25th Anniversary IPA
Rubicon Brewing Company

A: Translucent orange, very pleasing to look at, with a white head.

S: Nose is too faint to discern anything. Meh.

T: Orange, pine tangerine, quite tasty.

M: Medium bodied and tingly in a good way.

O: After tasting this beer, it was disappointing that there was such a faint nose. Perhaps it was the glass they served it in at the brewery. Recommended for the flavor, and hopefully you can try it in something akin to a snifter or the DFH IPA glass.

 

 

Consumed on July 31st, 2013. Poured into a Samuel Adams "perfect pint" glass.

Beer is a light-to-medium yellow with slight haziness. Two finger off-white head is made of fine bubbles and is on the nice side of creamy. Proper lacing/sheeting in evidence.

Aroma is grassy, piney and herbal with a touch of dankness. Some sweet orange and floral perfume as well.

Flavor begins with a deliberately modulated pale malt base; a little bready, a little caramel. Most flavor comes a split second after, when the hops take over. As goes the nose, so goes the palate. Bitterness sort of rises up after each sip and never completely fades away while staying in the tolerable range for the duration. A sight more complex than your average IPA, but not outstanding.

Mouthfeel is sharp and a little prickly while also managing to be slightly creamy and thick.

Overall, this has the character of a nicely-executed homebrew. There's some kind of "pro" touch that's missing here, a subtlety or something. Not a winner in the IPA race, but a placer that finishes in the front half of the pack, anwyay.

bomber to a pint glass, no bottle date

pours a nice balanced gold (maybe a little towards yellow) with two fingers of foam. excellent retention along with good lacing as well. transparency is about 90%, barely any cloud at all. there's not much not to like about the look on this one

smells of a even balance between malts and hops. the hop profile leans more towards an earthy and floral scent than it does fruits and citrus. strong spicy caramel malts distract from the hops. also a bit of alcohol which can't help pull it together much. nothing too impressive with the aroma

taste is close with the smell, stronger malts though for sure. again, no real fruit exotic hop character, more floral and earthy tones serve the spicy caramel malt that stands out the most. not terrible, but pretty strange for a west coast ipa

feel is a nice medium body, sticky dry finish. alcohol isn't too detectable, finishes with a bit of a spiced kick. once you get used to that it starts going down pretty easy

overall this is probably the oldest brewery I've never heard of. there's nothing special about this one, worth the $5 I paid though. the hops seemed a bit subdued, maybe I needed to try it fresh. worth a try if you can find it around my price

 

It's pretty impressive that Rubicon is still brewing after 25 years, not many other places can say that. Congrats!

Very nice looking pour. Bright copper color, nice and clear with a thick and rocky white head.

Aromas are resiny up front. Some nice pine, caramel, and a general earthy hop note.

Taste has a hard candy sweetness up front, some light caramel, and a cracker maltiness. Finish is resiny, earthy, with a pine bitterness. While the beer in general tastes pretty good, it lacks some hoppiness.

Mouthfeel is good, nice full body, with cutting crisp carbonation.

Overall, a decent beer. It tastes more like an amped up Pale instead of an IPA to me though.

 

 

Bottle acquired yesterday at Sunset Beer Company. 22 fl oz brown glass bottle with branded pressure cap served into a conical Samuel Smith's pint glass in me gaff in Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California. Expectations are above average; I haven't had much from this brewery but I could go for a good IPA. Reviewed live.

Served cold, straight from the fridge. Side-poured with standard vigor as no carbonation issues are anticipated.

A: Pours a five finger beige colour head of nice thickness, decent cream, and good (~5+ minute) retention. Body colour is a clear fairly vibrant pale copper. No yeast particles are visible. No bubble show. Pretty standard for an IPA; there's nothing unique or special about it. I don't notice any obvious flaws.

Sm: Floral hops, grapefruit citrus ester hops, and fresh piney hops. Pine is dominant. Pale malts. Clean and fresh. No yeast character or alcohol is detectable. An average strength aroma. Malts redolent of grainy graham cracker. The hop choices here are interesting and different from your typical California IPA, but I'm not certain it's for the better based on the aroma. Seems balanced, in any case.

T: Hm. Lots of piney hop character up front yields to a more tropical fruity hop character at the midpoint. Generic bland pale malts provide the simple base. A bit of grapefruit. Noticeable hop bitterness on the finish. Lightly soapy; this spent a biteen too long in primary. Light noticeable alcohol. No yeast character comes through. The bitterness/sweetness is all over the place at different points in the structure - and it never quite gets it right. A poorly balanced forgettable IPA, all around. Meh.

Mf: Smooth and wet. Artificial thickness. Strangely rough; it's not soft or pleasant but it's also weirdly slick. Overcarbonated. Okay body. Too wet, methinks. Doesn't suit the flavour profile well. Below average presence on the palate. Doesn't feel like the brewer's in control here.

Dr: A forgettable IPA from Rubicon. Not a very impressive beer at all; seems they're just cashing in on the anniversary beer fad. And here I am, the sucker who bought it. Touche, Rubicon - but I won't be picking it up again. Very pedestrian and overpriced. I wouldn't recommend this to friends, and I wouldn't want another.

C-