Jai Alai IPA - Juniper Cedar Aged "Twigs And Berries" (Humidor Series)
Cigar City Brewing

 

 

 

A: Deep copper & unfiltered. just like jai alai

S: alai jai with this amazing juniper twist. love it!

T: Super unique. taste just like what it smells like. great complex IPA with a unique twist of juniper.

O: I loved this one, i hate that its retired. i hope it comes back. i thought it was a genius combination. but i do fancy G&T's.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reviewed from notes. Thanks to ktrillionaire for this.

Pours a moderate brown color with a bit of red. Small off-white head and some nice lacing. Nose is interesting with some spice and gin-like notes as well as some floral and earthy hops. The taste is a bit over the edge with the juniper and cedar flavors, but still nice. Good feel with bitter and spice. Drinks fairly well and is unique, but not the best in their IPA line.

A - Pours a big brassy amber hue, with plentiful eggshell head and lace.

S - The Jai Alai base is fortified with gin-like notes from the juniper as well as retaining the toasty cigar box aroma. This brew is exactly what it sounds like; it is still obvious to me that it is Jai Alai, but it has two distinct aromatic additions (as opposed to shifting or changing the palate.)

T - The juniper makes a significant effect, even in the presence of the brutally flavorful cedar and the huge hop bouquet, imparting a discernible gin-like quality. The cedar does what it always does, which is fuse with the hop profile of the base Jai Alai and amplifies the bitterness all-around. Pungent citrus and and tropical fruity notes are still available, somehow surviving the onslaught of evergreen-battering.

M - IPA. Good.

D - The juniper berry keeps this in the realm of occasional, whereas the cedar is always palatable for me.

Growler opened up at Abraxas.

very, very clear amber poured into a goblet with a thin head.

It smelled quite hoppy, with piney hops carrying the day.

Taste is bitter and with an astringent feel. True to the name, it's like taking a bite out of some forest shrubbery. Woodsy and piney, with an undercurrent of gin. Like some other CCB beers, I find this tasty, but I also find that it kinda burns on the way down in a way I never enjoy.

Overall good, but not a beer I care to drink much of. I had one glass and didn't want another. Left the growler's remains for anyone else who wanted to try.

A huge thanks to todes for sending this one up my way. I have been ungodly ill for two weeks and this is my first beer in nearly 18 days. Served cold and poured into a pint glass, this one was consumed on 08/07/2010.

Wonderful color on the pour, a deep amber color that is amazingly clear. Nice one inch head of white comes up and over the top, settling down quietly but leaving a ton of lacing that sticks to the sides of the glass nearly perfectly.

Cedar right up front on the nose followed by pungent grapefruit and citrus. Well balanced and rounded as it warms it really seems to come forward with a near perfect balance. Each sip is a mash of flavors that noone, including me could have predicted would have worked this well. Smooth cedar provides that woodsy flavor that catches the tongue, but the grapefruit and ripe lemon seems to stea the show. Crisp, clean citrus and a sharp bite combine to form an idealic IPA. Juniper hits in the finish with a quick tart berry flavor and a touch of a piney like flavor that sits on the tongue though a long dry finish.

Overall wow. What a way to start my comeback. One of the best treatments I have scene from CCB.

A: Had a little leakage so the carbonation might be a little lower than usual. but it pours a one finger white normal looking head. leaves some decent lacing.

S: huge smell! big woody lemon and ridiculous grapefruit. super strong smell. the cedar is unfamiliar to me but im pretty sure im picking it up

T: The wood in the taste is more pronounced but the grapefruit is crazy strong. the aftertaste has a punch of juniper berry spicy tart to it. I wish i had the Jai Alai to taste next to this.

M: a little low on carb but like i said before the growler leaked a bit so im not sure i can really take off for it. leaves a little sticky residue in my mouth. Its a pretty thin beer but that suits its gravity

D: compared to a "normal base" IPA its a bit more difficult to drink. the flavors are immense on this beer and its almost overloading me. the first few sips took me a minute just to figure out whats going on but half a pint in im starting to get used to it. crazy beer but i love the different flavors.