Mercury. The appearance had a nice ruby look the drink with some decent lacing and a thin head. The color was darker and thicker near the top showing through the light. The beer lacked any good solid aromas for my palate. Sensed the subtle spice and hop, but I really felt the aromas were really weak. Taste follows the aroma in rating. Specifically, the taste has a really dull, bitterness to it without any of the hinted spice. Mouthfeel aids in giving the drink crispness. However, I do not consider this an IPA I would drink now and again.

Looks richer than other cheap IPAs, orangey brown, not hazy, pretty bubbly. Small head, some lacing but falls down the sides.

Has a malty yeast smell with some muted citrus scent and a slight funk. Smells better as it warms up, nothing floral though.

Tastes bready at first and then bitter like an esb. The hop bitterness is squashed up against the malt bitterness and neither one is spectacular to begin with. The malt is more apparent and it plays on your tongue nicely until the finish. Fades to a metallic bitterness that kind of kills it for me.

Pretty rich in the mouth but the bubbliness robs some flavor. Bites the tongue going down and is pretty thirst quenching.
The final taste clings to the back of the tongue and leaves an unpleasant aftertaste, bitter steel.

A thirst quenching but odd and unsessionable ipa. My local store had 6$ sixers and 10$ mixed 12 packs. Really not horrible, better than the other farmington river brews. No pleasant hop flavor that I look for in an IPA. A good beer with a horrible aftertaste.

Reviewed on 7/26/08. Bottle shared by fredandboboflo. Pours a dark brown/amber with a small head. Aroma of muddied bitterish citrus hops, very weak. Flavor of citrus hops with a bitter finish. Weak/harsh palate. Not worth it- get the Blonde or Mahogany instead.
4/4/4/2/8 (2.2/5)

I found this to be a very good, well balanced IPA. Sure it isn't one of the best out there but it's way better than a lot I have had. Very hoppy and all the flavors are blended together well to make for a good, drinkable experience. This one from Farmington River I wouldn't mind gettin a sixer of.