Hop Odyssey: Citra Session IPA
Green Flash Brewing Co.

rodbeermunch from Nevada

3.5/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I don't know when I drank this, but I can tell that I bought it in October 2014 from Ledger's Liquors in Berkeley, CA for $5.99 for a bomber (22oz) of it.

Poured a slightly darker SRM than your average session ipa. This was full on the color of a copper penny. 1/3" off white head. Aroma was Citra, but back in 2014, it wasn't the #1 acreage hop, so I think they were a little more conservative with its usage back then. Its there, but its not that massive blast that you get proportion wise these days.

Taste hits the Citra notes, again lighter, but its a lighter beer, but just because you have a lighter body (although here again, heavier than average). Plenty of orange, orange blossom, tangerine, canteloupe like notes. Carbonation seemed lower than I like in said style, but not by much. I think the best way to improve this beer would be to lighten up the malt bill, I don't want balance, I want a light bodied, highly hopped session ipa.

If Green Flash doesn't go completely under, I'd like to check out a 12oz of this again and see how it stacks up.

Jun 13, 2020

macrosmatic from Florida

3.81/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Reviewed from notes. Poured from a 22 oz. bottle into a Westbrook Brewing pint glass.

A: Mildly hazy light gold. Average carbonation and a two-finger white head with decent retention.

S: Citrus and melon, tropical fruits and a bit dank. Some resin and vegetal as well, with a very light cracker malt. Not a huge aroma, but the hops are the star for sure.

T: Melon, tropical fruits. Citrus – oranges and limes – and dank, with some grapefruit rind. Very light cracker malts add just a touch of sweetness with a slightly husky flavor. The grassy hop bitterness lasts into the hang, but it’s not particularly bitter.

M: A light body, with a good level of carbonation and a low alcohol presence.

O: I didn’t enjoy this as much as I had hoped. This isn't exactly Zombie Dust…
Still, not offensive and a nice IPA that has decent flavors and drinkability.

Jun 23, 2018

Lone_Freighter from Vermont

3.65/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

This was poured into a pint glass. The appearance was a nice looking hazy to semi-transparent transparent golden color with a slim finger’s worth of white foaminess that quickly dissipated barely leaving any lacing. The smell started off with a sharp citrus somewhat bitter with an underlying sweet to bitter pine to blend. The taste was moderately bitter with an underscore of bitter piney-ness. There’s a lingering bitter piney aftertaste leading into a slight dry sweet citrus finish. Different, but nice. On the palate, this one sat about a light on the body with a fairly decent sessionability about it. Carbonation runs fairly light allowing a nice harsh bitterness to pound my tongue. Overall, I say this was a pretty good session IPA that I would have again.

Jun 27, 2017

Wasatch from Colorado

4.12/5  rDev +4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz. Bottle

Pours a very nice golden yellow color, nice carbonation, with a pretty nice thick/creamy one-finger off-white head, which leaves some pretty nice sticky lacing behind. The nose is hoppy, with some nice citrus. The taste is hoppy, citrusy. Medium body. Overall, a tasty brew.

Apr 05, 2017

Tsar_Riga from Indiana

3.99/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

A - Yellow-golden beer, super clear, with a full, tight white head that reduces quickly. Extensive lacing.

S - Big citra hop nose, with mango and resin, a bit of wild grassiness, a bit of dank cat-pee.

T - Sharp hop flavors, slapping you around with resin, some tropical fruit coupling nicely with sweet malts, with a moderately bitter close.

M - Brisk carbonation does not completely scrub the resin build.

O - An interesting brew, this drinks like a full IPA, but manages a 5% ABV. Tasty, bright citra, but like a lot of pure citra brews, though vibrant, the result is not particularly balanced. Add to this the bottle format, and this does not ultimately feel as sessionable as its name would suggest.

Jan 10, 2017

eskildow from Ohio

3.8/5  rDev -4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

This beer is a pale yellow, not quite gold, and cloudy. It has a sweet citrus smell, almost like grapefruit, that has an interesting funk behind it, almost like durrian. The flavour, a tart starfruit, is highly enjoyable and refreshing. However, there is an astringent body and thin consistency.

Oct 08, 2016

Troy-Hawaii from Hawaii

3.5/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bought from Bev Mart $2.25 12oz.
Clear golden color
Slight bitterness, some citrus taste, smooth
Light mouth feel
Low carbonation
Overall an easy drinking beer. If the price was about $8/6-pack I would buy it, but not at the price point it is here.

Jan 28, 2016

Act25 from New Jersey

3.93/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I'd call this a session IPA in line with all the best ones such as All-Day and Carton Boat. Try 6.

A - Orange-gold, light colored, hazed, fine bubbles, 1 finger short lived head, decent lace for a session beer.

S - "Citra" forward with tangerine, grapefruit and tropical fruit. Only a bit of bread, mostly tangy, juicy and bright.

T - Follows the smell but more going on. Backdrop of biscuit body balances the hops which roll from ripe citrus and tropical fruit into a forest of leaf, pine, hooch and herb. As good as Boat!

F - Fine, smooth with pithy bitterness and a minerally, drying finish that cleanses the mouth.

Fine effort. Buy 6. Better than the reviews here.

Jan 02, 2016

OldManMetal from North Carolina

4.09/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This single-hopped IPA is deep gold in color and very sparkling; it sports a moderate chill haze and a short-lived thin pillowy white head. Lacing is fair and manifests as bands and spots. The nose is medium-strong in intensity and very bright: a nice blend of grapefruit and green pine with lesser floral notes and faint alcohol overtones. The palate is also style-appropriate in intensity, lead by bitter grapefruit and pineapple with hints of soapy pine/floral notes and a decent view of the light bready malt foundation. This beer is pretty bitter for a low-ABV IPA; not surprisingly, the finish is hoppy: piney florals, then a flash of malt, then a strongish hoppy bitterness builds in and lingers for a few minutes. Mouthfeel is commensurate with the light body, and the texture is slightly creamy and slightly prickly the carbonation, which is quite restrained given how effervescent the beer is. (12 oz bottle, 67 days before best-by)

Nov 14, 2015

tillmac62 from South Carolina

4.02/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

BBD 1/20/16. Pours a clear gold with a touch of amber. Outstanding head volume, world class lacing and retention.

Outstanding nose of grapefruit with strong notes of orange over a light biscuit.

Heavy light body with a semi-smooth texture. Perfect carbonation with a burst of effervescence in the middle a rollicking finely bubbled prickly finish.

For a session IPA, this outstanding flavor profile packs a lot of intensity. Reasonably complex with a balance that slightly misses balancing the hops with biscuit sweetness. It begins with hop flavor that is rind dominated with grapefruit and orange notes. The middle brings a mild bitterness that is rind based. The finish is a slow fade of rind bitterness.

Nov 10, 2015

hosehead83 from Ohio

4.05/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Poured from 12oz. bottle into a standard pint glass.
Clear gold with a moderate bone-white head
Aroma-Nice whiff of tangerine and citrus hops
Taste-Lighter-bodied, pale malt but full-on hop flavor. Nice character and balance. Bring on the loaded hotdogs and stacked burgers.

Nov 09, 2015

brentk56 from North Carolina

3.79/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Appearance: Pours out clear and golden with an inch of foam; splashy lacing action

Smell: Floral and dank; surprisingly bitter aromatics

Taste: Bready malt with a building bitterness; piney and dank, with just a hint of tropical fruit; the bitterness builds through the finish and is quite sharp

Mouthfeel: Light to medium body with moderate carbonation

Overall: I was expecting something more floral and filled with tropical fruit flavor; when I didn't get that, the beer was a let down

Nov 04, 2015

Raime from Greenland

4.02/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Green Flash Citra Session IPA

For whatever reason my county doesn't see a whole lot of Green Flash so when I spot a single or even a sixer of something I haven't had by them I tend to buy it up. A lot of people in recent years have started bashing GF due to broad distribution but you must give them credit where it is due, these guys make good beer. Bought a single for $1.49. Let's see what we get

Look - Poured from the twelve ounce bottle into a pint glass. Pours a hazy yellowish copper shade with a two finger slightly off white head that perfectly fills out the shape of the pint. Thus far the head has retained quite well and appears to be as sticky as the load you just blew on a prostitutes face. Carbonation levels appear to be very high with an army of tiny bubbles slowly but steadily moving from the bottom to the top of the glass. Quite a bit of sticky lacing is left and it appears as small spectacles around the glass.

Smell - The smell is largely dominated by heavt floral aspects. Smells more like it has been brewed with mosaic hops that Citra. Perhaps a combination with the former being the dominating factor. Oine notes are also quite apparent along with lemon zest and fresh oranges peels and juices.

Taste - This actually has more flavor than most session IPAs I have had. The flavor profile starts out with a large floral aspects and is quickly followed by a moderate to lowly high level of bitterness but does not taste overly piney. The malts are very clean and almost white bread like in nature. The best thing about this beer is it isn't painfully sweet like a lot of other session IPAs I have had.

Feel - The body is full for the fact this is a session beer and the carbonation is very high and very cold. Coats the mouth in dank pine notes and big flower flavorings. The beer swallows easily and as expected no alcohol comes through. Once again I am thankful for the lack of cloying sweetness present in most sessions.

Overall - A pretty good session IPA as I would expect out of a brewery like Green Flash. Far from beer of the year, and sessions aren't a style I particularly care for but this one is thus far the best one I have had. I would surely buy this beer again, especially at the extremely low price tag. As I've already stated, the big winning aspect is the fact that it lacks the cloyingly sweet ridiculousness that so many session IPAs tend to have ( 51k, Pinner, etc ). As always, try it out for yourself .

Oct 27, 2015

mac31 from California

3.73/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Danky, citrus notes crash the palate right up front. A minor, subtle but sweet candy nuance hidden amongst the big hoppy notes. Tropical notes surface from time to time as well. Bitterness drops off rather quickly. Big resin and grapefruit in the finish. Grains noted in the finish. Dry, thin bodied beer, as expected. Big time West Coast IPA flavors packed in a session IPA. To me session IPA evokes the idea of putting a few back. I could not put a few of these back, not easily anyway-it would take some effort, which shouldn't be the case for a 4.5% beer. This is too West Coast, on the bitterness, for me. The early kettle hops need to be dialed back a bit and added along with the late kettle editions, for my palate preference. If you like WC IPA's, this may be the one.

Oct 25, 2015

FickleBeast from New Jersey

3.94/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into a nonic.

Pours a clear yellow with a finger of foam. Aroma is hoppy, full of floral citra hops - smells great. Flavor is light, refreshing, and extremely full of hop flavor... it tastes like bitter flowers. Goes down easy and finishes dry, which makes want to reach for another sip.

A great showcase of the Citra hop, this beer packs a ton of flavor into a small package.

Oct 25, 2015

chinchill from South Carolina

3.8/5  rDev -4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

12 oz bottle served in a snifter. BB date stamp: 13 Jan. 2016. 65 IBU. 4.5% ABV.

Sparkling clear golden-honey colored body topped by a weak head that does manages to leave a very durable but thin island of foam on top for a good while, and to leave some spotty lacing.

Strong Citra hop aroma - no watered down IPA here.

Flavor: Mild for a West Coast IPA, but admirably flavorful for a 4.5% ABV ale. Very low bitterness for style, especially before the finish.

Oct 19, 2015

Franziskaner from Missouri

3.85/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Copper colored with a quarter inch to a fingernail (in some spots) of off white head. I smell dulled notes of grapefruit. The taste is sharply bitter with citrus hops at the front of the palate. Light malt quickly steps in at the back of the palate to even things out. There's a moderate, but noticeable hop burn on your tongue. The mouth is fairly dry and crisp.

Oct 18, 2015

barnzy78 from Illinois

3.77/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Best By Feb 03 16
A - slightly hazed and deep golden in color with a creamy ivory head that holds good retention
S - fresh tropical fruit aroma with passion fruit, pineapple, mango, and mandarin; sweet caramel malt with some honey in there also
T - quite bitter with more pine and mango than tropical notes although there is some passion fruit, pineapple, and orange rind flavors in there as well. Caramel malt is light and weak for a backbone in comparison to the bitterness
M - lighter body, moderate carbonation, finishing pungently bitter with pine and orange zest lingering
O - this is one of the better "session IPAs" I've had, but it could use more malt to balance it out better.

Oct 10, 2015

Urk1127 from New Jersey

4.37/5  rDev +10.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

-yellowish orange, very little head
-Light lemon, light pine. No heavy hop smell. Some grains
-Cracker malt backbone fronted by pineapple, light mango, subtle pine
-Crisp, bubbly, zippy

-Very nice. Balanced light mouthfeel but i enjoy the thinner subtle ipas. Would drink all the time.

Oct 03, 2015

Cobrito from Georgia

4.35/5  rDev +9.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I've never understood all the anti-Green Flash negativity on BA, at least in the "most overrated brewery" threads, where GF often gets cited. I generally love the GF style, which is NOT the hop-everything-to-death that its critics claim.

That said,I was not all that excited to try this one, as I am generally not a huge fan of "session IPAs." But this one is just so so solid, and for all the reasons that I find GF to be so reliable: The mouthfeel is a fantastic balance of hops with sting and pungency and malts that provide a luscious body. I find that most GF beers do this exceptionally well. They are not just hop bombs. And even this 4.5 ABV beer has the complex palate and glorious finish that makes beer so enjoyable. More substantial and more-ish than your typical session IPA. Great beer for an afternoon of surfing or laying on the beach.

Sep 24, 2015

Pukstopper from Pennsylvania

4.06/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Tried a sample first as the bartender suggested it after my Pinner from Dales. I was sold and had a pint. Poured a nice golden color but the lacing faded quick. The hop smell was very nice and stuck out first thing. The taste didn't produce the overpowering hop as a regular IPA but that is good for a session. The Citra and floral notes come out and this is a very drinkable session and on Par with Dales Pinner session if not a bit better.

Sep 23, 2015

CHickman from New York

3.89/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Epic Journey Limited Release made with 100% Citra Hops (Best By 13 Jan 16). Pours clear gold color with a foamy 1 finger snow white head that faded on the quick side, leaving very good spotty lacing.

Smells of lemon zest, onion, grapefruit, mango and starfruit, shifting to graham cracker, biscuit, light caramel and toasted grains. The malt and citrus are well balanced, with the Citra hops adding a nice citrus aroma. It's not super hoppy like a DIPA, but nice enough for a session IPA.

Tastes just like the nose but on a more subdued level; the hops are present and the star of the show with lemon zest, orange peel, grapefruit, onion, herbs like garlic, mango or starfruit, tea leaf, piney hops, and then a wave of the malt backbone with graham cracker, biscuit, light caramel and toasted grains. It's grassy and earthy with nice citrus flavors coming through the whole brew. It's well crafted, but just not full of the strong citrus hops that I expected from a single hop beer using CItra hops.

Mouthfeel is thin and on the watery side, but smooth and easy drinking with light carbonation, a light body and a mild bitter aftertaste. Well balanced, it fits the session beer mold to a T.

Style conflict here as it's labeled APA on BA but IPA on the bottle; either way it's a real good session beer at 4.5% with the 65 IBU's providing nice hop flavors. I'd definitely have this again, it was tasty and easy to drink.

Sep 20, 2015

LennyOvies from Mexico

4.2/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

BBD: Feb 3, 2016

L- Filtered yellow gold body with a frothy white head, visible carbonation on body.
S- Orange and Hops jump out immediately, very fresh aroma.
T- Crisp hoppiness all around, subtle orange peel. Leaves a very strong and lingering floral and resinous note.
F- Smooth and fresh.
O- Much hoppier than I expected for a session beer. More than a lot of "regular" IPAs. This is a very good IPA.

Sep 19, 2015

SD-Alefan from South Dakota

4.08/5  rDev +3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Pours a hazy amber with a fast-fading foamy white head and rather large bubbles.
The aroma is full of pineapple and orange with a slight fruity sweetness.
Taste is orange juice and orange pith, pineapple, mango and grapefruit. A nice lingering bitter finish that is quite refreshing.
Mouthfeel is medium.

Sep 17, 2015

Czarkazm from New York

4.1/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Beautiful appearance in the glass. A gorgeous hazy sunset golden orange with a bright white head and carbonation slowly streaming up along the sides of the glass. Aroma is very typical of citra but it doesn't overpower. Tropical and grassy notes, with clementine rind, light biscuity malts. Mouth feel is light and refreshing, with nice carbonation making this one go down easy. Getting more complexity out of the taste. Nice crisp grapefruit bitterness up front, followed by tart clementines, mango, and peach fruitiness, ending with dank pine and a dry straw maltiness.

Sep 16, 2015