IPA
SweetWater Brewing Company

BloodSoakedAleMug from New York

4.03/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Look: Pours a clear, amber/yellow with a one finger, off white head. Impressive lacing yet sadly the head fizzles away rather quickly.,

Aroma: Strong sweet grapefruit, tangy papaya, bitter/oily orange rind. Faint banana. A touch of graham cracker.

Taste: Well balanced and bittersweet. Upfront malty caramel / dry toffee transitions immediately into sweet grapefruit / orange candy. Hops are restrained, mostly coming through on the aftertaste; a bitter pine sap / pungent and sweet sautéed onion savoriness. A hint of mango on the finish.

Feel: Quaffable and thirst quenching. Moderate alcohol profile, medium bodied. Dry/savory. Bittersweet. Low/mid carbonation. Very easy drinking.

Overall: Very enjoyable. Solid American IPA with a great balance of umami/bittersweet hop profile. I like the malt + hop variety used here, it works very well.

Nov 08, 2020

Dr_Gonzo from Kentucky

4/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a tall clear pint glass. Appearance is murky copper, more than a finger's length of white fluffy and sticky head.

Aroma consists of citrusy and tropical notes. Pineapple, mango, grapefruit, papaya, and tangerines. Also smells piney, along with notes of caramel and guava.

Taste is sweet, really tasting the tropical notes of pineapple and mango. Citrusy and piney too of course. I also taste stone fruit as well. Body is medium.

Aug 04, 2020

MrOH from Maryland

4.49/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Gold bordering on copper with chill haze. Nice white head, with good retention and lace.
Grapefruit and pine aroma, touch of dank.
Nice classic American IPA hop flavor. A touch of light caramel.
Clean, medium bodied with nice carbonation.
Really nice throwback.

Jul 21, 2020

Pmicdee from Canada (ON)

3.65/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours golden colour, I don’t know why I was expecting a lighter colour. The head is hugely thick and fluffy. Leaves nice residue on my glass. The smell is a bit alcohol and a bit hops. The taste is all hops, not a hop-bomb, but quite hoppy nonetheless. Mouthfeel feels a little thin, which surprised me because it looks like a thick creamy brew.
June 23 2020

Jun 13, 2020

milkshakebeersucks from Maryland

4.01/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Lightly hazed amber appearance with an average size, off white head and good lacing. Resinous hop aroma notched with a bit of citrus. Sweet malt backdrop showcased a variety of hop flavors, with pine, grapefruit and spice in the mix. Medium bodied, nicely carbonated mouthfeel leading to a bitter, lingering finish.

Jun 08, 2020

maxpower from Missouri

3.08/5  rDev -22.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

12 oz bottle, light orange -copper color with a white frothy head, nice lacing. Clean citrus-pine aroma, light bodied with a strong hop profile. 6.3 % Alcohol, too light an IPA for my liking.

Jun 01, 2020

hman43 from North Carolina

3.53/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Look: It pours golden and clear with a white head. Head retention is very good.

Smell: It has a slight candy like aroma with a bit of grainy sweetness.

Taste: It has a candy like flavor with some grainy sweetness. There is a bit of grass as well. There are very light stone fruit elements.

Feel: It has a medium body with a bit of slickness.

Overall, the aromas and flavors weren't that strong.

May 25, 2020

SoberCharlieSheen

5/5  rDev +25.6%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

This is the best beer I've ever tasted. I've tried them all but this IPA just keeps me coming back for more. Had some wild nights on this stuff in College and still drink it casually today. It's just a fantastic hoppy IPA.

May 20, 2020

taxandbeerguy from Canada (ON)

4.11/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

473 ml can served cold into a pint glass. LCBO purchase for around $3.65 CDN. Best before 01/15/21.

Appearance - Rich coppery golden color with good clarity and a mammoth three finger head. Great staying power and huge swaths of curtain lacing. Still a finger of head nearly 5 minutes after pouring.

Smell - Leafy hops with subtle bits of overripe pineapple and mango with a healthy dose of grapefruit and orange mixed in. Little bits of pine and some caramel at the end.

Taste - Initially some fruitiness of grapefruit and orange followed up with pine bitterness. For 50 IBU's this is quite bitter, but I like it in the old West Coast style so (even though this is from Georgia). Plenty of malt for a bready, doughy backbone. A kiss of caramel tops it all off.

Mouthfeel - Medium-heavy bodied, a little more sticky than some yet at the same time finishes super duper dry. Carbonation is middling but body has a soft character to it, a sense of weightlessness that is intriguing. Easy drinking.

Overall - I have a suspicion that this is not the freshest sample, yet still tastes really good and is quite enjoyable. Glad I picked up two and holds up against some of the fruitier local competition. For those in local (Ontario markets) Lone Pine by Sawdust City is a reasonable comparison.

May 09, 2020

Cramshawbar from Canada (ON)

3.74/5  rDev -6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

An old style IPA that never quite got me into IPAs. The Belgian ones were the first to nudge me in IPAs direction and then came the wonderful newer US styles, changing everything.
So having this is weird. Pours with more head than I am used to. But that is fine. The colour is already a giveaway to more malt than there should be...which the taste confirms. Which is not great. Yes, there is bitterness too (and a weird oily texture), but no nuance and certainly no fruity tones. Not as bad as, let's say Boneshaker, but I can't wait to get back to the IPAs I love.

May 08, 2020

thehyperduck from Canada (ON)

3.9/5  rDev -2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

16 oz can from the LCBO; best before Jan 15 2021 and served slightly chilled.

Pours a hazy, translucent golden-orange colour, generating just over a finger of foamy, white head that dissipates within five minutes or so. A couple concentric rings of delicate lace have been left in its wake, as has a wide, creamy collar of froth; it's a good-looking IPA, I'll give it that. Lots of citrus on the nose - grapefruit in particular, but also some orange and lemon, alongside a few spicy, piney hop notes. There's also an undercurrent of wheaty, grainy pale malts with a touch of caramel.

A classic, no frills American IPA: grainy pale malts and a light caramelized sweetness comprise the backdrop, with grapefruit being the other prominent flavour of note. Minor hints of orange and stone fruit precede an increasingly piney, spicy and resiny back end with a fair amount of bitterness that lingers on into a spicy, resiny aftertaste. Medium-light in body, with moderately spritzy carbonation that provides a decent bite to this brew's smooth, slightly slick mouthfeel. Highly drinkable; several of these in a row shouldn't present a problem for most, if not all, hopheads.

Final Grade: 3.90, a B+. SweetWater's IPA is as traditional an example of this style as you'll find these days... not that one should expect anything else from a recipe that's been around for basically two decades. That kind of market staying power requires a high level of both quality and consistency, so kudos to these guys for creating a winner and sticking with it. Glad to finally have had the chance to try this craft beer legend.

Apr 13, 2020

Roby923 from Canada (AB)

4.06/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Extremely enjoyable IPA from Sweetwater. Always a great go-to. Balanced hops that aren’t too aggressive. Very drinkable but heavier on the abv.

Feb 17, 2020

orcrist_cleaver from New York

4.08/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: Amber-gold. Nice clarity with chunky, mind-scaped lacing and a whipped cream foam head.

S: Clean pine, biscuit dough and grapefruit. Herbal spice; upside down pineapple lavender chiffon cake.

M: Med bodied. Med-high carb. A little creamy with mild butter-like sensation.

T: Tangerine zest bomboloncini. Light donut sweetness offset by citrus. Hazelnut yeast, melon rind, tropical mist, and pine dew. I enjoyed them especially for the price I found them ($1/btl with 2 months left on the expiration), so overall I'm quite satisfied.

Jan 25, 2020

TheBierdimpfe from Canada (QC)

3.71/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Medium: Canned, IPA glass.
Opacity: Slightly hazy with a mist of yeast.
Color: Dark gold close to amber.
Head: Extra foamy, frothy, beige 3-4 finger.
Legs: Good with decent swirl reaction.
Smell: Pineapples/Butter/Caramel.
Taste: Orange/Barley/Herbal.
Feel: Tropical/Piney/Bready.
Body: Light to medium slick and oily, a bit thin.
Carbonation: Moderate crisp.
Overall: Very good quality IPA, though to much soapy.

Visual 8.5/10 - Flavors 7/10 - Sensations 6.5/10 - Balance 7/10 -
Freshness 4/10 - Intensity 7/10 - Complexity 6.5/10 - Appreciation 7/10

Dec 08, 2019

Bouleboubier from New Jersey

4.04/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

(12 oz bottle, best if enjoyed by 10/28/19; purchased cold single... poured into Belhaven pub pint)

L: crystal-clear amber liquid, bit of sediment snuck in; 2-finger tall, tight, glorious frothy, aged-white foam stand... messy cap holds, with a few thick slashes of lace

S: heavy spiced orange, lemon, background hint of pine... bit of creamy, nutty yeast perhaps coloring it... doughy malt underbelly, smells lovely, beautiful roundness, depth; moderate-plus intensity... spicy floral edge slowly takes over

T: muddled orange and grapefruit, with the bite tamed on its spicy, acidic zing, supported by a cookie-dough-ish malt... aftertaste is slightly orange creamsicle, with a 'tropical' pithy bitterness lingering; capsicum spice slowly builds...

F: mildly-gooey, silky resins and sediment adrift within a relatively light body - its finish is brief, disappearing, while a mellow icing of said components lays in the front of the palate, and a sedate spicy warmth develops in the back

O: sort of like an enhanced, fortified version of their 420 pale? - bit more intensity and density to its hop package, but it doesn't seem to stray too far... I'm really digging the bottle-conditioned approach to their beers, however, both have tasted similar so far - need to take a sharp angle with the next I try (1548)

Oct 08, 2019

Bluerabbitbell from Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Surfside Beach, SC. On beach side with my darling at River City Cafe. Great color. Nose is bright and crisp. Taste falls short of what I was expecting, though. It is dry hopped for sure.

Sep 25, 2019

Bsimpson91 from Georgia

4.89/5  rDev +22.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Very Well Done IPA with a plenty of flavor and a good bit of Hop action going on.
The first impression as I smell the beer is typical for the style. Dank, resiny, Pine jumps at you. This beer is more on the west coast side of IPAs. I love the fact that its Unfiltered and Bottle conditioned, That seems to lend a particular flavor you won't find in others. The flavor is really going for this one. Upfront, A Black Pepper bite with a unique Floral blossom character. As you drink you encounter a slow build of Sweetness and bitterness follows. I enjoy the Malt bill as well, the fact that I can actually taste the Malt is a testament in itself. The flavor coming from the malt is a white bread or more like a light yellow cake. Not buttery. The hops seal the deal and make this beer a winner for me. I love the pleasant lingering bitterness despite the IBUs being 55, Its a dynamic bitterness that satisfies my taste buds. Overall, I think this is a wonderful Beer. Worth a try!

Jul 13, 2019

beersampler6 from Michigan

4.18/5  rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

This one was really great. Crisp, refreshing, good hit of bitterness, perfect for a hot summer day spent grilling. Pours a darker golden-amber color with some nice fluffy white head and spotty lingering lacing. Smells of great fruity zest hops - grapefruit, lemon, tangerine, pineapple, guava, orange - as well as some malt, vanilla, bread and floral hops at the end. Taste follows the nose, and there was a great balance between the sweeter malt backbone and the more bitter hoppiness, especially at the finish. Smooth, juicy, mild mouthfeel and great carbonation. Really well balanced and crisp, flavorful and enjoyable. An excellent summer beer!

Jul 01, 2019

brewerburgundy from California

4/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz can, best by 7/1/19.

Sunset yellow body and rocky pale head that produces good lacing.

Big doses of pineapple and peach rings with a little caramel malt.

Fruity front end of pineapple, mango, and peach with a rougher pine and grapefruit bitterness finish.

Medium to light body with medium carbonation.

This is a good American IPA in the classic mold. The tropical hops are on point.

May 27, 2019

Darkmagus82 from Texas

4.09/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass
Appearance- The beer pours a lightly hazed orange amber color with a one finger head of fluffy white foam. The head fades rather slowly over time to leave a ton of foamy lace on the sides of the glass.
Smell – The aroma of the brew is rather strong of a tropical fruit and tangerine smell mixed with some aromas of bread and a little bit of caramel. With a little bit of pine and a hint of light fruit aromas, one is left with a rather nice inviting aroma.
Taste – The taste begins with a rather strong tropical fruit and tangerine taste with the tropical fruit being of a pineapple and mango nature. Upfront there is also a rather decent showing of a bready and caramel taste which remain steady throughout the taste. As the taste advances the sweeter flavors get slightly more intense al while some pine and grass come to the tongue. In the end with the all the flavors that are left, one is left with a nice fruity and decently mixed moderate hop taste to linger on the tongue.
Mouthfeel – The body of the brew is on the average side in terms of thickness and creaminess with a carbonation level that is rather average. For the mix of fruit and hop the feel is good and makes for a flavorful easy drinker.
Overall – A very tasty and easy drinking brew overall. Quite nice.

May 05, 2019

jzeilinger from Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Medium copper gold color with a thin frothy layer of white head resting on top.

S - Citrus and sticky pine aroma.

T - Citrus and sticky pine from start to finish. Tastes like a classic Cascade hop profile. Nice lingering citrus and sweet pine resin.

M - Medium body.

O - A very easy drinker.

Apr 30, 2019

drtth from Pennsylvania

4.08/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The lightly hazed golden amber colored beer pours out into a Duvel glass with a 1 1/2” off white head that recedes slowly to become a cap of foam and then a thin irregular island of foam with a ring around the glass while leaving a web and some patches and rings of lacing. Sipping creates a couple of arches with lots of small patches and a few legs of lacing.

The aromas are full of citrus and pine with lots of grapefruit, zest and pine resin. There’s also a bit of caramel from the malt.

The flavors are much as expected from the nose with the grapefruit and pine resin showing the most. The caramel malt sweetness is a bit more noticeable than the resinous bitterness but each is noticeably present.

The mouth feel is medium bodied and fairly crisp with the moderate and persistent carbonation. The finish begins as the various flavors and sweetness begin to fade away leaving the long clean fresh ending to some light dry bitterness from the pine resin and citric zest.

Overall I’d say this is a well made drinkable classic IPA with sweetness from the malts and the bitterness from the citric resinous hops in a very enjoyable balance. Looking forward to having this one again and I could easily have a second one right now.

Apr 07, 2019

VABA from Virginia

4/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A-Pours a nice clear amber color with a nice head and lacing
A-Aroma has grapefruit and hop hints
T-The taste follows the nose with a nice great fruit and hop flavor
M-A medium bodied decently carbonated beer
O-A good India Pale Ale

Apr 07, 2019

biiru_ojisan from Japan

3.43/5  rDev -13.8%
look: 3.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

Pours a rocky slightly off white head. Color is a pretty clear brown-amber.

The nose is dank and grapefruity. A slight hint of pine. Some hints of guava after a good swirl. Can't really smell the malt character.

The palette is pretty sweet with caramel notes, backed by some biscuit and crackers. Some grapefruit comes through on the flavor, but the flavor is not quite as hop forward as the nose. Finishes a touch dry, washing away some, but not all, of the sweetness.

The mouthfeel starts medium bodied and moves to a touch aqueous through the finish. The carbonation is moderate. The alcohol warmth is very subdued.

Overall, this is an IPA whos nose eludes to a better palette. It's a perfectly drinkable beer, but the 420 Extra Pale Ale would be a better purchase for the money. Would be tasty with a juicy hamburger or a solid cheese pizza.

Mar 31, 2019

57md from Pennsylvania

4.21/5  rDev +5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Pours a light copper color with a finger of head. There is an array of bright citrus fruits in the nose and flavor profile. The finish is solid piney hop goodness.

Simple, but a real winner.

Mar 16, 2019