India Pale Ale
5 Stones Artisan Brewery

Picked up a four pack of pint cans (also from Central Market in Austin, TX). No date on the cans.

Pours a crystal clear golden copper in color with a finger thick, frothy head that dissipates rather quickly to a smaller layer of lacing that clings to the glass as you drink. Carbonation looks on the lower side without many bubbles rising up and some smaller bubbles appearing near the surface when the beer is swished around in the glass. I tend to prefer this kind of carbonation, so that looks enticing. Not the nicest looking beer, especially in the head department, but it does hint at some balance.

Aroma is primarily hops. Lots of citrus, some evergreen pine and melon. There's also a butteriness from the malts lingering in the background which is quite pleasing. Not overly pungent, but what's there smells fresh.

Hm, interesting. A bit underwhelming on the palate. Getting a lot of fruitiness from the hops along with some sour/earthy notes. Kind of reminiscent of noble hops. There is also the pine and citrus as noted in the aroma along with some hop spice towards the swallow. Not much from the malts coming through, which is disappointing. I'm on the fourth and last can of this. I drank the first, my dad drank the second, I drank the third last night and now I'm reviewing this last one. The quality from can to can seems to have changed as I quite enjoyed the can I had last night where the malts came through a lot more. That one tasted a bit creamy/buttery. This is more like the first, feels a bit off. My dad reported liking his, though I'm not sure what it tasted like. Maybe a consistency issue? Nevertheless, going to rate based on this last can which is disappointing.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with lower carbonation that has a bit of bite on the swallow -- very much into that carbonation profile. There's a bit of chewiness here, and one of the cans even felt quite creamy, although this last one is a touch thin. Very drinkable.

Well this one was a mixed bag. Had I reviewed the can I had last night, this probably would have been straight fours across the board, but the other two cans I had were much less enjoyable. That's a bummer. This is definitely the worst beer I've had from 5 Stones and based on this tasting I wouldn't seek it out again in a can, but would be curious to try it on tap. Cheers!

16 fl oz can from Central Market, Austin, TX, USA:

C / AVERAGE