The Bridge (Down With The Koz)
Interboro Spirits and Ales
- From:
- Interboro Spirits and Ales
- New York, United States
- Style:
- American IPA
- ABV:
- 6.3%
- Score:
- 88
- Avg:
- 3.92 | pDev: 10.46%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 2
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Jun 18, 2018
- Added:
- Jun 26, 2017
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 3
SCORE
88
Very Good
88
Very Good
Brewed in collorbation with LIC Beer Project, dank IPA with cascade, nugget and Citra hops.
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Reviewed by JerzDevl2000 from New Jersey
3.64/5 rDev -7.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.64/5 rDev -7.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Picked this up when it was released last year, having never had this before. I loved the idea behind this beer as I've driven over the Bridge in reference many times and it's demolition happened right around the time that this came out. In addition, LIC is in Queens and with these guys in Brooklyn, was fitting given that that's the two Boroughs that the Kosciuszko connects. I wish that this beer was up to par on the novelty scale, as it was quite unmemorable when all was said and done; although it wasn't even close to being a drain pour...
The pour to this was a bit underwhelming as the liquid was murky, muted, and gold with a bit of floating sediment in it. Not a lot to the head and the same was true for the lacing as there wasn't a lot left on the side of my pint glass as I worked my way through this. A bit of citrus juice and cream was found in the nose as there was more sherbert, chalk, and faint sweetness in the taste. Not as smooth as I would have liked, this seemed a bit dry and gritty and not as slick or juicy as I was hoping for. Faint Citra Hops and muddled dankness remained on the aftertaste but there just seemed to be something missing here...
Not a lot of booze in this meant that it went down as smooth as could be but not as effortless as I would have liked. Dated 6/28 with "IS OVER" written above it, this was not bad as much as it just didn't live up to the lofty standards that these two have set. Maybe it should have just been imploded!
Jun 18, 2018The pour to this was a bit underwhelming as the liquid was murky, muted, and gold with a bit of floating sediment in it. Not a lot to the head and the same was true for the lacing as there wasn't a lot left on the side of my pint glass as I worked my way through this. A bit of citrus juice and cream was found in the nose as there was more sherbert, chalk, and faint sweetness in the taste. Not as smooth as I would have liked, this seemed a bit dry and gritty and not as slick or juicy as I was hoping for. Faint Citra Hops and muddled dankness remained on the aftertaste but there just seemed to be something missing here...
Not a lot of booze in this meant that it went down as smooth as could be but not as effortless as I would have liked. Dated 6/28 with "IS OVER" written above it, this was not bad as much as it just didn't live up to the lofty standards that these two have set. Maybe it should have just been imploded!
Reviewed by Jugs_McGhee from Texas
3.14/5 rDev -19.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
3.14/5 rDev -19.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
"The Bridge Down With The Koz" Double Dry Hopped India Pale Ale.
6.30% ABV. Collaboration beer between Interboro and LIC Beer Project.
CAN: 16 oz format with standard pull-tab. Green label design. Canned 6/28/17. Purchased earlier tonight at Interboro for $18 per 4-pack.
No mention of the hops used on the label.
Served cold into a nonic pint glass.
APPEARANCE: Has an average head and a below average body. Head is predictably white in colour, with okay creaminess but not much frothiness; lacks a robust consistency and recedes somewhat quickly (within 2 minutes), leaving no lacing. One would expect better head retention in a mere 6.30% ABV IPA...
Body is ugly: it's a murky dull hazy yellow-copper. Stale looking and uninviting, lacking vibrance and life. No yeast/lees are visible within. I have nothing against the haze craze in IPAs, but so often it seems like an excuse to avoid the effort required to filter a beer resulting in these lifeless appearances.
Appears aptly carbonated. Not a great looking IPA by any stretch, and below average overall.
AROMA: Lemon, honeydew melon, orange marmalade, citrus creamsicle, cantaloupe, maybe some faint Mosaic. I think I find some oniony aromatics (suggesting maybe Simcoe) but then I think it's all in my head. No bitterness accompanies the hop aromatics. Pale malts are backgrounded.
The tropical fruit bend and low bitterness indicate this is what the kids like to call a New England style IPA, and that's all well and good but it suggests a decent American pale ale at best, lacking a pungent or assertive hop profile and any noticeable alcohol or bitterness. The fruitiness is nice, but this aroma is not in line with IPA conventions. Going bigger on the hops and malts would help this seem like a proper IPA instead of a mellow APA.
Aromatic intensity is subdued for an ostensible IPA.
I detect no off-notes or overt alcohol, nor any yeasty notes.
TASTE & TEXTURE: Drinks like a mellow American Pale Ale blended with tropical fruit juice, suggesting more an almost radler-like beverage than an IPA (or even a beer). Bitterness is minimal and the chosen tropical fruit-leaning hops are nice but lack pungency, depth of flavour, and punch.
Mellow honeydew melon and cantaloupe are prominent, with subsidiary notes of vaguely citrusy creamsicle, a blip of lemon, and more melon still. No piney, resinous, bitter, rindy, grapefruity, or oily hop flavours here.
Uncomfortably pulpy and sweet on the finish - easily its worst attribute.
Not a juicy beer in terms of mouthfeel (like many of these so-called New England style IPAs), but a refreshing, mellow, and approachable one with apt carbonation and a pleasant smooth and wet texture. Not succulent, but soft. Not crisp or oily like many IPAs.
Not gushed, hot, boozy, astringent, harsh, rough, or scratchy.
The ABV is oddly low for a contemporary IPA, and - again - this is really more of an American Pale Ale than anything else.
Mouthfeel doesn't elevate the beer as a whole, but its softness does play decently with the melon flavour at the heart of the beer. A juicier more refreshing feel would do wonders, and it's a bit too light in body to really support its hop flavours with oomph. A little thin, a little weak. Overall presence on the palate is subpar.
Not imbalanced given what's there, but I'm not sure its timid body and shallow pale malt backbone could withstand the pungent hops this needs.
OVERALL: Not a bad brew by any means, but not a true-to-style IPA either. Tastes like a fruity APA at best. I'll enjoy finishing my 4 pack, but like most Interboro IPAs I've tried it's not worth its high pricetag and I'd definitely prefer a better priced and more widely available IPA like Ballast Point Sculpin, Lagunitas IPA, Deschutes Fresh Squeezed, or the like. When even Sculpin is priced better than you, you know you've got to reign it in. I'd like to see both breweries involved dispense with the already tired "double dry hopping" marketing schlock and improve their rudiments.
C+ (3.14) / ABOVE AVERAGE
***
07/10/17 2nd impression from another can:
Aroma is of lemon and vague tropical fruit. I could easily mistake this for a radler if offered it blind.
Taste is similar, evoking a mocktail instead of a beer proper. Has some interesting creamsicle leanings, but by and large it's subpar and inexpressive for a beer intended as an IPA.
Has crisp overcarbonation, which limits its ability to refresh and reduces its drinkability.
Not my favourite Interboro beer, and a lackluster attempt at an IPA. Judged as an American Pale Ale, it's decent but not impressive. Even giving it undue allowances for being a so-called New England style IPA (a categorization I still resist), it falls short; at least many in that purported category are expressively juicy and have memorable hop profiles.
In spite of my criticisms, it's certainly above average outside of style conventions.
C+ / ABOVE AVERAGE
Jul 09, 20176.30% ABV. Collaboration beer between Interboro and LIC Beer Project.
CAN: 16 oz format with standard pull-tab. Green label design. Canned 6/28/17. Purchased earlier tonight at Interboro for $18 per 4-pack.
No mention of the hops used on the label.
Served cold into a nonic pint glass.
APPEARANCE: Has an average head and a below average body. Head is predictably white in colour, with okay creaminess but not much frothiness; lacks a robust consistency and recedes somewhat quickly (within 2 minutes), leaving no lacing. One would expect better head retention in a mere 6.30% ABV IPA...
Body is ugly: it's a murky dull hazy yellow-copper. Stale looking and uninviting, lacking vibrance and life. No yeast/lees are visible within. I have nothing against the haze craze in IPAs, but so often it seems like an excuse to avoid the effort required to filter a beer resulting in these lifeless appearances.
Appears aptly carbonated. Not a great looking IPA by any stretch, and below average overall.
AROMA: Lemon, honeydew melon, orange marmalade, citrus creamsicle, cantaloupe, maybe some faint Mosaic. I think I find some oniony aromatics (suggesting maybe Simcoe) but then I think it's all in my head. No bitterness accompanies the hop aromatics. Pale malts are backgrounded.
The tropical fruit bend and low bitterness indicate this is what the kids like to call a New England style IPA, and that's all well and good but it suggests a decent American pale ale at best, lacking a pungent or assertive hop profile and any noticeable alcohol or bitterness. The fruitiness is nice, but this aroma is not in line with IPA conventions. Going bigger on the hops and malts would help this seem like a proper IPA instead of a mellow APA.
Aromatic intensity is subdued for an ostensible IPA.
I detect no off-notes or overt alcohol, nor any yeasty notes.
TASTE & TEXTURE: Drinks like a mellow American Pale Ale blended with tropical fruit juice, suggesting more an almost radler-like beverage than an IPA (or even a beer). Bitterness is minimal and the chosen tropical fruit-leaning hops are nice but lack pungency, depth of flavour, and punch.
Mellow honeydew melon and cantaloupe are prominent, with subsidiary notes of vaguely citrusy creamsicle, a blip of lemon, and more melon still. No piney, resinous, bitter, rindy, grapefruity, or oily hop flavours here.
Uncomfortably pulpy and sweet on the finish - easily its worst attribute.
Not a juicy beer in terms of mouthfeel (like many of these so-called New England style IPAs), but a refreshing, mellow, and approachable one with apt carbonation and a pleasant smooth and wet texture. Not succulent, but soft. Not crisp or oily like many IPAs.
Not gushed, hot, boozy, astringent, harsh, rough, or scratchy.
The ABV is oddly low for a contemporary IPA, and - again - this is really more of an American Pale Ale than anything else.
Mouthfeel doesn't elevate the beer as a whole, but its softness does play decently with the melon flavour at the heart of the beer. A juicier more refreshing feel would do wonders, and it's a bit too light in body to really support its hop flavours with oomph. A little thin, a little weak. Overall presence on the palate is subpar.
Not imbalanced given what's there, but I'm not sure its timid body and shallow pale malt backbone could withstand the pungent hops this needs.
OVERALL: Not a bad brew by any means, but not a true-to-style IPA either. Tastes like a fruity APA at best. I'll enjoy finishing my 4 pack, but like most Interboro IPAs I've tried it's not worth its high pricetag and I'd definitely prefer a better priced and more widely available IPA like Ballast Point Sculpin, Lagunitas IPA, Deschutes Fresh Squeezed, or the like. When even Sculpin is priced better than you, you know you've got to reign it in. I'd like to see both breweries involved dispense with the already tired "double dry hopping" marketing schlock and improve their rudiments.
C+ (3.14) / ABOVE AVERAGE
***
07/10/17 2nd impression from another can:
Aroma is of lemon and vague tropical fruit. I could easily mistake this for a radler if offered it blind.
Taste is similar, evoking a mocktail instead of a beer proper. Has some interesting creamsicle leanings, but by and large it's subpar and inexpressive for a beer intended as an IPA.
Has crisp overcarbonation, which limits its ability to refresh and reduces its drinkability.
Not my favourite Interboro beer, and a lackluster attempt at an IPA. Judged as an American Pale Ale, it's decent but not impressive. Even giving it undue allowances for being a so-called New England style IPA (a categorization I still resist), it falls short; at least many in that purported category are expressively juicy and have memorable hop profiles.
In spite of my criticisms, it's certainly above average outside of style conventions.
C+ / ABOVE AVERAGE
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