Latitude 33º Brewing Lifted Embargo IPA American IPA at 7.1% ABV | 67 IBU (C$10.49 at Oak & Vine, 650 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 3-Jul-2017, reviewed 8-Jul-2017)
Appearance: clear pale amber with three fingers of loose fluffy pale ivory head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, grainy caramel, resiny pine, green weeds. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium slightly oily body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter finish. (4/5)
OK, seriously: what embargo? Is this made with Cuban cigars? What? I’m so confused…
So, I might’ve erred slightly in my drinking order with the three Latitude 33º beers I tried tonight: I went on the basis of increasing IBU, thinking that doing the lower bitterness ones first would to some extent preserve my palate for the subsequent higher bitterness examples. Then that ¡Mangoveza! came along and blew hell out of my taste buds with a hefty dose of habanero. So, I might be doing this one a bit of a disservice, on account of my numb tongue.
On the other hand, I’m pretty sure my nose hasn’t been put out of commission, so on that basis, it’s my opinion that this is not quite as interesting as its blood orange or mango adjunct brethren. Which isn’t to say it’s bad: in fact, it’s got a pretty evenly-balanced nose going on, with citrus, caramel, and pine all coming in at pretty much the same intensity. It’s just that, evenly-balanced or otherwise, it just isn’t all that interesting. It hints at greater things, but never quite gets there. (15/20)
7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
