Iwatekura IPA
Sekinoichi-shuzou, Iwate-kura Brewery

 

 

Had this on tap in a pint glass at Vivo! in Ikebukuro, Tokyo. Cloudy dark wheat hue with a thin offwhite head. Medium impact hop scent with a bit of grapefruit and lime as well. Flavor follows the smell, a bit on the sour grapefruit side. Smell falls a bit short but the taste is right on for a bitter, sour IPA. Overall, decent flavor but a bit flat for Iwatekura I thought.

A- poured in a pint glass. Clear copper color. Not much head.

S- one of the few beers that doesn't have much on the nose.

T- very hopy, not too bitter. Definately some Iwatekura malt taste.

M- little carbonation, not much head. No lacing.

O- a decentammount of malt for an IPA. I think this is one ofmy go. To sesh beers in tko.

A nice copper color. The head was medium sized, had a nice "chunky" texture and a vaguely odd color ... not really white or tan, but somehow a speckled slightly purplish color?!

Smell not aggressive, but nice.

The taste initially struck me as being kind of weak and watery, but with a nice malty sweetness, and some mild fruitiness, followed by a deep, well-defined, and tasty bitterness while swallowing. There was little obvious hop taste other than the bitterness, maybe a bit of "floral" character (I'm not really sure why this is classified as an "American IPA" as it doesn't really seem to resemble one...I certainly didn't detect much hint of citrus or pine).

The mouthfeel was quite good; even if the taste initially seemed a little weak, it felt satisfying in the mouth, with a slightly oily sensation and a nice fresh crispness when swallowing. Very easy to drink.

The "watery taste" issue was well-resolved by eating some food along with it, and the balanced play between sweet and bitter, and the nice drinkability made this beer grow on me. I ended up ordering a second pint, and would consider this a good beer especially with a meal.

Appearance: Beautiful orange-gold liquid with a light tan head. Lively looking carbonation

Smell: Standard rich hop aroma. Pine, citrus with a semi-malty backbone.

Taste: The malt profile provides a good foundation for showcasing the hops. The hop flavor evolves throughout the pint. The flavor began favoring pine flavors, then headed toward citrus toward the end. Flavor lingers well.

Mouthfeel: Medium body. Very creamy for an IPA. Dry finish.

Drinkablity: Tasty IPA. I will definitely seek this out for a session in the future.

Grabbed this one at the wonderful Club Popeye in Tokyo, in the company of my lovely wife and good friend Takahiro.

The beer arrives with a fairly classic IPA appearance - an amber liquid supporting a decent off-white head which laces well. The aroma is very subtle, containing floral hops and fruity notes (perhaps a hint of berry). The flavour is an excellent mix of floral and fruity, with the sweetness of the malts balanced by the bitterness of the hops. There's also some caramel in there and a faint touch of citrus. The flavour profile is quite simple, but satisfying.

As this is a cask ale, the body is just as it should be - medium and multi-layered with a satisfying feel. The casks at this bar seem to be very well maintained, and they seem to rotate at too quick a rate to go bad. An excellent cask IPA, and a fine brew to session over the course of an evening.

Sampled on tap at Popeye in Tokyo.

This IPA poured an orangish-amber color with good, tan-orangish foam that clung to the sides of the glass a little. The smell was faintly malty. The taste was good: fruity floral and bitter hops well balanced with malt. The mouthfeel was clean and crisp and hoppy. The body was medium. There was a nice hop presence in the finish and aftertaste. This was a very good and drinkable IPA.