Darlin's IPA
Winter Hill Brewing Company

The house signature beer, but not always available. An excellent WC style IPA. Pours amber with a light tan head and decent head. Citrusy more than resiny taste and good bitterness on the backside.

 

 

 

 

 

On tap at Winter Hill Brewing in Somerville, MA.

This one pours a slightly hazy golden yellow color, with a small head, and a good amount of lacing.

This one smells like clean and sticky pine, pineapple, weed, and light maltiness. This appears like it will be a on the more old school side of things.

My suspicions were unsurprisingly confirmed, as this is definitely West Coast in feel. It’s got a clean pine bitterness and some very light malt sweetness. There’s a touch of pineapple and grapefruit as well.

This is light bodied and pretty nicely crisp, with a great amount of drinkability here. This is pretty refreshing.

This seems to be their flagship beer. That’s a good choice as it represents the brewery well.

 

Poured from a can, 3 weeks old.
Pretty good IPA. Nice smell and flavors of dank hops with citrus rind and pine resin over a light caramel malt base.
Classic feeling with solid bitterness and slick hop resin quality.

Glad I picked it up, would be happy to try more from the brewery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I feel like I've drunk this beer about 40 times over the last year, with different names, from different breweries, all over the Greater Boston Area - light, but not watery, fresh tropical fruit on the nose, a kind of washed out lemon fruit on the front and a middle weight pithy finish, with a lovely texture that suggests a really delicate pilsner, more than an IPA. I have increasingly come to think of them as Fenway IPAs, ales made for the sort of person who really likes Summer, and makes a big deal out of going to sporting events. That's not bad, or anything, and you could happily pound a few of these down without thinking about it - but I *like* thinking about my beer, and there's nothing in this beer that stands out from any number of local competitors - if it is the cheapest, and it's warm out, go for it! But I couldn't imagine drinking this at home.

 

Surprisingly smooth and easy drinking. Not a cloudy beer - nice more traditional east coast style. Good hop presence though - a little mute on the nose but really nice candied citrus rind tempered by the morning bun malt.

Finally get to try a beer from Somerville's own Winter Hill Brewing. They recently started canning, so I'm hoping to find them in more frequent distribution soon. First two I've seen have been this and their Russian Imperial Stout. Decided to give a single of this a shot before the RIS to see if it stands out in the crowded, competitive market for pale ales in Massachusetts... if it's good, I assume they'll knock a big ol' stout out of the park!

This pours quite nicely, with a deeper-than-expected golden-amber pour that builds upwards and upwards with intense, fluffy foam. After half of my 16 ounce can was poured into the glass, four or five fingers of controlled suds presented atop this beautiful brew. It's not an overly-hazy beer, and the hue is nice, so I wouldn't say it fits the "NEIPA" trend at all, which is bold for a smaller, new brewery from the area this trend originated from. I had no idea what this was going to be like going in, and the first impression has been quite solid so far.

The scent is pretty classic IPA, honestly... bright, sticky citrus fruitiness melds with pine resin and a little bit of herbal/menthol, spruce and grassiness once the grapefruit and tangerine-like oily hop notes fade out from the initial burst. A touch of dankness unfolds as this opens up a bit, but it kinda feels overall more old-school than most things around the MA area these days. Impressive nose. Very clean and feels well-dialed-in. Seems like they brew this one more than others according to their website, so that makes sense.

Very punchy flavor profile with crackery, clean pale malt backed up by a resinous bitterness and sharp citric aftertaste. The mid-palate is awash with oily goodness which presents as a melange of light tropical fruit (papaya, passion fruit) and slight dank/fresh berry notes. IBUs are listed at 35 on the brewery's website, but that seems strangely low for this one... I was downright smacked in the face by hops upon my first sip.

The mouthfeel is right around the sweet spot for the modern IPA style; not too heavy and not too light with a modest, pillowy carbonation and smooth-leaning palate. Some lingering bitterness gives this one a consistent vibe during a session... it's not a flavor bomb of any kind and it probably won't blow your mind, but it's well-rendered and very drinkable with an approachable flavor profile that successfully bridges the gap between the older IPAs of yesteryear and the myriad of modern interpretations.