Hops Don't Suck Series: Nelson IPA
Stumblefoot Brewing Company

 

 

Pours a bright golden orange color with a thin white head. Right away I get hints of Nelson in the nose. White grape, herbal, slight tropical notes. I also get some citrus in there. Taste follows the nose for the most part. Unfortunately it feels like the Nelson gets taken over by the other hop variants in here as well. You get Nelson up front but it seems to die out pretty quickly. Nice malt backbone at the end. Bitterness is maybe a bit higher than what I'd like for a beer that's about showcasing hop variants. Mouthfeel is light and crisp. Carbonation is medium-high. Overall, not too shabby. I've had other beers in this series, and admittedly they were both sitting on shelves for a while so I didn't get a good sense of what the beer was actually like. This is definitely a better indication.

 

 

Clear amber with plenty of white foam in the Crooked Line tulip. Vast aroma of flowers and something indefinable but deeply fruity. Sharp and clean. Some spritzy carbonation but a surprisingly thin body. Hot with alcohol.

Hoppy enough for a double IPA, but not quite so strong. Sweet and malty but quite tangy. Orange flavor with a grapefruit peel finish. Moderate bitterness, but the dog comes back to bite in the aftertaste. Kind of a knife in the tongue after some sipping. From the 22 oz bottle purchased at Bine & Vine for $7.69.