Tallgrass Brewing Company 8 Bit Pale Ale American Pale Ale at 5.2% ABV | 46 IBU (US$2.99 at Specs Main Houston, 473 ml, best before 28-Apr-2017, acquired 8-Mar-2017, reviewed 21-Mar-2017)
Appearance: clear deep gold with two fingers of loose ivory head diminishing gradually to a patchy skim, minimal lacing. (3/5) Aroma: lemon and grapefruit zest, pineapple, grainy pale malt, melon, grass. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, dry lingering emphatic bitter finish. (4/5)
Pretty darned close to a hop forward A/IPA, if you ask me. There’s a hint of Galaxy hops in there, coming through as melon behind the citrus zest and tropical fruit notes, but overall hops emphatically dominate over malt. The real surprise, though, is the lingering bitter finish, far more emphatic than one might normally expect given the at most middling-high IBU rating. Subtle? No, but good fun. (14/20)
7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
