Sunday, March 10, 2013

Ipswich Ale 20th Anniversary Imperial Pale Ale

Ipswich Ale Brewery   Ipswich, MA

Notes:
Imperial Pale Ale
22oz Bottle
8.0% ABV

From their website:

Our 20th Anniversary Limited-Edition brew is a big balanced Imperial Pale Ale with rich malty sweetness and a bold hop character. This hand-crafted ale honors our past, present, and future as an Ipswich MA historic hometown favorite.


Appearance:  Pours a deep, dense caramel borderline light brown…some just off white head did form, but only a thin layer really remains…looks rich…(3/5)

Smell:  I could smell sweet caramel malts and a touch of alcohol as soon as I started pouring it into my glass…when I stick my nose in there, I’m inundated with more of that sweet caramel malts aroma…there’s definitely an earthiness/mustiness about this as well…very malt dominant, as should be expected from the age of this brew…(3.5/5)

Taste:  Much like the nose, tons of sweet caramel malts up front followed by earthy hops…i’m also getting a bready flavor as well…it’s full flavored, mildly robust, somewhat musty…an okay flavor, nothing unique or innovative though it being so old, it’s really tough to tell what was intended by the brewer…I do like it…(2.75/5)

Mouthfeel:  Light to medium body, light carbonation...it’s lost a bit of life with time…wet, mildly chewy and does bring a bit of earthy bitterness in the after taste…(2.5/5)

Overall:  I bought this from the beer store a few weeks back not knowing when it was actually produced…after doing some internet research, I found out it was made 5/11…yikes, that’s old…but for what it is, it’s really not too bad…the only thing that separates this from a lesser ales is it’s robustness…while much of the hop flavor is lost, there still is a bit of chewiness and earthy bitterness that do add to the overall flavor…this beer is drinkable, but seeing as it’s 2 years old, I’d never think of buying it again or recommending it for another’s consumption…(3/5)

Score:
(2.92/5)


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