I think the other cold IPA I had was a Sierra Nevada. In fact, that was the only one other than this that I have ever seen, and I don't know if these are going to become a thing. That other one was great, and I don't know, really, what made the "cold" something different than another IPA. I'm guessing that it is brewed in a colder climate or something, and these both hit 7.0% ABV, so I guess they are nominally higher in alcohol than the average IPA, but I've certainly had lots of IPAs that were this high. I think the normal range is about 5-7.5%.
The quite pale yellow beverage produces enough head for a modest cover, and that simmers down to an uneven, yet complete, layer over the beer. Lacing is left in its wake, so maybe I already like this style. The aroma is flowers and pine. These are hops, but these aren't the hops I'm looking for. Some people like a piney hop, and some people like a flowery hop, but I am a citrus and tropics fan, through and through. Still, it's not the end of the world. It's just the smell, so far.
First sip is ... sharp. It has a yeasty, bready trail off, but that sip is a lot more sharp than anything. I know you're probably thinking I mean "crisp" or "clean" when I clearly said sharp. It's the right word for the taste. It hit like a knife and was gone just as quickly. The pine and flowers didn't even set a single root before they were gone, and that is when the yeasty bread turned up, after the bang of the sip was already over. It isn't necessarily bad, but I need to be calibrated for this kind of thing.
Tip-in is sweet bread with flowers gently touching it and carbonation completely absent from the interaction. The middle blooms into a very nice and quite quaffable bread and cracker base for the gentle flowers and calm pine to float freely down; it's very, very nice. The finish is bitter with the yeast coming a bit more forward as the pine resin leaves its signature.
Bottom Line: Not my new favorite style, but a pretty dang good one so far.
4.0/5
