Artisan IPA
Bowen Island Brewing Co. Ltd.

Artisan IPAArtisan IPA
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From:
Bowen Island Brewing Co. Ltd.
 
British Columbia, Canada
Style:
English IPA
Ranked #123
ABV:
5.5%
Score:
76
Ranked #27,382
Avg:
3.21 | pDev: 18.07%
Reviews:
25
Ratings:
52
Status:
Active
Rated:
Aug 26, 2023
Added:
Sep 11, 2010
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  16
Defined by its distinct flavour profile and higher level of alcohol, the Bowen Island India Pale Ale has a light golden colour and a hoppy aroma. You will notice a hoppy bitterness to begin with, followed by a medium level of maltiness and body. It finishes with a refreshingly fruity grapefruit flavour. This IPA will taste more reminiscent of your classic, authentic English IPA, rather than a North American style IPA.
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Ratings by joemcgrath27:
Photo of joemcgrath27
Reviewed by joemcgrath27 from Canada (AB)

3.36/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
A - bright clear golden, two fingers of soapy white head had decent retention
S - bread and tortilla grainy, faint leafy hops with a slight metallic
T - starts with buttery bread malt, then a mild leafy and grassy hop character, finishes with a crisp and slightly metallic note
M - well carbonated, lightly bready, dry's quickly to the point of puckering, and a metallic twinge comes through
O - not an outstanding IPA but tasty enough, and given the price it is not a bad value sessioner
Jun 09, 2011
More User Ratings:
Photo of LampertLand
Reviewed by LampertLand from Canada (BC)

3.62/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
Bowen Island Brewing 'Artisan IPA' @ 5.5% , served from a 6pack of 355 ml cans
A-pour is gold from the can to a clear gold in the glass with a fine spotty lace along the tulip
S-Galena , Nugget , Williamette , Apollo & Cascade - hops
T-crisp and clean English IPA , malt backbone dominates , slight bitter finish
MF-ok carbonation , medium body
Ov-barely worth the $10 a 6pack , not worth a revisit
prost LampertLand
Aug 26, 2023
 
Rated: 2.28 by charleskimmle from Canada (BC)

Oct 30, 2022
Photo of altstadt
Reviewed by altstadt from Canada (BC)

3.3/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Clear amber color. Poured a light tan head that quickly collapsed into medium sized bubbles and then dropped down to a thin skiff. Very few bubbles rising from the bottom of the glass. Left many small patches of lacing.

Sweet caramel malt scent with some mild yeast. Swirling the glass kicked up a mild barnyard.

Blend of caramel malt and a medium-strong bitter. A mild vegetal hop flavor comes in late. The aftertaste is dominated by the bitters, again with a mild vegetal hop flavor.

Some tongue tingling with a robust foam at first. Later on there is hardly enough carbonation left to get more than coarse bubbles going. Medium body. Slightly astringent.

Good IPA basics. No playing around with the latest hops or yeast flavors. Quite flat by the time you reach the bottom of the glass.
Jul 03, 2020
Photo of nutsofamily
Rated by nutsofamily from Canada (BC)

2.56/5  rDev -20.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
Thin, bland, min hop taste. On sale at liquor store, now I see why.
Feb 16, 2020
Photo of bradyn_ca
Reviewed by bradyn_ca from Canada (SK)

3.94/5  rDev +22.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
IPA reviews typcially score higher than easy drinking beers, and this review is no different.

It appears golden and ever so slightly tinted orange in a glass, it wants to be foggy but it is mostly clear amber. Normal carbonation, not much lace with a gentle pour. Fairly easy drinking as far as an IPA goes, it's on the easy side. The only thing that saves it is that the 5.5 percentage brings the IPA flavor forward. It honestly reminds me of a Richards Red that wants to be an IPA. Flavor wise it's not offensive and is the perfect candidate to pour as an introductionary IPA for friends. Naturally, served chilled and anyone who calls themself a beer drinker should be able to finish a few if you bust out a six pack, and it's easy on the wallet for a broke student as it's 10$/6. The cans have since been redesigned featuring what appears to be a boat being constructed with 5 men.

Value 8.5 / 10

Overall 7.5 / 10
May 20, 2019
Photo of VashonGuy
Reviewed by VashonGuy from Washington

2.94/5  rDev -8.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.75
This beer looks OK, with a golden-amber color, no head to speak of, and a bit of white lacing. However, it's downhill from there. The smell is minimal. The taste is over sweet (honey) and under hoppy. There's a tinny metallic finish to the beer. Overall, it's not pleasant, and I couldn't drink as much as half the 12 ounce can. The rest was a drain pour.

I see that some reviewers emphasize how cheap this beer is. Well, I paid nothing, as it was a gift from a friend who had been visiting BC and returned to Seattle. Even at free to me, I didn't think it was worth it!
Nov 05, 2018
 
Rated: 3.25 by Jotora from Canada (ON)

Jul 13, 2018
 
Rated: 3.68 by cknoch from Canada (AB)

Jun 22, 2017
 
Rated: 3.25 by schopenhauerale from Arizona

Apr 02, 2017
Photo of Dsage604
Reviewed by Dsage604 from Canada (BC)

1.48/5  rDev -53.9%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1 | taste: 1.75 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.5
This beer has few redeeming qualities other than being one of the few non-national brands in a small town liquor store and that it's cheap. Walking in, and knowing that Keith's "IPA" is anything but an IPA, one is compelled to seek the next craft-ish looking option that bears these three letters as a differentiator.

Bland and over-carbonated, a below average IPA, considering the abundance of local options.
Aug 13, 2016
 
Rated: 2.37 by boszormeny from Canada (ON)

Apr 08, 2016
 
Rated: 3.13 by deleted_user_1129916 from Canada (AB)

Apr 06, 2016
 
Rated: 3.35 by LDuke from Canada (AB)

Feb 27, 2016
 
Rated: 3.57 by BcCraft710 from Canada (BC)

Feb 16, 2016
Photo of Oliba
Reviewed by Oliba from Canada (BC)

1.98/5  rDev -38.3%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2
Take an ipa and add extra water to neutralize the hop profile and add some fake carbonation that doesn't come from any yeast profile and bingo you have a mildly disgusting drink like this one. Fortunately, it only cost me $7.99 for a six pack so I can't really complain that much.
Nov 18, 2015
Photo of seanorr
Reviewed by seanorr from Canada (BC)

1.49/5  rDev -53.6%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1.25 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 1.5
I signed up for Beer Advocate just so I could rate how bad this beer is. First, who cares if it's cheap? It's bad. Second, how can they call it artisan? It tastes like hop syrup was added to a Kokanee. It tastes metallic and chemically. It tastes like preservatives. I love IPA. I really do, but this is just a tease. Maybe that's the English-style part of it. It looks like and smells like it's going to be good, but it just doesn't follow through.
Sep 28, 2015
Photo of Olek4374
Reviewed by Olek4374 from Canada (AB)

3.62/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
A solid offering from Bowen Island. Not the hoppiest of their beers, but a pleasant flavour and attractive colour. Very inexpensive like all their beers, and you get your bang for your dollar with this. I would stop short of calling it a true IPA (just not that bitter), but it's a good beer nonetheless.
Aug 27, 2015
Photo of BMBCLT
Rated by BMBCLT from South Carolina

2.29/5  rDev -28.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.25 | taste: 2.25 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.25
H O R R I B L E !
Mar 02, 2015
Photo of Bunman3
Reviewed by Bunman3 from Canada (AB)

3.4/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
This is the first time I've tried this beer from a glass. Bowen Island makes decent beer that is incredibly well priced, so it is staple of summer camping trips. True, compared to other IPAs, this comes up short in the flavour category. However, this beer is a good introduction to the style. It is light in colour, has a nice foamy head, a bit of hops in the nose and taste. The finish is a bit tinny, but that is a small complaint considering how easy this beer is on your wallet.
Jan 18, 2015
Artisan IPA from Bowen Island Brewing Co. Ltd.
Beer rating: 76 out of 100 with 52 ratings