Baker's Double
MudHen Brewing Co

Can states 8.5% alc/vol

 

 

 

Mudhen Brewing Co. "Baker's Double"
16 fl. oz. can coded "DOB 02/13/22 WAKE AND BAKERS"
$4.29 @ Total Wine & More, Cherry Hill, NJ

Notes via stream of consciousness: It's poured a dark amber colored body with some visible particulate in suspension below a finger's width of off-white foam. The aroma is floral, malty and caramelish, and citrusy. It's not bright but it's clear, and for the most part double IPAs tend to be The taste is much fuller. This is an old school Imperial IPA with some caramel malt which is a nice change of pace, not that I don't love NEIPAs, it just that you just don't come across beers like this too often anymore. It's sweetish, grainy, caramelish, honeyish, fruity with apple, and hoppy with floral notes, grapefruit, tangerine, peach, lemon/lime, and soft pine. The alcohol has a minor presence but adds a light touch of spiciness. That spiciness, in combination with a firm bitterness, leads to a dry, fruity, piney, and spicy finish that lingers. In the mouth it's medium bodied and a bit dextrinous, and gently crisp and then smooth across the tongue. The head held up very well and it's left some very nice lacing, but mainly at the outset. All in all I find this to be a very respectable, mostly old school American IPA that's been livened up with the addition of modern hops.
Review #8,289

Sometimes nitro can add to, and sometimes it can distract from a beer’s charms.

Here, offering it on nitro appears to have been a great call. I didn’t take very detailed notes on this beer, but I did make sure to mention a perfect juxtaposition of the alcohol with the smoothness nitro, which didn’t distract from the complexity of this flawless DIPA.

(Since this was part of a flight, I am not going all out on appearance, mouthfeel, etc.; I am just sharing my subjective impressions, as noted in my phone while at the restaurant.)

 

 

 

12 oz. pour on draught at the brewery. Served in a snulip glass. It pours a murky, dirty tangerine color with a half finger of creamy, eggshell-colored head and a thick film of lacing inside the glass. The appearance is very NEIPA. It's an attractive pour. The smell is rather subdued but carefully considered includes lemon, grapefruit, pineapple, honeydew melon, and floral hops. Its taste opens with tart, bitter lemon peel and grapefruit rind, with more subtle notes of ripe melon. The malty backbone is strong. The hops are bitter (95 IBU) and biting and it finishes dry and clean. Unfortunately, the brewery doesn't publish the hop bill. The mouth feel is thick and creamy with pleasant carbonation, and it drinks big for 8.4% ABV. Overall, Bakers Double is a solid DIPA - it's flavorful and pleasingly bitter. I enjoyed it with a very tasty crab cake and MudHen's homemade potato chips. If cans were available, then I would have bought a pack.

 

 

 

 

 

L: Brownish orange, light haze/unfiltered look, clean and consistent white head with consistent lacing.

S: Earthy grapefruit rind.

T: Heavy grapefruit rind and light ginger.

F: Dry.

OVERALL: Flawlessly textbook, perfectly balanced, no stylistic flaws such as greenness.