Northwest IPA
KettleHouse Brewing Co. (Southside Taproom)

 

 

 

 

Picked up at Harvest Foods in Ronan, MT; part of a Kettlehouse mixed 8-pack; canned 8-19-21; 16oz can poured into a nonic pint

p- clear gold w/ a big foamy white head; med sticky lace; light active carbonation; looks nice; 4.25
n- medium nose; some sticky hops and light caramel malt; not bad; 3.75
t- lightly toasted malt w/ caramel character; citrusy and piney hops w/ light resin; some earthiness; moderate bitterness in the finish that lingers; pleasant profile; 4
mf- medium-bodied w/ medium-high carb; 3.75
o- not a bad lower-ABV IPA; solid flavor and good drinkability; would have again; 3.75

*reviewed 12-26-21

 

a nice beer, surprisingly low alcohol for how flavorful it is, tastes and feels like it belongs in that 7% abv range, so kind of nice to have it be so sessionable without any sacrifice of character, not enough beers in this range around anymore. a pale honey color with good clarity, airy white head on top, brassy hued, a little more minimal on the grain side than other hoppy beers i have had from them, but its not delicate when i drink it. lots of C hops in the nose and taste, spicy cascade, grapefruity columbus, lots of bitterness apparent, citrus driven, bold, and well balanced by the malt, which never gets into the crystal realm of sweetness and fullness, but has some light baked and honey notes to it that play with the hops really well. very fresh, maybe a touch green, but on the right side of the line, with bitter orange peel and subtle spruce notes coming on late with the bitterness. a west coast sort of feel, dank and oily in that way, it just doesnt drink as light as it is in terms of alcohol, which i really like in an ipa. nice long finish to this, and without being real unique, it ends up a great glass of beer and something i would happily drink all afternoon. the hoppy stuff from these guys on this recent trip to montana was better than i remember it being...

 

 

 

Poured into a Seattle Beer Week pint glass. Pours a medium golden amber with a two finger white head with great retention and thick lacing. Aroma of caramel malt, citrus and piney hops with a little dankness, orange, hints of mixed tropical and stone fruit; nice. Flavor is biscuit malt with a slight amount of caramel, citrus and piney hops, lemon, melon, grapefruit and pine needles. Finishes with deep biscuit and citrus rind. Medium bodied with light to moderate creaminess. Although not quite what I'd expect as a Northwest IPA, very flavorful and full bodied with a nice hop bill. The biscuity malt is much more like an English IPA with only a hint of caramel. The hops are definitely more Northwest than English, with more typical citrus and piney character rather than grassy Noble hops. I really like the strongly biscuit style of malt and this is a pleasant diversion from the Western IPAs I usually get. Full flavored and nicely hopped. I like this a lot; a good introduction to the brewery.

 

 

16 oz can- Pours clear golden with a small white head. Aroma is pungent hops, lemon, citrus, dank. The taste is a solid IPA, citrusy, piney, resinous, sticky and quite sessionable. Enjoyed it.

Golden in color, very slightly hazy. Smell is melon with some pine. Taste is backwards of smell, tastes heavily like pine but a little fruity sweetness resembling melon and lemon. Nice amount of hops giving it the right amount of bitterness to make this refreshing on a hot day. Mouthfeel is on the lighter side and the carbonation feels just right. Would grab a couple more if I could!

Clear golden body, good head and light lacing

Flavors are pine and some biscuit malts and oh my more pine. Did I mention pine? Carbonation is heavy.

Flavor wise, it’s good, and tastes exactly like the title says. The moderate alcohol content really pushes this one ahead, though!

 

 

Poured from a can into a pint glass
Appearance – The beer pours a crystal clear golden amber color with a two finger billowy white head. The head has a fantastic level of retention, slowly fading over time to leave a good sum of foamy lace on the sides of the glass.
Smell – The aroma of the brew is rather strong of a herbal smell mixed with some light cracker smells as well as a little bit of citrus hop. Along with these smells comes a hint of caramel, some light fruit, and a touch of earth.
Taste – The taste begins with a cracker malt flavor that has some notes of citrus grapefruit hop as well as a bit of herbal hop flavors. As the taste moves forward a little bit more sweetness comes to the tongue with a bit of tropical fruit and a bit of caramel, all while the citrus hop fades with more dank hop coming to the tongue. At the end some grass and hay join the more dank hop profile, and light malt flavor to leave one with a rather crisp but sorta dank hop taste to linger on the tongue.
Mouthfeel – The body of the brew is average in thickness and chewiness with a carbonation level that is rather normal. Overall the feel is pretty decent and makes for an easy sipping brew.
Overall – A decent, but nothing too exceptional IPA overall. OK overall, but nothing too special.