Intelligent Embellishment
Monkish Brewing Co.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The aroma starts off in typical hypebeast fashion with a fantastic bouquet of grapefruit rinds, fresh squeezed oranges, light lemon zest, and subtle floral hops. There's a soothing nuance of resin and pine, mixed in with a very light cracker-like malt base; unlike Trillium or TreeHouse, I'm not detecting a huge presence of yeast on the nose.

The nose matches almost verbatim on the tongue, but with a dulled level of intensity. Unlike typical hypebeast IPAs where the hop nuances are amped up to super-human palatal limits and the drinker is left with reminders of the brew's presence for the rest of the drinking session, much like its name Intelligent Embellishment leaves just a fleeting impression of what it can do in terms of dropping hop bombs, and walks away waving jazz hands at the point when you maybe thought you've had enough.

Long story short, the hops presence hits hard on the palate but doesn't linger in an overly burdensome way like some of its New England counterparts; what feels like an ultra-thin pale malt base also gives this a bone dry finish as well.

Medium-light bodied, teetering more towards being light. Crisp, refreshing mouthfeel with soft non-intrusive levels of carbonation.

 

 

 

Canned 9/16/16. Consumed 10/2/16.

A: Beer comes in a yellow-orange color with about a half finger of quickly dissipating fluffy white head. Medium-plus haze; not quite opaque, but very little light makes its way through, making for a dark, almost burnt orange appearance in the glass.

S: First thing I notice is that the nose on this seems a bit restrained compared to the other Monkish IPAs I've had. I really have to search for it, but once I find it, I get mostly Mosaic with maybe a bit of Simcoe. There's that peach/blueberry combo that I get in spades from Mosaic, as well as a ton of sweet citrus (think: tangerine). But underlying aromas of pine, grass, and a 'catty' hint are probably a result of the Simcoe.

T: Nice balance of some of the defining aspects of the three hops included, but more Simcoe-forward than I'd expect. Up front, I don't get a huge smack of tropical or citrus fruits as I might expect to from a Monkish beer. Instead, the flavor seems to build on this one. I get a bunch of piney dankness (Simcoe), some peach and blueberry (Mosaic), and, especially on the finish, a big sweet grapefruit/orange note, very creamsicle-esque. The aftertaste is much more pungent than the initial sip... The piney/tropical/citrus fusion sticks to your tongue and is more reminiscent in intensity of a DIPA vs. an IPA.

M: Great feel for the ABV. Carbonation of tiny bubbles makes for a smooth yet effervescent drinking experience. Medium weight on the tongue is superb for the style; this one may even lean toward medium-plus. Medium kick of bitterness on the finish rounds out the touch of sweetness on the taste.

O: Overall, another good IPA from Monkish, though perhaps my least favorite of those I've had. This one leans a bit heavier on the west coast elements than their previous releases. It has a distinctly piney flavor/aroma and a noticeable bitterness that sticks around on the finish. While it is, of course, quite hazy and juicy a la NE-style, it's a very balanced beer that would surely satisfy fans of either style. It's more Simcoe-forward than I expected, but I believe I'm coming to appreciate this hop more as it's used later in the brew process. For some reason, I didn't find this beer to be nearly as aromatic as other Monkish beers, so that's my only major detraction. But aside from that, this is solid stuff!