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I’m traveling for work today, and will be right around the Dallas Fort Worth Airport (DFW) the entire 21 hours we’ll be in Texas. We arrived around 5:30 pm, and as Steve, my co-worker, and I have traveled together quite a bit, the first thing he did was search for the nearest brewpub to our location. He found Uncle Buck’s Brewery & Steakhouse just north of the airport in Grapevine, TX. It’s in a huge shopping center, focused around a Bass Pro Shop. The building the brewery & steakhouse was in was very impressive, as you can see here from the outside of the place. As usual, after traveling, we were both ready for a beer.
As I’ve mentioned before, when I try a new brewpub or brewery, I will usually first try any bizarre, interesting, or unique beer they might have. Second, I’ll usually try their IPA or Pale Ale, because if you can’t get that right, I probably shouldn’t waste my time on the other beers. They had a couple seasonals – a Scotch Ale and an English Pale Ale – which didn’t sound too exciting, so I went for the Captain’s Choice India Pale Ale. The menu said, “an assertive American-style IPA brewed with a blend of Magnum, Amarillo, Cascade, Chinook, and Columbus Hops. 6.5% ABV.”
When it arrived it had an off-white, thick, creamy/soapy head on it and showed signs of nice lacing on the glass. The beer was orange in color and hazy. There was a heavy sweet citrusy an a little bit of earthy hop aroma with a bit of caramel smell.
The body was medium, and the mouthfeel was smooth and creamy thanks to the creamy head. The flavor seemed to be very sweet up front, with a mix of caramelly and citrusy sweetness. The sweetness continued through the middle and finish, with a bit more piney and citrusy hop flavors coming through. The finish and aftertaste were also sweet and citrusy.
I would probably pair this with some salty foods to help combat the big sweet and citrusy flavors in the beer. Therefore, it would probably go well with a burger and fries. I had a buffalo burger and fries, and it did help to cut the sweetness, making it more enjoyable. My friend was having the salmon, and he reported that the sweetness in the IPA cut right through the fish.
My friend thought the IPA was way too sweet and called the citrusy flavors, “cloying.” I certainly agree that it had a very, very citrusy sweet flavor, but I found it a little more tolerable than he did. It had a sweet hop flavor, rather than the traditional bitterness, and when combined with a healthy malt backbone, the sweetness was a bit too much. While I wouldn’t say not to try this one, it is an interesting flavor that isn’t for everyone.
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