Aprihop - Dogfish Head Brewery

Vitals:

Name: Aprihop

Style: American IPA

IBU: 50

ABV: 7.0%

Gravity: ??

Purchased at: Riley's Wines of the World

Descriptions:

Appearance: Pours a deep garnet color, slightly brownish even (depending on the light). A finger of tan head that has decent retention, lacing, and cap. The color seems somewhat unique and the beer is translucent with little visible carbonation.

Smell: As indicated by the name, apricots and citrus hops (only slightly for the hops) are on the nose. There is a very strong malty presence in the background. Overall this smells like it will be quite balanced, and not quite as hoppy as most IPAs usually smell. I'm thinking this will be an interesting beer to drink.

Taste: I didn't think I'd ever say this about an American IPA, but this beer is slightly imbalanced in favor of malts and I actually LIKE it! The sweetness persists throughout the beer with the apricots and malts. Citrus and piney hops linger on your tongue when you're finishing up the drink. One of the biggest things about this beer is it hides the 7.0% ABV SO well. This is an extremely well-balanced solid tasting beer - I wouldn't drink it all night, but it's a refreshing take on an American IPA.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied, even somewhat creamy...perhaps a tiny bit heavier than the style usually is. Not much carbonation, which gives you very smooth drinking. Slightly resinous, but not too much that it'd detract from people who don't like that sort of thing.

Overall Grade: B+ (A- on inventiveness)

Comments: This is a very nice American IPA; a nice change from the normal hop bombs that largely define the style. Too bad they (Dogfish Head) don't distribute to WI anymore :-(. This is definitely worth a try if you want something different, and if you want to try an IPA that's not too hoppy!

Cheers,

Hurls