IPA
Old Baldy Brewery

 

Poured a nice light orange with good clarity and a white frothy finger thick head. The smell was a pretty strong citrus hops. The taste had some nice citrusy hops but mostly a highly mineral water sort of taste, kind of tangy, and a thin mouthfeel. It was hard to detect any malt in taste or mouthfeel and this was strange. However, the taste was not off-putting, it was actually kind of refreshing, being so light and hoppy, so it wasn't horrible. I would actually get it again if I happened to be at this place.

This brew presents with a deep straw color and a nice bit of chill haze. The spicy aroma is distinct, but not very strong. The initial spice takes you right out of the gate followed quickly by a quick bitterness and a decent balancing malt. The trading of flavors is my luck running back and forth real quickly on a see-saw. Leaves one guessing each step. Not a bad brew at all.

According to our server this is Old Baldy's favorite offering. It is the only brew that has its own T-shirt at the restaurant. This pint was a beautiful clear dark amber with a half inch head that appeared to be white or slightly off-white in the dimly lit room. The smell was of good hopping and as the pint warmed a caramel malt came through. The hopping on this beer was well balanced and created a nice bitterness throughout the drink and lasted long and strong in the aftertaste. Very smooth and creamy mouthfeel. Being less accomplished in IPAs than others I appreciated the lighter sense of hops in this offering than I've found in other IPAs. Definitely a brew I'd like to have available back home.

Bronze medal winner at the 2001 California State Fair.