Samuel Adams Sample B - IPA
Samuel Adams (Boston Beer Company)

 

Poured this into a Sam Adams perfect pint glass. It was one of the better looking IPA's I've had. Poured a little darker than I expected but still a nice amber/brown/orange color. It was a little hazy and had a thick foamy head that provided excellent lacing to it. The smell was pretty good, like most IPA's it was dominated by hops, pine hops in this case. The taste was ok, nothing special for an IPA. It was sufficiently hoppy and had a small malty flavor to it. The mouthfeel and was pretty average overall. Mouthfeel was a bit heavier than I expected and had a pretty dry and bitter finish from the hops, not very clean. Drinkability was pretty average for this style as well. All in all it was an ok beer, I think I'm glad Sample A got picked to move forward.

Appearance:
Pours a clear medium amber with a creamy head that falls to a film and leaves spotting on the glass.

Smell:
Smells of sweet malts, caramel and ripe fruit. Has a light nose of hops and alcohol.

Taste:
Very full flavored with malts, caramel and fruit. Hints of hops and a light bitter finish. Great balance.

Mouthfeel:
Lightly carbonated, smooth and creamy. Medium bodied.

Drinkability:
If I could find more of these, I'd definitely drink more of them. I don't know what the story is behind this beer but I hope it goes mainstream.

Comment:
Another brew found in the mixed bag from my uncle. This is a winner.

A-medium amber with a thick white head that leaves some great lacing and stays around for a while. Small ropes coming from the center of the glass.

S-Pine, tropic hop aromas, a little bit of a fig malt profile and it BILLOWS out of the glass. I could smell the entire thing from cracking the bottle.

T-Way more malty than i thought it would be, which is amazing considering all of the hop that was in the nose. Has a semi dry finish, with some nuttiness and a slight citrus in the finish.

M-Chunky, but not annoyingly so. Has a lasting finish that had a lot more flavor than i was anticipating.

D-very smooth, although i dont know the alcohol content. Had a very curious atmosphere to it that didnt have a lot of hop on the palate like the nose would suggest.

Poured from bottle into a small plastic serving cup.

Nice clear amber color, without as much hop aroma as I would have expected from an IPA, but still has a nice aroma.

Sweet malty taste up front that develops into a strange hoppy finish. Not bad mind you, but strange. Almost seems like earthy Britsh hops, and citrusy American hops are fighting for control in this beer. Also there was a present estery flavor imparted by the yeast, which I felt ehanced this beer.

It seemed to me the intention was to make this beer more like a traditional English IPA, but using a blend of hops from all over the world, but thier chosen blend didn't meld right. Definetly not a bad beer, but the Pils was the clear winner.

Poured from a 12. bottle into a tasting cup.

The color was a nice amber gold color with some light white foam, head no lacing.

The smell was a bit light, a slight hoppy bitter smell at first, hints of sweetness in the nose.

The taste is a bit sweet with some tart fruitieness to this beer.

The feel was light but full bodied. This beer was not the one that I picked for The beer lover's choice since it did not seem to have as much flavor but was still a decent beer experince.

An ale with hop varieties from three different hop growing regions of the world according to the bottle label,I actually preferred this over the pilsner.Poured into a standard pint glass a clear rich bronze color with a thinner slight off white head atop.A mix of caramel/biscuit malt and citric hop in the nose,a little light but a nice mix.Good balanced flavors of sweetish caramel malt and piney,citric hop that lingered nicely in the finish.There was a bit of herbalness in the hop profile as I darnk more giving it really nice hop complexity.I think it was a fine pale ale with nice balance and complexity,I hope it comes out in the future.

Nice orange, copper color here. Not much head since it was poured in a small cup. Smells of hops and malt here. Medium body.
It reminded me of the Boston Lager with a little less bite at the end. I didnt vote for it becuase if this. Though it didn't taste that bad.

2oz sample poured in a plastic cup at a 2009 SA Beer Lover's Choice tasting - Big Z Beverage Huntington, NY on 8/1/09.

Orange color with a beige head.
The smell is strong citrus hops.
The taste is good and well balanced.
Medium bodied with good carbonation.
Yeah, it's drinkable.