West Coast IPA
Structures Brewing

Slight haze on the amber brew with a big foam up in the Belle-Vue nonic. Aroma of citrus and mango. Bright and spritzy on the tongue. Taste is dark citrus with malty sweetness and a hint of onion. Tangy finish with moderate acidity. Fruity and simple with an ample bitter finish and a woody note. Overall quite pleasingly quaffable. The label says simply "Brewed with our favorite PNW hops." From the 16 oz can purchased at the Community Co-op.

Poured from 16oz can into a dimpled mug. The label has been updated - it's now a great big ol' crab.

Appearance: light golden hue with a moderate haze and a couple fingers of frothy ivory foam atop.

Smell: a bit sweet, with a dash of pine and a fair bit of orange zest and a dash of a dank quality. I like it, although to me the aroma tilts a little more New England than West Coast.

Taste: malt is a little on the sweet side with a light orange zest character and a little bit of pineapple; bitterness is moderate. It's not bad, I suppose, but some of the flavors could be turned up a bit.

Mouthfeel: medium body with a decent carbonation and creaminess.

Overall: a perfectly quaffable IPA, but not one I'm likely to come back to.

16oz tallboy can received courtesy of BBThunderbolt. No freshness date, and damn little identification what it is or who brewed it on the can (the beer name and brewery is printed in small black lettering on a dark blue label. The only clear item on the label is a silver overhead depiction of a crab). Only detail I could see re: it's composition is a note on UnTapped that indicates it was dry hopped with Columbus, Citra and Mosaic.

Poured into a mug, this was a clear golden amber, with a decent sized, sudsy off-white head that didn't stick around all that long. Very little, spotty lace.

Aroma is of mildly grapefruity and piney hops.

Tastes pretty much like the aroma. It's mildly piney and grapefruity, and while it technically matches the markers to be a WCIPA, it's nevertheless kinda meek. Maybe I'm too indelibly stamped with the taste of the old school examples of the style. Perhaps Citra and Mosaic don't quite complement the Columbus.

Medium bodied, with a somewhat oily mouth feel. Seems a tad undercarbonated, though.

Seems like this was pointed in the right direction but it doesn't quite gel. Kinda low in amplitude for a WCIPA. Without a date, I can only guess how old it is, so maybe that's the issue. I'd give it another shot if I encountered it on tap somewhere, and perhaps it'd make a better showing.

 

16oz can (no date) poured into 14oz teku. Poured a densely murky yellow color with over an inch of white head that good retention and light lacing.

Some pine and citrus hops at the front of the nose, with just some low grain in the background.

Similar on the tongue, with a nice hit of bitterness on the finish.

The body was light-medium, had good carb, and had nicely dry finish.

Drinkability was good, I could drink a couple more of these.

Overall, a solid take on the style. Worth a shot if you see it.