Recursion
Bottle Logic Brewing

Served in a clear pint glass after being drawn from a tap. There's virtually no head, as that's the way we pour draft beers in Philadelphia. The color of the brew is brightly light copper-amber and save for its hue, nearly translucent. There's some hoppy aroma, of citrus and pine notes, but for a WCIPA, especially with Simcoe Hops included it's milder than expected. Sensations pick up a bit during the drinking. Although it's not overly bitter, certainly bitter enough to offend those that don't like hops, it's a taste delight of shared hop qualities. There's some citrus and plenty of piney and resinous aspects. For this style, the body is excellent. There's enough to provide a smooth and supple body to deliver the hops and a mild initial sweetness. But, it isn't so starchy that there's any interference with a expected taste from the style. There's even some glass lacing, more than expected because of the clarity of the beer. Finishing it off is also a treat, especially if the taste of hops is appreciated. Then, the stark bitterness appears to dry out the ending with a nicely sharp hop bite. Amazingly, the body manages to keep up with the transition, so even through the bitterness, there's a pleasant wetness to carry it all. This is a very good and interesting West Coast IPA and a welcomed find here on the East Coast.

 

 

 

 

 

Look: clear gold, lively carbo bubbles, white creamy head, lacing was heavy
Smell: piney, citrus, blueberry, herbal
Taste: piney, blueberry, grassy, pear, watermelon, bubblegum
Feel: med body, moderate carbo, stinging pine needles = excellent bitterness
Overall: 6.5% abv. 85 IBU. Knocked down two 16 oz'ers for this review and this brew is definitely all about the hops. Starting with the look, lively carbo, creamy white head and heavy lacing. Most excellent! A little chalky flavor on the first sips but this brew really took off after that. It's very piney and a bit grassy, maybe peppery too, with accenting fruit flavors. Blueberry prominent with pear, watermelon, and bubblegum. I absolutely loved the stinging pine needles bitterness sensation. My mouth was on fire! This is my kind of brew. Very impressive West Coast IPA. Glad I tried it and will be going back for more.

 

 

 

 

Pours yellow with a light haziness and a medium white head on top that goes away quickly. Strong fresh hop smell. Has a tropical mango and hop taste with a malty finish.

 

Poured a clear golden color with a fast-dropping white head that leaves a thin ring and patchy lacing. Some pours have a slight haze, others are brilliantly clear, but the overall look leans classic West Coast: bright, crisp, and golden.

Aroma comes across as dank and herbal first, with pine resin, earthy funk, and light catty grapefruit. Supporting notes include honeysuckle, tangerine, apricot, and grassy citrus. A touch of bready malt sometimes shows up, but for the most part the hop profile dominates. No real ester-driven sweetness, staying clean and sharp.

Flavor follows the aroma closely. Grapefruit rind, pine, resin, earthy dankness, and a bit of orange peel lead the way. A few drinkers found hints of caramel or light kilned malt, but most described the beer as noticeably lean with almost no malt backbone. Bitterness lands around medium, dry and fruity, but some wanted a firmer bite to match the old-school hop profile. Without more malt presence, the finish reads slightly sweet for a West Coast IPA and lacks the classic snap.

Mouthfeel is medium-bodied with solid carbonation, smooth and drinkable, occasionally even “juicy” despite its clear appearance. A few pours leaned flatter than expected, others felt crisp and bright. The beer stays refreshing throughout, never heavy or resin-bloated.

Overall:
Recursion IPA is a modern West Coast IPA that leans heavily on dankness, resin, citrus peel, and earthy hop character. The hop flavors are lively and interesting, but the beer’s extremely lean malt profile and softer-than-expected bitterness keep it from landing with full old-school punch. Still, it is clean, drinkable, and showcases its hop bill well. Fans of resin, grapefruit rind, and dank herbal hop notes will enjoy it, especially if they prefer a stripped-down IPA that lets the hops do all the talking.

 

No date on can but presumably fresh (store got it in yesterday), into a wide wine glass.

Pours a clear gold with a quickly disappating ring of foam, but good lacing. Aroma is catty grapefruit and some pine, as well as dank, rotting earth. Flavor is similar, lots of grapefruit rind and some earthy dankness and a decent yet fruity bitterness that calls to mind an old-school IPA, without the malt backbone. Finish isn't as bitter as I would've wanted, it's a little too sweet and smooth for what the hop flavors suggest. There's no malt presence either, which I feel like would really make this one enjoyable. Feel is good, medium body with solid carbonation which cements it as a drinkable, smooth single IPA.

Overall, I don't like modern WCIPAs and this one needed more malt and bitterness on the finish to make me really happy. It's very lean on the malts and while the hop flavors are interesting, there's very little else to back those ideas up even if they are good.

 

No canned on date. Poured into a Samuel Adams Perfect Pint.

A: Clear gold with 1-finger white foamy head with below average retention and scant lacing.

S: Aroma is mainly dank, herbal, honeysuckle with lighter grapefruit citrus and no esters.

T: Flavor also dominated by dankness and herbal, earthy quality but some brighter tangerine and grapefruit citrus notes poke through. Clean with no appreciable esters. Bitterness is medium.

M: Not as dry as I would like to see this style of beer. Medium body and “juicy” - I wish it was leaner and drier.

O: Recursion IPA from Bottle Logic is a good IPA but could use a leaner profile feel-wise and bolder hop aromas and flavors.