Six Degrees Of Collaboration: Seattle Beer Week (2014) IPA
Elysian Brewing Company

 

 

 

22oz bottle at 41 F poured into a large snifter. Bottle code is 08014380. My last beer was a Double Jack, which I love, so I might be a little biased. But, I finished that about two hours ago.

Pours fairly hazy, with a smallish head. Amber-orange in color. Smell is good, but not stellar. Mild hay, some citrus and fruit.

Taste is a little bit juicy with a nice heavy bitter finish. Not super tropical, but a little tropical. Lots of good stuff, but not enough of it to be awesome.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied, slightly gritty. Overall, pretty good.

The beer pours a light peachy orange color with good head retention and lacing. The beer smells every bit as nice as it looks, as I pick up some dry citrus, a hint of pine, and some light dank earth. The beer smells as if it will be a fairly dry IPA in the West Coast style, and on the palate, sure enough it is. The flavor profile replicates the nose in this nicely hopped, well balanced IPA. There's a nice juiciness to this beer that I like, with the beer imparting just enought sweet tropical fruit on the mid palate to handle the hoppy bitterness. The finish is dry and fairly bitter, and the finish is clean and fairly long. Mouthfeel is medium bodied at most, and drinkability is exceptional. The alcohol is very well integrated into the flavor profile.

Very nice IPA. I wouldn't having a glass of this around the house every now and again.

Thanks Nick!

 

Bottle opened on 4.14.14
Seattle Beer Week

A - Pours a clear light orange with a fine off-white head with good retention.

S - Subtle pine and citrus, very light.

T - Light pine and lemon, a touch of watery in the finish.

D - Good carbonation with a light body.

O - Pine and citrus, no bitterness, but a bit watery.

 

 

 

 

 

22oz bottle commemorating Seattle beer week. Served in pint glass. Beer pours impressively pale, yellow golden, with a few big bubbles rising to the surface towards a pleasant white head. Ample pine resin aroma. Interesting that none of these 6 Cascadian brewers decided to use a malt with any particular caramelization on it. First sip is intensely carbonated but yields a pleasant hop bite, fulfilling the green promise of the nose. Drinkability suffers due to lack of balance as well as the overly carbonated mouthfeel. The 6 strains of yeast seems like an unnecessary gimmick, and not surprisingly, this IPA is totally dried out. But I don't mean to say this beer is bad. There are some great, fresh hop flavors here. We do love our hops here in Seattle...

 

Poured into a Seattle Beer Week pint glass. Pours a light to medium coppery amber with one finger white head with decent retention and nice lacing. Aroma of lightly caramel malt, citrus hops, slight tropical fruit. Flavor is mild biscuit malt, very citrus forward hops, lemon drop citrus (do I detect some Beaktweaker hops influence from collaborator Black Raven?), grapefruit rind, a hint of pine; finishes with a moderate citrus hop bitterness. Medium bodied. A very nicely made IPA with an emphasis on citrus hops, which is somewhat surprising considering that this is listed as six hop varieties. Similarly, the malt body supports the hops nicely, but really stays in the background, equally interesting considering the six malt complement. Fresh tasting and moderately hoppy and perhaps the most fresh lemon citrus taste I've had in a IPA since the before mentioned Beakteaker. I usually prefer a maltier body for my IPAs, but the fresh hops and natural citrus flavors are winners here. Clean, straightforward and refreshing, especially for a six way collaboration.

22oz into a tulip. Pours a clear honey straw color w/ a nice frothy head, patchy lace, lively carb. Looks really great.

Aroma is clean grapefruit and other citrus, some pine too. Smells bright, clean and fresh. So far so good.

Taste is likewise crisp and dry, citrusy with a nice neutral biscuity pale malt backbone. This is how I like my IPAs, with the focus squarely on the hops. Crisp and drinkable, with a sharp bitter finish.

Mouthfeel is light to medium bodied, with a dry finish.

Across the board, I really like this beer. It's straightforward clean hop flavor with no excessive sweetness, booziness, or malt to get in the way. Very nicely done.