Lil’ Bae Bay
Kona Brewing Co.

 

little session type ipa here, i think one of the ones only made at the original spot on the big island, such a cool taproom to visit, and a nice selection of non mainstream stuff, so we went a couple of times to dip in! this is overly malty to me, not super clean on the ferment, and a bit generic as the hops go, like more bitterness and generic hoppiness than actual aroma or flavor, so it was a little bit of a let down, and because of all the malt, it doesnt warm up very well, but beers warm up fast here, and so much of my pint was disjointed, a bit of a shame, but im maybe not wild about this recipe anyway. bronze toned liquid, a low glow to it, near clear, short and fast dissipating white head, unremarkable in the glass. the nose is a little toasted and sweet from the grain and so is the flavor, the hops are slightly dank and resinous and come with citrus to me, but its not clean or bright or of much interest, i fear this is overbalanced to a degree and comes across almost more as an old school pale, not way different to me than their hanalei island ipa, just without the fruit. quite a lot of minerals make it lean almost metallic, and its just not quite as bright and fresh and alive as i think the island vibes were asking for when we visited. still, drinkable enough, good with their many appealing appetizers here, and works in that just a beer space. uninteresting and one of the least impressive of all the kon beers we had on our trip however.