This beer is a particularly lovely shade of golden orange with a semi-sticky head that leaves a little bit of lacing, and a little bit will have to do for tonight. The beer isn't particularly opaque, but it's also not clear. Instead, it's a somewhat murky in between. That's my feeling tonight, so the look fits in well. The aroma is very much oranges and maybe some light spices.
First sip is surprisingly refreshing, smooth, and also relatively crisp. Even though the Bearded Iris guys tend to produce beers that look like fruit juice, this one actually tastes a lot more like it. This is citrus fruits with maybe some bananas and blueberries kind of tossed into the mix. It's not particularly bitter, so I guess the bread malt is doing its thing, but it's also not particularly sweet. The sip presents a very well-balanced beer.
Tip-in is sweet orange peel, light carbonation burn, lemons, and grass. The middle heightens the carbonation burn in the middle of the mouth, but the smooth oranges are joined by tangerines and a few more lemons to head down the gullet with alacrity. The finish is a slight turn up of carbonation as the grass comes a little more forward, and then a slightly bitter orange trail off says good night.
Bottom Line: This does what IPA sets out to do, and it does it without fuss.
4.5/5