Monogamy - Citra
Bellwoods Brewery

Monogamy - CitraMonogamy - Citra
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From:
Bellwoods Brewery
 
Ontario, Canada
Style:
American IPA
Ranked #749
ABV:
6.4%
Score:
90
Ranked #9,134
Avg:
4.06 | pDev: 6.9%
Reviews:
13
Ratings:
43
Status:
Active
Rated:
Dec 20, 2022
Added:
May 02, 2014
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  1
Monogamy is our ongoing series of IPAs brewed exclusively with one hop variety at a time. Ie, a delicious, controlled experiment designed to give us all a better understanding of what a hop can do when it flies solo.

Brewed exclusively with Citra hops, this beer showcases notes of fuzzy peach, Riesling, and purple popsicle.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Ciocanelu:
Photo of Ciocanelu
Reviewed by Ciocanelu from Romania

4.6/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Hazy peach color with off-white head. Aroma has nice juicy hops with some grass and dank notes. Taste is even more juicy with ripe stonefruits mixed with dank weed and caramelized onions. Medium body with soft carbonation. A really juicy and easy drinking APA.
Nov 20, 2017
More User Ratings:
Photo of InspectorHound
Reviewed by InspectorHound from Canada (ON)

3.74/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75
Look: Super hazy pale whitey yellow. Head is tightly bubbled and pours 1 finger thick. After a few minutes the head has pulled all the way back.

Smell: Stone fruit, pepper, grapefruit, and a dank earthy undertone.

Taste: Grainy, with a pale cracker quality on the front end. Big notes of stone fruit, green melon, pepper corn, and oregano through the middle to end sip.

Feel: Full bodied and luxurious. The mouthfeel on this beer is outstanding.

A nice experiment, and Citra is a fine hop, but at the steep price tag, I won't reach for it again. I can't help but find myself unimpressed once again by Bellwoods. I just don't find their beers live up to the pricetag. This earns a B.
Dec 20, 2022
Photo of thehyperduck
Reviewed by thehyperduck from Canada (ON)

4.04/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
473 mL can from the LCBO; dated Jan 24 2022 and served barely chilled.

Pours cloudy as hell and pale yellow in colour - looks like grapefruit juice, particularly after its half-finger of loose, bubbly white head fizzles off, which requires less than sixty seconds. A narrow collar is the only remnant afterwards, save for a few wisps on the surface - yep, looks like a hazy IPA. Moderately aromatic, with hints of grapefruit, honeydew melon, berries and peach, as well as wheaty, grainy pale malts and some floral qualities.

It's a quality IPA that showcases Citra hops effectively - I'm getting grapefruit, melon and something tropical - mango or passion fruit, maybe. Suggestions of stone fruit and berries develop shortly after; wheaty, grainy pale malt sweetness is noticeable underneath. Only mildly bitter, with a grassy, weakly floral finish that lingers into a pithy aftertaste. Medium-full in body, with low carbonation that gently rolls across the palate, giving a soft prickliness to this brew's smooth, plush texture. Its bitterness is low and its not particularly acidic, which makes for a rather quaffable hazy IPA.

Final Grade: 4.04, an A-. Warning, potentially unpopular opinion incoming: I like Citra as much as the next guy, but I don't think it shines as a single hop. In spite of that view, I still think Monogamy Citra is a damn strong effort, and I'd probably take it over most (but not all!) of the other, similar (hazy) IPAs you can find on Ontario shelves. I'm not exactly smitten with it, and I don't think it's one of Bellwoods' better IPAs, but it's still worth trying at least once, at least if you can find it relatively fresh.
May 11, 2022
Photo of AlexandraDen
Reviewed by AlexandraDen from Canada (ON)

3.95/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours a nearly completely opaque, thick-looking, light straw yellow. Very thin half inch head recedes to a very thin spotty capping.

Absolute explosion of aroma out the gate of pineapple, mango, and strawberry. Slightly dank, wet and musty weed smell backed by grapefruit and orange citrus in the background. I hope this tastes as good as it smells!

While the taste follows the nose, there are additional flavours of wheat, mild bready, floral and grassy hops, and so on. The grapefruit and orange make an appearance here, lemon-lime peel as well. I’ll be honest, mostly citrus and a very gentle grapefruit flavour wax and wane throughout for the most part, especially on the finish. There is definitely a feel of effervescent white wine flavour in here as well.

Medium carbonation, the mouthfeel is unique as it’s prickly at the beginning, but a tad foamy at the end, and the body is thicker and just a tad oilier from the oats, that it creates quite a melding of sensations. Medium bodied with a mildly bitter, mildly malty, and mildly citrus finish. Finishes relatively dry.

I can see what they’re going for with the Monogamy series. Citra hops add a very tasty dimension. I can see some people wish it was more complex, but I get that they’re picking a flavour profile and trying to hit the bullseye hard on a few flavours. And it works quite well. The citra version of the Monogamy line is sort of a mix between styles. It’s not a straight up IPA and has some NEIPA qualities to it. This makes it enough of a unique offering despite the focus on just one hop and flavour profile, I think. It’s quite good. Now, at $5 for this can, it’s not quite the absolute top tier level of something I would stock a whole bunch of, and Bellwoods has other beers for $5 that are higher priority, but I’d definitely drink it again down the line.
Mar 16, 2022
Photo of SSS
Reviewed by SSS from Canada (QC)

3.88/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
A-Straw yellow haze, with barely any head remaining
S-Grapefruit signature Citra aroma with a floral fragrance lingering at the back end
M-Spicy and harsh mouthfeel with a somewhat juicy mouthfeel that is affected by the hop burn on this one. Low end carbonation
T-Sweet upfront with tropical fruit character and a mellow smooth bitterness that finishes more bitter than I would have liked
O-This is a nice beer, but somewhat one note. I understand the Citra exclusivity, but a hint of malt character may provide another layer of character that I felt was missing. That said this is a decent single hop tune, but offers nothing different…
Feb 05, 2022
 
Rated: 4.06 by Rukeli76 from Canada (ON)

Feb 05, 2022
Photo of Cramshawbar
Reviewed by Cramshawbar from Canada (ON)

3.49/5  rDev -14%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
There is a beer here already with this name but that one is labelled pale ale. This is an IPA. Don't mean to split hairs, but that's not the same.
This does pour...ahem, very pale...yellow. The nose is, perhaps obviously, of citrus. Quite heavy on the carbonation. The taste is rather non descript. It also seems like there is lactose sugar in here.
But man, it's really muted and quite boring overall. And the carbonation....help!
This is yet another example of why Bellwoods is completely overpriced. And they carry way too many of these average tasting brews. Breweries like Bandit, Badlands for sure, and even Blood Brothers are easily better, for the same price, at times less.
Try something else than this.
Feb 04, 2022
 
Rated: 4.24 by Simon212 from Canada (ON)

Jan 31, 2022
 
Rated: 4 by GoHabsGo from Canada (ON)

Jan 29, 2022
Photo of swim
Reviewed by swim from Canada (ON)

3.81/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
L: Opaque pale tan/beige with no head or lacing
S: Nice citrus blend aroma with notes of grapefruit. Later becomes more floral.
T: Decent but a bit dull and boring. Plain citrusy hops and very little malt to speak of. A hint of alcohol may end.
F: Sort of unusual mouthfeel, light but also thick and foamy. Some carbonation but not very crisp. Somewhat dry finish.
O: I think was would be pretty disappointing even if it wasn't $5. Not sure about the high rating but I wouldnt buy again.
Jan 23, 2022
Photo of Phyl21ca
Reviewed by Phyl21ca from Canada (QC)

4.23/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Can: Poured a cloudy/hazy bright yellow color ale with a large white foamy head with good retention. Aroma of hoppy citrus undertones with nice juicy hops notes. Taste is also dominated by citrusy hoppy undertones with some juicy hops notes and quite a bit of residual sugar notes. Body is full with limited filtration and godo carbonation. Enjoyable pale ale but maybe a tad sweeter then I would liked.
Jan 20, 2022
Photo of Pmicdee
Reviewed by Pmicdee from Canada (ON)

3.74/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
With an appearance like grapefruit juice, it pours hazy with a small head. The smell is all citrus and hope. Ditto for the taste, bitter but not too much. Refreshingly tart mouthfeel
Jan 11 2022
Jan 11, 2022
 
Rated: 4.07 by irishkyle21 from Canada (ON)

Jan 05, 2022
 
Rated: 4.35 by wattsd

Dec 28, 2021
Photo of taxandbeerguy
Reviewed by taxandbeerguy from Canada (ON)

4.14/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
473 ml can served cold into a tulip. LCBO purchase for about $5 CDN. Canned December 1, 2021. Listed as an IPA on the can not an APA. Appears to have been brought back from semi-retirement.

Appearance - Super pale maybe even translucent yellow, golden straw colored beer with loads of haze. A crisp finger of white head is poured on top with some frothiness and the head recedes very quickly.

Smell - Some mango, dank gym socks, weedy qualities too with hints of grapefruit and stonefruit.

Taste - Juicy stone fruit with peaches and nectarines most prominent. Hints of mango and a subtle grapefruit kick with some light weediness. Definitely a juicy brew and quite flavorful and very well put together.

Mouthfeel - Medium bodied, soft and fairly light carbonation and very light feel for a 6.4% ABV brew.

Overall - Delicious IPA that hides its weight oh so well. Delicate and fairly sweet brew with it's soft carbonation is crushable, but drink these too fast and you'll likely end of on the floor and of much lighter wallet. These are great, but ain't cheap. Still highly recommend getting a few before they're gone.
Dec 15, 2021
 
Rated: 3.99 by groleau from Canada (QC)

Dec 17, 2017
 
Rated: 4.09 by leitmotif from Romania

Dec 03, 2017
 
Rated: 4.28 by byronic from Canada (ON)

Oct 12, 2017
 
Rated: 4.45 by kevinlater from Canada (ON)

Sep 26, 2017
 
Rated: 4.69 by StormAles from Canada (ON)

Sep 25, 2017
Monogamy - Citra from Bellwoods Brewery
Beer rating: 90 out of 100 with 43 ratings