Dancing Gnome "Stirrup Hoe" IPA

It seems like it has been a while since I got fresh beer from a brewery that I had not reviewed before. I actually visited this brewery recently, and I picked this up fresh while I was there. According to the date on the bottom of the can, this beer is less than 10 days old. So this should be really good. Certainly, it will be fresh. The brewery itself was vaguely hipster, as it appears to be in an area where they are trying to revitalize the community. There were plants and lava lamps symmetrically displayed on shelves along the walls, and the large brewing equipment was sequestered behind thick glass.

The beer is an implacable orange with tiny white bits that were perceivable as they were being poured in, but they moved to the center of the glass where I can't see them anymore. The head was relatively small out of the can, and now that it has settled, there is barely a dusting on top with a ghost of a ring around the sides of the glass. The aroma is the most enticing thing about this beer, as it is filled with delicious fruits and a solidly grain malt.

First sip is surprisingly dry. With as much juice as I smelled up front, it seems like the beverage itself is trying to make me desire more quenching beverage. Still, the fruit is solid, and the grains back it up in a stalwart manner. Honestly, I think I want to sip this for the rest of the night, but that's not the process I go through, is it? Either way, at a sip, it's already a winner.

Tip-in is bitter fruit meat of oranges, grapefruit, kiwi, and starfruit. The middle brings carbonation to bear at the roof of the mouth, but the grains provide an insulating layer to allow the tongue to be bathed in all of that juicy fruit. The finish is a rise of a sharp yeast as dryness settles where the juice used to be to send the mouth into a bitter trail off.

Bottom Line: The DG on the can could stand for damn good.

4.0/5