Honeyman 25
Comrade Brewing Company

i have missed a lot of these in a row now, its been ages since I had a honeyman, but this one seems muted compared to what I remember from earlier batches, like the hops are maybe lower dosed or more common and familiar in terms of varietals. it tastes like a solid west coast ipa that I have had a thousand times before, nothing to set it apart, and not as bold and robust as I am used to in the hoppy stuff from comrade, who can really bring it when they choose to. its clearish, a shade deeper in color than golden, and looks good in my pint glass under an inch of airy white whip. it smells and tastes like mosaic or equinox in the lead maybe, with an oily slickness to it and a fresh kind of dank vibe, weedy but not real pungent, orange and lemon notes, but not real fruity, faint canned pineapple on the back end, and just enough bitterness to balance, it could be a lot of other beers, kind of a model ipa, but generic at the same time, as well made as it is. this could be like a grocery store brand ipa, imagine that, safeway ipa or something. Its approachable and fresh, and if you like hoppy beer, this will of course appeal to you, but coming from comrade, its only middle of the road in terms of excitement. i thought this was supposed to be an experimental series? if there are experimental hops in here, they arent all that different...