Southern Hemisphere IPA
Schlafly Beer - The Tap Room

 

 

 

Schlafly's 20th anniversary celebrations come to a close with this Volume 4- a liberally hopped IPA that allows the brewers to show off their brewing prowess.

Opening with a golden, light copper hue, this hazy ale builds a creamy, almost dense egg shell white head that retains stubbornly and leaves behind pockets and rings of lace. It's the quintessential IPA look.

Bright and zesty hop aromas emit from the glass with heightened rates of pungency, citrus, and perfume. The hoppy elements of grapefruit, oranges, freshly mulled herbs and grasses all sit above the thin caramel scent that anchors the aromas.

Flavors take off with a balanced flavor of those caramelly tastes with citrusy hops. But soon after, the caramel malt flavors recess and the acidic flavors of white grapefruit (pulp and pith), orange zest, lemongrass, and pine all rise for a bright and refreshing taste. The beer continues to develop toward a slightly resiny bitterness in finish, however the beer never delivers the sharp punch of bitterness that most highly hopped IPAs do. With esters and phenol restrained, this zesty ale remains focused on hops with supportive malts.

Medium bodied to start, the beer's early carbonation allows for a creamy and softer introduction. But as the beer moves from mid palate to finish, the carbonation subsides and the resin dryness from hops provide a crisp, clean, and sharply refreshing finish with mildly bitter aftertaste.

Schlafly closes their year-long celebration with an IPA that showcases hop aroma and flavor well. With the mild hop bitterness, the beer is surprisingly fresh and bright without the throat gripping bite late.

 

 

Yellow and a bit hazy, pretty good looking for a cask beer, good head and lace.

Smells wonderful, nicely hoppy with a good malt background. Taste follows suit, the hops are so mellow but right up there in your face at the same time. A good woody note adds to the light but ample maltiness.

Body from the cask, as always, is perfectly Schlafly. I love this beer and this brewery.