8-Bit IPA!
AntiVillain Ale Co.

Poured into an English pint glass, the appearance was a semi-hazy burnt copper color with a finger’s worth of white foamy head that fell off at a pretty quick pace. Sliding messy lace. The aroma had some hop spice - somewhat citrusy with a little bit of bread crust/biscuit maltiness. Little bit of earthiness, dried leaves and toast conglomerate at the end for the final blend. The flavor was malty sweet trying to pull the hops in but somewhat did in a damp sort of way which bled into the aftertaste and followed through in the finish. The palate was between light and medium bodied with a trying sort of sessionability about it. There’s some stickiness, but not cloying. ABV did feel fine. Carbonation felt fine. Overall, seemed like an effort by an American brewer to brew an English styled IPA but honestly didn’t exactly come together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Solidly amber in color with just a touch of haze. Small but lasting head which leaves decent latticed lace.

Very nice blended smell of caramel malt (like an English IPA) with a pleasant floral hop (more like an East Coast US IPA).

Starts mild with some toastiness on the tongue. The hop is straight up bitterness and stronger than I expected based on the smell. Highly carbonated and neutral in body. Long aftertaste, but again, the flavor is straight forward.

Overall, I do like this IPA. The interplay between the malt and hop is fun, but neither is very complex.

Pours a slightly hazy and light amber in color with a minimal off white head that quickly faded to only a few bubbles at the edges. It has an almost murky/muddy appearance. Aroma is almost completely devoid of hop presence with a fair amount of caramelly malts. Taste is like the aroma, hop flavor is low with only hints of citrus and a few floral notes. Caramel malt character is offset by a relatively high bitterness that has a touch of astringency at the end. Medium body and moderate carbonation. Overall a very mediocre beer. I found the hop presence lacking, the caramel malts a bit heavy handed and the bitterness out of whack. I do really like the label (which is the reason that I took a chance on an unknown and picked this up).

 

A- Snifter pour from the narrow 12oz bottle with a deep orange-amber body and a foamy off-white cap that rises to just about one finger high. Head falls fairly fast to a medium ring and lacing is in sheets.

S- Really not a whole lot to go by especially for the IPA style. A hint of orange citrus hops is trumped by medium caramelized malts and yeast bread notes. A bit toasty.

T- Fairly malty focus carries over from the aroma with cereal grains, toast, pale caramel and raw base malt notes coming out. Hops are more present in the finish with a heavy spicy and earthy presence as well citrus, herbal tea and floral hints.

MF- Texture falls somewhere between silky, frothy and a tad creamy in a medium body that leans just towards the light end. Carbonation is moderate and the finish contains an herbal bitterness.

A moderate malt presence interferes with the brightness of the hops in a fairly forgettable brew in an ultra competitive style. IPAs can be balanced but this one does not excel at that.

Poured from a 12oz bottle ($6.99/four-pack) into a teku:

Appearance: pours a bright copper-orange, with a thick, fluffy head. The body isn't quite translucent, but I wouldn't call it hazy either....somewhere in between. Leaves tons of sticky lacing.

Smell: disappointed in this area, as I didn't get all that much from the hops. I got some dry, crackery scent from the malt, and maybe a little bit of bitterness, but the hops were a disappointment in a style that definitely needs hop aromatics.

Taste: starts off with some nice, mellow fruit flavor. I got a little bit of melon, some pineapple rind. Orange pith, not so much the flesh. Lots of bitterness, perhaps a little bit over on the bitter balance. The magnum definitely comes through on the finish much more than the El Dorado, though both give this beer a distinctly bitter flavor. Not necessarily a bad thing, but it's not the en vogue flavor right now. Nicely balanced between malt and hops.

Feel: medium-bodied, with light to medium carbonation, and a semi-thick mouthfeel. Leaves a kind of dry, bitter finish.

Overall: a solid first IPA from a new brewery. Combined with the fact that half of all proceeds are donated to different charities, this'll be a solid purchase, especially at the relatively cheap price point.