City Island Sour
The Bronx Brewery

 

Clear, golden color. Foamy head that quickly disappeared. Rather a sour than an IPA. Lemon plus some funky and fruity notes in the aroma. Moderately tart with light hoppy bitterness. Good thirst quencher.

pours hazy with nice head sour citrus tastes - too sour for me

 

From a can. Pours a hazy yellow with pronounced carbonation and a very short lived head. Smells of sour grapefruit with some resin. Tart and slightly hoppy, taste largely follows smell. Lightly bodied and surprisingly smooth.

On tap at the brewery’s outpost in Hudson Yards, Manhattan.

Not a NEIPA, that’s for sure. It’s hazy but not at all juicy and the sour is dialled up way high. However, nor is it a wild beer (no wild yeasts/bacteria) or a fruited kettle sour (no fruit). Time to add ‘sour ipa’ as a beer style maybe, particularly with the invention (GMO) of the sourvisiae yeast.

L: Hazy, yellow colour with no head.
S: A little funk, no hop aroma evident.
T: Underripe white peach and sour orange.
F: Mouth-puckering with a very light body.
O: A extra tart, citrusy pale ale. Refreshing, and reasonably enjoyable. It lacks the complexity of a proper sour ale and lacks the hop character of a AIPA. Would also prefer it less than 6%.

 

 

 

 

 

My first beer from Bronx Brewery. I always love a good sour IPA, but it's quite difficult to find them. Surprising, considering that the substyle is an amalgamation of two very popular beer styles. Regardless, I'm always happy to find a good one so let's see how this one stands up

Pours a hazy yellow gold with 2 fingers of white head that slowly fades to a cap and leaves minimal lacing

The nose here is pretty much everything I want in a sour IPA, lots of tropical hops with a nice acidity to back it up. I'm picking up on aromas of underripe melon, white peach, pineapple, apple skin, lemon peel, and a creamy malt to back it up

The malt presence up front is more than welcome, adding a nice contrast to what's to come on the back end. On the front end of the sip I'm tasting doughy malt, citrusy hops, and a hint of pepper. The swallow gets quite tart, brining notes of lactic acid, grapefruit, tart lime, and grassy hops

A medium body pairs with gentle tingling carbonation, resulting in a super refreshing beer. Finishes mostly dry and super tart

Definitely leans more onto the sour side of things, but it's not just a typical wild ale. Worth a shot for sure

 

 

Decanted from a 12 oz (355 ml) can into a custom Sam Adams glass; no production information.
A: Pours very hazy, bright yellow color with one finger, white head, but little retention and very little lacing.
S: Tart side of tangy. Aromas of white grapefruit, green apple, and unripened pear; lactic acid definitely evident.
T: Dry and tart. Palate basically follows the nose but white grapefruit flavor predominates. Very clean and refreshing.
M: Light bodied and robust carbonation initially.
O: This was a very drinkable, light bodied, fruit sour. Loved it (and stood up well) with a stir fry.

From the can it pours a pale and clear golden color with visible carbonation. A moderately large white foam head soon dissipates, leaving behind a thin layer of film.

The aroma opens with citrusy notes of grapefruit, without much signs of tartness. It is not until later that sour notes of lemon and lime impart their acidic aromas. This is accompanied by rustic and funky notes of fermenting tangerine and lactobacillus.


Medium bodied and crisp with an acidic tartness and dry palate. The sour flavors evoke notes of lemon and lactobacillus, and provide quite the acidic twang. Although I’m not getting much IPA characteristics by way of hops bitterness, juiciness or herbaceous qualities, the dryness, along with the very effervescent carbonation reminds me somewhat of a Brut IPA. Much later, some grapefruit, grass and mild bitterness develop along with some peppery and resiny spices in the dry finish. The bready malt backbone is solid throughout.

Admittedly, the so called sour IPA style is difficult to define. That said, the favorite examples I’ve had did a good job at highlighting the juicy hops quality typical of IPAs despite the sour flavor. My only knock on this one is I feel like the sour notes overwhelmed and didn’t allow the hops to shine.

 

3d Review of a favorite local brewer. City Island conjured lovely images, as a kid, like city shore (asbury park), or city beach (Santa Monica). Finally went at 16 and set sail to Newport for the America's Cup.
a) Total haze murk, a yellow flecked w sediment and low carbonation. Sour flattens the head.
s) Bright, organic, yet marshy, tidal. yeasty and sour.
t) Just the right sour, my g-friend loves it (good), lots of grain supporting the grassy, marshy, yeasty, fertile profile.
f) Wakes up your mouth.
o) Lots of Vitamin B - an idea food beer. Great sour IPA. nice mineral body.