St. George India Pale Ale

Brewed by St. George Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Hampton, Virginia USA

I had this one on tap at the Harrisonburg beer and wine festival. It was simply labeled IPA. I enjoyed the sample I got, it was very flavourful with some very nice aroma and colour. I felt like it lived up to it’s IPA name without showing me too much out of the box. Good offering.

Head is initially small, fizzy, off-white, mostly diminishing. Body is medium amber. Aroma is moderately malty (cookie), moderately hoppy (flowers, apricot). Flavor is moderately sweet, moderately acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly sweet, moderately acidic, moderately bitter. Medium body, velvety texture, lively carbonation. Bit citric, but with a nice malt presence and nice mouthfeel.

bottle 3/13/05. Not what I would call a traditional IPA. Very good hops but kind of bland. Its flatness gives the beer a less bitter taste which appeals to me. Pours a medium white head and a yellowish amber color. No distanct smell. A dry finish medium bodied. Reminds me of a mild english ale. good brew.

Flavor is plain, un-IPAlike, and boring... to me, at least. Not really hoppy or malty, and no sweetness, or bitterness for that matter.

A caramel color with thin white head. A slight spicy hop nose. A fairly crisp citric flavor on this IPA. Not a memorable IPA, but very good and drinkable. An everyda IPA.

Coppery colour. Low alcohol content for a US IPA, but none the worse for that. In fact, it’s quite restrained on all counts for a US IPA. Then I saw from the commercial description that it’s 100% Fuggles, which perhaps explains it. Some modest flowery notes on the aroma. Noticeably citric flavour, but it’s not that sharp, or assertive. A decent, quite smooth, thirst quenching beer. Not a big beer, but quite nice for a session ale. On tap at the Green Leafe Cafe, Williamsburg.

This IPA shows off its hops the way a restaurant chef would highlight a main ingredient in a signature dish. Lots of attention is paid to put the Fuggles front and center. In the aroma and the taste, they come first, but this beer really comes through on palate. Full mouthfeel, with an initial wave of hops and the slight, sweet accompaniment of alcohol precede a long, smooth finish. Mild and restrained on flavor, but a slight soapy taste detracts a bit from the spiciness of the hops. A very good and inspiring IPA.

(12 oz bottle, obtained in trade with jasonp, thanks Jason!) I’m kinda liking this IPA. It’s not all that bitter or hoppy, but it has a very flavorful toasty maltiness that leads the way initially. A moderate hops bitterness shows more presence in the finish, but it barely manages to balance the malt even at that point, which isn’t necessarily a negative in my book. Fairly malty nose with considerably less hops aroma. Medium bodied, easy to drink, doesn’t push one’s palate too far. Medium amber in color and fully clear, which is expected since there is no sediment in the bottle. Off-white head is fairly small, despite my best efforts to inject more life into the head with a vigorous pour. The head fades to a sheen within 2 minutes, leaving almost no lace behind. Great flavor, and a nice nose, but too bad the other externals aren’t better.