Alahovin IPA
Alahovin Viinitila Oy

Expectations are low given my previous experience with Alahovin Pale Ale.

BOTTLE: 33cl. Brown glass. Appealing but simple green label design. Lime-green pry-off crown cap (unbranded). Best before: 02/16.

Reviewed live as an IPA per the label. Served cold into a mason jar in Kuopio, Finland, where it was purchased at a supermarket.

No bubble show forms as it's poured.

Like with Alahovin's pale ale, beer surged upwards immediately upon opening; she's a gusher. Overcarbonation and/or infection is anticipated.

HEAD: Off-white, with an uneven thin consistency, poor frothiness, and a weak complexion. Retention is average - ~2 minutes. Leaves no lacing as it recedes.

BODY: Hazy nontransparent gold-copper. Somewhat dull. Has a raw wort-like appearance and honey hues. Appers overcarbonated. I see no yeast or sediment, but it definitely seems unfiltered. Not a clean appearance by any means.

A lackluster look for an IPA. Even the typical clear copper would be preferable.

AROMA: Rotten apples, wheat, stale biscuit and pale malts, and hints of cider; maybe cane sugar was used? It smells like bad homebrew, to be frank. To say the hop profile is inadequate would be an understatement; there's barely any hop character at all, and what little is there evokes only generic fruit.

The yeast profile isn't clean at all, and I find mild funkiness suggestive perhaps of infection. Seems too acidic to boot.

Aromatic intensity is below average.

TASTE: Cidery - both in its reprehensible apple hop profile and its cane sugar-like homebrew taste. The hop profile offers nothing of interest aside from the apple (which isn't even vivid or expressive) - no floral notes, pine, resins, citrus, juicy fruits, spruce, et al. The malt build is similarly lacking; I find only generic pale malts and cheap barley.

Yeast has lost control of this beer; funky notes of infection have replaced yeast as the primary fermenting agent. Not a clean flavour profile by any means. Its murky structure coupled with its poor taste make it unenjoyable.

TEXTURE: Overly acidic and overcarbonated - both characteristics lent by the infecting bacteria/wild yeasts. Smooth, wet, and sharp, going well beyond crisp into biting territory. Oddly full-bodied, with no deep or interesting flavours to justify that. Strangely hefty and weighty on the palate to the extent that it's overbearing.

OVERALL: I'm surprised this made it to market, to be honest. It's not a gestalt build, there's no harmony (or even a basic correspondence) of/between texture and taste, and there's clearly something off from the moment the cap is cracked. Alahovin needs some serious upheaval - or at least some basic QC. Not only is this a laughable attempt at its intended style, it's also a fundamental failure as a beer of any variety. Difficult to drink given its low quality. This is a definite Avoid.

High F (1.74)