Pelican India Pelican Ale

Thanks to Juancho. I’m visiting Juancho in Atlanta an it has been a beer festival. Great brew, perfect hoppiness and a very clean taste.

6/17/2007: India Pelican Ale pous a nice, clear golden orange color. There is a two-finger ivory head that is dense, rocky, long-lasting, and leaves interesting pictograph-like lacing on the glass. The aroma is citrus and pine with some toffee maltiness. The flavor is clean and satisfying with lots of grapefruit and pine hops, a moderate bitterness, and just enough toffee maltiness to provide the necessary balance. There is a long, pleasing bitter finish hightlighted by citrus (grapefruit and tangerine) hop flavors. This is an extremely easy to drink IPA despite its higher alcohol content (no alcohol is noticeable in the flavor!). This beer has a medium-full body and is very smooth and mellow on the palate. India Pelican Ale is an excellent IPA.

22 oz bottle from trade with kenb (Oct 2006). Thanks Ken. I appreciate it! Rating #173 for this beer...

From a 22oz Bottle. Purchased at Whole Foods in Portland, OR. Pours a filtered, crystal clear color of coppery gold with shades of peach skin and a thick, rocky head of white foam. Streams of bubbles rise from the bottom of the glass, generating sensational bursts of cascade hop aroma. Clean, citrusy nose with a twist of herbal spice; it’s like sticking your nose directly into a freshly opened package of cascade hops - no other description could come close to doing this justice. Light bodied, crisply carbonated mouthfeel that’s dialed in to the perfect level to lighten up the palate even more than it already is. Loads of herbal, mildly spicy hops pucker on the tongue on contact, as if licking the inner rind of a white grapefruit. This gives way to an interesting talcom-like biscuit maltiness, lightly toasted. All the while, the grapefruit lingers, and regains full control of the palate as the subtle maltiness fades. Alcohol is well hidden in the dry, refreshing finish. Frighteningly sessionable for a 7.5% beer. The hop utilization is exceptional, bringing out intense bitterness, flavor, and aroma without any one trait dominating. If I had one complaint about this beer, it would be that the malt character gets dominated a bit too much by the incredible hops. A little bit more soft breadiness or light caramel notes might help soften up the dry, powdery malt character that comes through mid-palate. However, there’s no denying that this, as is, is a damn fine IPA.

bottle. copper. rising bubbles to thick off white head. nice fresh, citrus hop and rich malt aroma. lively palate. very nice balance. dry hop, citrus and rich. big bitter finish. very solid.

bottle courtesy of sbnw1111 shared @ Coles Buffalo NY. Huge hop aroma. little soapy, Citrus with nice malt flavor to smooth things out. one of the btter IPA’s out there.

Bottle: Pours golden color with big sticky white head. Some malt flavor up front but primarily hop bitterness. Pretty high level of bitterness. Some spicy earthy notes, touches of citrusy fruit rinds and most of all strong piney hops flavor and aroma. Finishes dry with lasting hop bitterness.

Clear light amber with a thin, solid head. Hop aroma jumps from the glass - heading more towards the mature, woody US hop end of the spectrum and away from the raw freshness that I know this stuff can have, but it’s there with a similar aroma to that of lupulin glands rubbed on your fingers. Lychees, tangerines and pine all get a run with a touch of that sweetish US malt aroma you get in a lot of these IPAs. The hop flavour seems a little subdued and the malt sweetness comes through reasonably well, but it’s still skewed towards hops. Oily, hand cream hop flavour and icing sugar maltiness followed by a big, aggressive, clean bitterness. Really good, but I’ve had this stuff fresh and it’s even better.

This was a very good IPA. I had it at the brewery in Pacific City. The waitress warned me of the hoppyness, but it was still easy and smooth to drink. Will be asking for friends to bring this to Ohio.