Good Grape
Brewery ARS

32oz growler into a willibecher

Hazy, golden orange body with a two finger ecru cap. Significant lacing. Nose of passion fruit and pineapple. Inviting. Mango, passion fruit, and pineapple roll over the palate. Firm bitterness. Lush, medium body. Excellent overall beer. The flavors here are well integrated, bold, and unique.

Other breweries have incorporated this grape into an IPA, but none better than ARS.

 

Straight pour from a 16oz can to a tall, narrow pint (Green Cheek nucleated flute). No canning date, but from what I can gather this was released on June 15, making this beer 30 days old. Normally I’d be a little apprehensive reviewing a hop bomb a month old, just because I want to review it under best possible circumstances, but I think the gewürztraminer addition adds a twist that lends a less time sensitive dimension.

Appearance (3.5): Whoa, very active head right off of the pour: four fingers of custard-colored, fat-bubbled, crackly foam cap a just barely hazy, dark golden-tan body with orange undertones. The head dies down surprisingly slowly, given the coarseness of the foam, leaving just a ghost’s impression of wide, delicate, arcing lines of disintegrated lace.

Smell (4.5): A rich bouquet of a pending rainstorm, malted wheat’s fruity undertones, mellow earth and fresh grass, a hint of minerality and much more than a hint of tannic grape skin, light cannabis and a bit of copper immediately waft out of the glass. It’s girded by a gentle mixture of pilsner malt (I’d guess) and abundant floral tones, like fresh-plucked petals. I love all of the evocative, unexpected and gentle aromas I get from this.

Taste (4.25): Smartly, this beer shows gewürztraminer first, IPA second. Soft grape juice, rich earthy tones, and light toffee are balanced by a prominent minerality that calls to mind a touch of copper, fresh rain drops, and pinot grigio, tying in nicely to equally prominent grassy, slightly herbal bitterness, a touch of resin, and yellow grapefruit zest coming from the hops. It’s extremely well integrated. That grassy, floral bitterness lingers well into the finish, trailing off steadily and evenly. That grassiness helps to illuminate a doughy, slightly starchy quality to malt component, as well, evoking common crackers. No sign of booze whatsoever, which is nice for 7.5% ABV. Again, I’m just very impressed by how well integrated everything here is.

Mouthfeel (4.25): This washes in with a fat, fluffy, but dispersed carbonation that mingles with an equal quantity of smooth, fully medium-weight body. It quickly patinates the palate with a lightly starchy, drying bitterness, offering a little springboard for the carbonation to lift off and foam up modestly, but fluffily. No sign of booze, and the drying effect of the hops encourages the next sip.

Overall (4.25): This is a really solid, enjoyable riff on the basic American IPA. It’s not really West Coast, New England, Third Coast, or anything else—it’s a grape juice-juiced American pale ale with a slew of well-handled hops designed to make it an old school IPA, while complementing and never distracting from the nuances of gewürztraminer grape juice. It’s just its own thing, and I love it. Recommended if you’re looking for a subtle, thoughtful diversion from the average American IPA.