PEI Brewing Company (Gahan House Brewery) 1772 IPA India Pale Ale at 6.5% ABV (C$3.96 at Dominion Stavanger, 500 ml, no bottle date or best before)
Pours clear to cloudy pale amber with two fingers of pillowy ivory head, excellent retention and lacing. (4/5) Nose is light resin, citrus, floral, grassy, crystal malt. (7/10) Taste is moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry mildly bitter finish. (4/5)
To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much – but this is a pretty decent IPA, actually. The “1772” moniker makes you think it’s going to be an English-style IPA, but it really isn’t: the use of starts-with-C hops (Centennial, Cascade) and the absence of Maris Otter (Crystal and Munich malts are used instead) make this much more of an American style than a true English style, as does the higher ABV. It grows on you, too – though the higher ABV might be a factor there… And as far as appearance goes, this thing looks pretty good for the first three quarters of the big boy bottle. If a little yeast cloudiness bothers you, stop pouring there (and drink the rest from the bottle). (15/20)
7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
