The last couple weeks have been pretty crazy… my grandpa passed away and I had to deliver his eulogy, the kids started school, my son’s cross country season started, my daughter auditioned for a holiday show, and I got a new job within the same company I work at now. My sister gave me several beers she picked up in and around St. Louis, and this was one of them. The label says it’s a tropical IPA fermented on Mandarin oranges, and that it was canned on 5-7-18.
Location: Poured from a can into a Sam Adams Perfect Pint glass at my home in Bloomington, IL.
Numbers: 6.7% ABV, ? IBUs, ~200 Calories
Appearance & Aroma: It’s a pale yellow, straw-like color and extremely hazy. It had a huge, rocky head when I poured it, that fell after a few minutes to a thin layer of bubbles across the top. It has a lemony-orange aroma citrus aroma.
Taste & Feel: The body is light-medium and the mouthfeel is smooth with a slight crispness from the carbonation. The flavor up front is a lightly malty citrusy flavor with a good amount of spiciness. The orange flavors grow in the middle and become somewhat sweeter. The bitterness grows quite a bit in the finish, with mostly orange flavors and citrusy bitterness, both of which last for a minute or so in the aftertaste.
Food Pairing: This beer has a lot of orange flavor, and therefore, I’d probably pair it with something like a porkchop or Chinese food.
Overall Impression: This beer has a lot of orange flavor, and reminded me a bit of adding orange juice to an IPA. The orange flavor wasn’t quite as bright and clean as other tropical flavors I’ve come to expect in IPAs – such as pineapple or mango – and I found the spiciness up front a bit off for the style. Overall, it was a decent beer, it just wasn’t one with a flavor I’d go for again.
My Rating: 
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