Beer Review, Saranac India Pale Ale

Last night, after softball and the consolatory beers and wings at BW, went back to Kriddys and opened a bottle of Saranac India Pale Ale.

This one poured a golden yellow, it had thin fizzy foam that dissipated somewhat quickly, it was a pretty white color though.

I didn't notice much smell at all. The empty bottle had some resinous sap smell, but there was none of that in the glass. Kriddy at first said it smelled hoppy, then I was like "really" and she smelled again, and didn't smell anything. I stuck a spoon in it and stirred to release some carbonation, and built up a little head, but still there wasn't a strong smell.

It tasted sappy, piney, grassy. There was lots of hops, but the malt was also evident. As it warmed it started to lose the pine and was becoming more black peppery.

It felt rather thick, again the malt was very present. It was a well balanced beer. It was decent. There was a slight hops bite, but it wasn't too angry. The bottle says American IPA, but it's not too potent. There was almost too much balance between the malt and hops.

The top label of the bottle says:

A hop lover's delight! In the India pale ale tradition, this brew is very hoppy in both aroma and flavor from the generous amounts of Cascade hops used in brewing. Look for a medium to full body and golden straw color.

Hmmmm... was it an old bottle? It wasn't foul, the hops aroma had just dissipated. Was it mishandled; exposed to heat? It was a good beer, just wasn't hoppy enough.

I'd have this one again, hopefully a fresher bottle.