Arch IPA
The Hartford Better Beer Co.
- From:
- The Hartford Better Beer Co.
- Connecticut, United States
- Style:
- English IPA
- ABV:
- Not listed
- Score:
- 71
- Avg:
- 2.75 | pDev: 24.73%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 12
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Nov 14, 2015
- Added:
- Oct 21, 2009
- Wants:
- 2
- Gots:
- 5
SCORE
71
Okay
71
Okay
Soft and pure New England water, appropriate for an American IPA style, complements the malt and hop ingredients drawn from the best products of England, Germany and the Pacific Northwestern U.S. The malt bill includes English 2-row Pale Ale Barley Malt, English Crystal Malt, German Munich Malt, and Chocolate Barley Malt. Hops feature Nugget and Willamette. The famous lively Ringwood culture, (a top-fermenting “ale” yeast), ferments the beer.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Rated by basilg from Connecticut
2.96/5 rDev +7.6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
2.96/5 rDev +7.6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
The Hoppinator. Nice. Balanced. Easy to drink. Kind of a carmel finish. Solid IPA.
Jan 03, 2015Reviewed by CTBeerFan from Connecticut
2.5/5 rDev -9.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
2.5/5 rDev -9.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
I was very disappointed with this beer. It's not so much that it's a bad beer. But there is no way I would ever consider this an IPA. It is very sweet and nutty. I couldn't taste any hops at all. If that's the kind of beer you like, then give it a try. But if you want an IPA (like i did) then you will be very disappointed.
Jul 01, 2013
Reviewed by VelvetExtract from Massachusetts
2.26/5 rDev -17.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
2.26/5 rDev -17.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
A-Pours very clear. Dark amber. Head grows and dies. It laces very nicely. It leaves rings and dots. Dark for the style.
S-Really? Smells nothing like an IPA. If someone asked me what this was just by smell I would never reply "Oh yeah bro, that is an India Pale Ale". Caramel and apple juice. No hops. Just a ton of sweetness.
T-To be quite honest this tastes like a Brown Ale or a very malty English Bitter. To be honest again, it truly is not that bad; it just is not an IPA in my mind. It's not even close. Yes I know its labeled on BA as an English IPA, but please… I guess I can detect some tea-like hop flavors? A bit nutty. Very malty.
M-Medium bodied. Medium carbonation. Slightest bitterness. Drinks easy enough.
O/D-I don't really have too much of a problem with the beer, I have a problem with this company labeling it an IPA when it isn't. Hey, it's not as bad as Tailgate IPA. So at least they have that.
Nov 17, 2012S-Really? Smells nothing like an IPA. If someone asked me what this was just by smell I would never reply "Oh yeah bro, that is an India Pale Ale". Caramel and apple juice. No hops. Just a ton of sweetness.
T-To be quite honest this tastes like a Brown Ale or a very malty English Bitter. To be honest again, it truly is not that bad; it just is not an IPA in my mind. It's not even close. Yes I know its labeled on BA as an English IPA, but please… I guess I can detect some tea-like hop flavors? A bit nutty. Very malty.
M-Medium bodied. Medium carbonation. Slightest bitterness. Drinks easy enough.
O/D-I don't really have too much of a problem with the beer, I have a problem with this company labeling it an IPA when it isn't. Hey, it's not as bad as Tailgate IPA. So at least they have that.
Reviewed by tonymoore from Pennsylvania
3.48/5 rDev +26.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
3.48/5 rDev +26.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
This is "brewed and bottled for Shipyard," and these guys make Tremont, which is one of the least appealing beers I've had. This one, though, suffers from not knowing what it is. BA calls it an English IPA but the bottle has it as straight up IPA. BA knows the style better than the brewers, apparently, because this is an English-style bitter-type thing more than an IPA. Drank with this in mind, this is not bad. Thinking of it as an IPA will make you...not love it. But for fans of English bitter pales, this might work pretty well.
May 26, 2012
Reviewed by Knapp85 from Pennsylvania
3.36/5 rDev +22.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
3.36/5 rDev +22.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
This poured out as a reddish copper color with a white head on top. The head laced the glass pretty well with a decent retention. The smell of the beer was more malty than hoppy, probably just the type of hops they used. The taste of the beer was on the bitter side but still held that malty earth flavors. The mouthfeel of the beer was dry and light bodied. Overall it's not my favorite IPA but I am pleased that I got to try it.
Dec 29, 2011
Reviewed by steve8robin from Massachusetts
3.07/5 rDev +11.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.07/5 rDev +11.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Got this at a recent beer event. 12oz bottle, best before December 2011...
A: A perfectly clear super deep ruby red with a small off-white head that fades quickly to small bubbles atop the brew. Ok.
S: A get some sweet malt upfront immediately drowned by an overwhelming apple scent. Some faint rye on the backend. Decent.
T: A rye upfront with an apple taste to follow. A malty finish. This is labeled an IPA? This is a pale ale, not an IPA. Hartford Better Beer, learn you beer styles. Eh.
M: Light body with a heavy carbonation. A malty finish. Decent.
O: All in all, this is not an IPA. The brewpub really needs to rethink their genre choice for this brew. Do not try this if you are an IPA fan. This will disappoint. A nice pale ale is where this would do very well. This would do well as a Rye Pale Ale.
Nov 06, 2011A: A perfectly clear super deep ruby red with a small off-white head that fades quickly to small bubbles atop the brew. Ok.
S: A get some sweet malt upfront immediately drowned by an overwhelming apple scent. Some faint rye on the backend. Decent.
T: A rye upfront with an apple taste to follow. A malty finish. This is labeled an IPA? This is a pale ale, not an IPA. Hartford Better Beer, learn you beer styles. Eh.
M: Light body with a heavy carbonation. A malty finish. Decent.
O: All in all, this is not an IPA. The brewpub really needs to rethink their genre choice for this brew. Do not try this if you are an IPA fan. This will disappoint. A nice pale ale is where this would do very well. This would do well as a Rye Pale Ale.
Reviewed by taylor12k from New York
2.29/5 rDev -16.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 4 | overall: 2
2.29/5 rDev -16.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 4 | overall: 2
picked up a couple of single bottle IPAs the other day that i hadn't heard of. this was one of those...
as others have already said. this isn't an IPA at all.
color is nice, head dissipates pretty quickly.
no aroma, definitely no hops on the nose, not even really any hops in the taste, either.
i agree on the strange aftertaste.
luckily i only bought one bottle.
Aug 10, 2011as others have already said. this isn't an IPA at all.
color is nice, head dissipates pretty quickly.
no aroma, definitely no hops on the nose, not even really any hops in the taste, either.
i agree on the strange aftertaste.
luckily i only bought one bottle.
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