Stone Coast 420 IPA

Brewed by Sunday River Brewpub and Restaurant
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Bethel, Maine USA

355ml bottle, from mug. No bottle date; sampled Dec ’06. A hazy, pale copper color with a rocky, off-white head leaving heavy, ringed lace. Aroma of grassy hops and hay. Medium-bodied, with an oily texture and mild carbonation. Flavor of grapefruit and piney resin, with a dry, bitter finish. I really enjoyed this, too bad I only bought the one bottle. I hereby recommend to myself that I buy more, and I shall heed that recommendation.

Urinal oranges and soap-malt aroma. medium amber with tufty off white head. grapefruit semi-artificial more malty, no 420 flavor or aroma, soap. meh. some finish bitter, some stinky.

Bottle (12oz). Mostly clear amber with a solid frothy/rocky off-white lasting head. Odd aroma of milky grain, peach and apricot fruitiness, weak resin hops. The taste resolves itself nicely - VERY bitter (no specific hop character, just bitter), lightly funky and grainy, no fruit like in the nose. Decent body, incredibly astringent, just slightly lively mouthfeel - long bitter finish, very bitter long-lingering aftertaste. Sort of one-dimensional, but I really enjoyed drinking it down - was looking for more.

Discovered this beer at a store in Mass. Great flavor, very hoppy. Truly a bold beer.

12 oz bottle from City Market in Burlington, VT, served a bit above fridge temp in a Unibroue glass on Halloween, on my porch under the stars. Stable, rich and thick off-white head topping a hazy apricot body leaves thick lacing....piny-citric nose is typical, nothing out of the ordinary though quite strong and fresh, eventually redolent of oaky vanilla after some warmth comes....pleasant if, again, fairly standard flavor profile, moderate hoppiness through the big fat malty body, hints of vanilla and light pie spices, full and thick with low to moderate carbonation, nicely unfiltered and yeasty....this doesn’t set out to break any new ground but hits all the right notes for just your basic American IPA; a very nice session beer for a cool fall night.

(draft @ The Old Toad - Rochester, NY) Rich golden color with a thick off-white head. Aroma is loaded with hops and citrus. Flavor reflects the aroma with lots of floral hops and a very present citrus flavor underneath. Very bitter and hoppy at the end with a lingering hop aftertaste.

Clear orange pour with a thin white lace. Very nice aroma of grapefruit. Nice lacing on the glass. Flavor is fresh but not harsh. Fruity and hoppy. Nice.

The 420 IPA pours a medium yellow/light amber color with a white, fizzy head. Good lacing follows the head as it diminishes. Clear, still body. Aroma is of light, flowery hops. Initial taste is light sweet, finishing a light bitter. Light body with a watery texture, soft carbonation buzzes around the mouth. Reviewer’s notes: "Not my favorite IPA, but it’s an IPA, so it can’t be all that bad"