Hutton & Smith "Tectonic" Session IPA

From spitting distance of the Chattanooga choo-choo comes another beverage from the lawyers who produce - seemingly - nothing but variations of IPAs. Look, I'm a fan of the style, so I won't give them any hassle about it, but I wonder what they would do with another type of beer.

The opaque, tangerine-orange color of the beer sits below huge bubbles before they scamper away, leaving their scattered trails along the sides of the glass. The aroma is grapefruit-forward with tangerine and orange trailing. If there's a malt, I can't smell it, but it could just be the plethora of fruits that my nose is having to sort out.

First sip is tart and bitter up front, gets sweet in the middle, and tartens up again at the end. As for actual flavor, it is the ghost of a few fruits, but it's strangely light, given the smell. As I say that, I remember that this is a session IPA, and that's why it's got a 5.1% ABV - not high for an IPA. This is really a drinking beer, so it's not intended to overwhelm the senses - it's supposed to be laid-back, and laid back this appears to be.

Tip-in is tart oranges, grapefruit, and tangerine over a carbonation tingle. The middle sweeps in with a little too much carbonation for the smooth, semi-sweet nectar of fruits that comes through, glistening with a bit of tartness at the free ends. Eventually, the finish crashes down with a spate of carbonation fizzle over a fruit rind bitterness.

Bottom Line: Solid and ultimately satisfying.

3.25/5