India Pale Ale
Bass Brewers Limited

 

 

 

Poured from the bottle into a glass.

Clear orange rust color.

Huge off-white head; nice lacing.

Light pine hops & bread-y malts in the nose.

Thin mouthfeel.

Crisp, clean, almost lager-ish flavor. Quaffable but not very flavorful. Hot summer days only.

Got on draft, served with a thick short lived head. It had decent lacing and a clear golden color. Not a distinct smell and a slightly watery taste. Not bad,and it went well with clam chowder.

 

 

 

Taste like a watery mix drink

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Frankly, I am unsure as to where this came from. It might have been a part of the last box courtesy of my local, in-person trader, tone77 or I may have bought it as part of a mixed sixer. At any rate, I am working to reduce some of the backlog.

From the bottle: "Brewed in the tradition of William Bass Brewers Limited"; "This fine Inidia Pale Ale has been brewed in the Great British tradition using traditional English Fuggle hops"; "Iconography - from the makers of the original Pale Ale comes Bass India Pale Ale. Made with all malt and a blend of imported and domestic hops, including the traditional English Fuggle. Bass IPA is then dry-hopped in aging tanks for a remarkable aroma. Perfect for anytime you want to enjoy an intensely satisfying beer."

My initial, aggro pour created just under two fingers of fluffy, tawny head with good retention. The sticky lacing that it left in its wake was magnificent. Color was a deep-amber (SRM = > 9, < 13) with NE-quality clarity. Nose smelled remarkable in that earthy way that Fuggles imparts. This was definitely an English IPA, but I was down with it. Mouthfeel was medium and between the earthiness of the hops and the biscuity quality of the malts, this had a much spicier taste than I expected. It was quite tasty, with a sort of peppery bite, especially on the finish. Speaking of which, I would characterize it as semi-dry to dry. This was probably one of the best iterations of the style that I have tried. Muy bueno!

 

 

Presentation: It was poured from a brown 12 oz bottle into a pint glass. The label lists the abv at 6% and there is a short description of the beer as well.

Appearance: Bass IPA has a honey amber color with a slight haze and some visible carbonation. On top sits a tall frothy head. The head is light tan in color and long lasting which makes some slick lacing on the glass.

Smell: It has a very nice sweet malty character with some bready notes and notes of caramel, honey, coffee. Further off in the background I get some mild herbal and very mild citrus hops.

Taste / Palate: The flavor doesn’t quite live up to the aroma but it still brings a nice balance of hops and malt. (If you are looking for a big tasty hop bomb you won’t find it here.) There is a nice mellow bready maltiness up front and though out with mild hop bitterness coming in late in the finish. These hops add citrusy orange pith like bitterness.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pours clear copper color with a thick 2 finger foamy tan head that did not budge for a while and left very good spotty lacing and rings as it went down.

Smells of caramel, floral hops, graham cracker, bread and some light honey; not the hoppy IPA nose like the American IPA’s but still nice smelling.

Taste is also lighter in the hops than expected, but rich and full of malt and caramel, with floral hops, graham cracker, bread, herbs, a touch of honey, very mild spices, grass and some sweetness like brown sugar or toffee; tastes good, but very far of course even for an English style IPA.

Mouthfeel was medium bodied to almost chewy, with average carbonation, a buttery to watery feel and a sweet malty after-taste that was slightly bitter. A nice beer and one I’d have again as it reminds me of a good English beer to drink while playing darts. Not one to satisfy your hop fix, but decent overall.