City Steam Innocence Ale (IPA) | City Steam Brewery Café
Brewed by:
City Steam Brewery Café
Connecticut, United States
citysteam.biz
Style: American IPA
Alcohol by volume (ABV): 6.00%
Availability: Year-round
Notes / Commercial Description:
Be forewarned: One too many of these babies and you'll be seeing double! This traditional IPA is anything but what the name suggests. Bookended between a lush abundance of sweet malt and bitter hops, this fine American INDIA PALE ALE is made for (and approved by) serious beer drinkers! Our third and most recent bottled offering, it is available in stores throughout Connecticut. Brewed to a gravity of 18 Plato, it boasts an international menagerie of expensive hops, including CTZ, Zythos, East Kent Goldings, and, oddly enough, Czech Sazz. Our Brewmaster sazz you need to come in for a taste.
Added by far333 on 05-13-2003
View: Beers | Place Reviews | Events
Ratings: 134 | Reviews: 29
1.25/5 rDev -66%
Enriquehopnog, Nov 25, 2013
2.63/5 rDev -28.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 2.5
Freshest keg on tap at the brewery:
Pours a lovely deep amber with copper hues. Pillowy white head that never dissipates fully. Solid lacing.
Aromas of super sweet caramel and toffee. Some grassy floral hops and a very small hint of pine and citrus.
Taste starts watery, then very sweet. Lots of caramel and toasty toffee. Very sweet sugary flavor. The hops start in the middle, solid bitterness but no discerning flavors really. Very muddled. Too much going on for one hop to shine through. Just not good at all.
Mouthfeel is medium, heavily carbed, good drinkability.
Not something I want more of. I struggled to finish the pint. I've seen this in the stores for 11.99 a six pack. You'd have to be pretty high to think that's a good deal when mediocre ipas of the same ilk are less, as are much much better ones.
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look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 2.5
Freshest keg on tap at the brewery:
Pours a lovely deep amber with copper hues. Pillowy white head that never dissipates fully. Solid lacing.
Aromas of super sweet caramel and toffee. Some grassy floral hops and a very small hint of pine and citrus.
Taste starts watery, then very sweet. Lots of caramel and toasty toffee. Very sweet sugary flavor. The hops start in the middle, solid bitterness but no discerning flavors really. Very muddled. Too much going on for one hop to shine through. Just not good at all.
Mouthfeel is medium, heavily carbed, good drinkability.
Not something I want more of. I struggled to finish the pint. I've seen this in the stores for 11.99 a six pack. You'd have to be pretty high to think that's a good deal when mediocre ipas of the same ilk are less, as are much much better ones.
818 characters
2.84/5 rDev -22.8%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
not very good. Poured from bottle into glass.
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look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
not very good. Poured from bottle into glass.
45 characters
2.91/5 rDev -20.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
A - super clean crisp pecan brown color, with a half finger offrothy head that a careful pour prevents, and that fades to a ring in a minute or two, active small carbonation bubbles
S - sweetly hoppy, slightly citrine, some hoppy mustiness, rather nondescript, but crisp and
inviting
T - dry hoppy flavors of blended characteristics, typical pine, floral, or citrus don't stand out, slight mustiness persists, more of an earthy kind than a gross wet basement kind.
M&D - slightly bitter, without any malt sweetness to balance, uncomplex and unchallengeing, but enjoyable and easy to drink. On the sessionable side, a great BBQ beer.
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look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
A - super clean crisp pecan brown color, with a half finger offrothy head that a careful pour prevents, and that fades to a ring in a minute or two, active small carbonation bubbles
S - sweetly hoppy, slightly citrine, some hoppy mustiness, rather nondescript, but crisp and
inviting
T - dry hoppy flavors of blended characteristics, typical pine, floral, or citrus don't stand out, slight mustiness persists, more of an earthy kind than a gross wet basement kind.
M&D - slightly bitter, without any malt sweetness to balance, uncomplex and unchallengeing, but enjoyable and easy to drink. On the sessionable side, a great BBQ beer.
637 characters
2.93/5 rDev -20.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
Appearance: high carbonation, 1 inch head, hazy, amber in color
Smell: pine and citrus hops with light caramel
Taste: grapefruity citrus hops dominate with piney and earthy hops along with bready caramel
Mouthfeel: Bitter with light sweetness and a dry bitter aftertaste, light body, high carbonation
Overall: An average IPA that is on the bitter side but true to style. Not bad, but nothing distinguishes this one from countless other IPAs I have had. I will pass on this in the future.
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look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
Appearance: high carbonation, 1 inch head, hazy, amber in color
Smell: pine and citrus hops with light caramel
Taste: grapefruity citrus hops dominate with piney and earthy hops along with bready caramel
Mouthfeel: Bitter with light sweetness and a dry bitter aftertaste, light body, high carbonation
Overall: An average IPA that is on the bitter side but true to style. Not bad, but nothing distinguishes this one from countless other IPAs I have had. I will pass on this in the future.
491 characters
3.16/5 rDev -14.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25
Just like the Brewers best double ipa kit
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look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25
Just like the Brewers best double ipa kit
41 characters
3.21/5 rDev -12.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
“Born on date” of 7-31-2012, consumed on 9/29/12, poured into a Corsendonk tulip (my standard taster). The six-pack carton states an ABV of 7.5%.
A – Light copper with a white head that recedes quickly. Left some frothy lace on the glass as I sipped.
S – Malty sweetness, a hint of alcohol. Some resiny hoppiness in the nose, but not much. Is this one beyond its prime?
T – Sweet malty start with wave after wave of bitterness. A slightly piney, but very resinous bitter finish that really lasts. The sweetness lingers as well. Plenty bitter, but not a ton of hop flavor. But even with all that bitterness the malt really holds its own.
M – A bit sticky with medium to full-bodied mouthfeel. Appropriate carbonation.
O – Both my wife and I thought that the flavor profile was not unlike an aged barleywine, a la Bigfoot, just less boozy-and that’s not a bad thing. Still, I’ll wager that this one was more enjoyable 6 weeks ago. I’ll have no problem finishing the sixer, but I hope I have the opportunity to try a fresh one. At $13 for the six I was expecting more.
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look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
“Born on date” of 7-31-2012, consumed on 9/29/12, poured into a Corsendonk tulip (my standard taster). The six-pack carton states an ABV of 7.5%.
A – Light copper with a white head that recedes quickly. Left some frothy lace on the glass as I sipped.
S – Malty sweetness, a hint of alcohol. Some resiny hoppiness in the nose, but not much. Is this one beyond its prime?
T – Sweet malty start with wave after wave of bitterness. A slightly piney, but very resinous bitter finish that really lasts. The sweetness lingers as well. Plenty bitter, but not a ton of hop flavor. But even with all that bitterness the malt really holds its own.
M – A bit sticky with medium to full-bodied mouthfeel. Appropriate carbonation.
O – Both my wife and I thought that the flavor profile was not unlike an aged barleywine, a la Bigfoot, just less boozy-and that’s not a bad thing. Still, I’ll wager that this one was more enjoyable 6 weeks ago. I’ll have no problem finishing the sixer, but I hope I have the opportunity to try a fresh one. At $13 for the six I was expecting more.
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City Steam Innocence Ale (IPA) from City Steam Brewery Café
3.68
out of 5
based on 134 ratings.