Review: Stone Levitation Ale

Stone Levitation Ale
4.4% ABV

The Stone Brewing Co., Escondido, San Diego County, CA

12 oz btl

Served in Duvel tulip glass

Date on bottle: Enjoy by 9/25/13
Reviewed on 7/29/13

This amber ale pours a solid amber color with a good bubbly off-white head that has decent retention.  Good lacing.

Smell has hops, malt, some spice, floral, candy, some cherry, citrus, pepper.

Taste has malt, dry pepperiness, some bitter hops, floral, herbal, citrus, touch of dark fruit, spicy candy, bready.

Mouthfeel is fairly dry and bitter on the palate.  Solid consistent flavor that coats the tongue.

Overall, this is a quite complex tasting amber ale that is quite sessionable yet sacrifices little in flavor.  Flavor profile has hops, malt, and spices, along with citrus and some dark fruit.  It hits the palate with some fairly strong dryness and bitterness.  This feels much bigger than what the ABV would suggest.

My score: 92

Review: Uinta Wyld Extra Pale Ale

Uinta Wyld Extra Pale Ale

4.0% ABV

Uinta Brewing Co., Salt Lake City, UT

12 oz btl 
Served in Duvel tulip glass
Date on bottle: Best before 4/14/13
Reviewed on 3/9/13

This pale ale pours a hazy golden color with a nice bubbly white head.  Good lacing.

Smell consists of hops, malt,wheat, some breadiness, some floral/herbal note, touch of citrus.

Taste consists of hops, malt, wheat, spiciness, some citrus, floral and herbal notes, slight burnt taste.

Mouthfeel is somewhat dry and bitter.  Fairly smooth with decent liveliness on the palate.

Overall, this is a decent tasting pale ale even if it's fairly mild.  Quite good taste for a beer that's relatively low in ABV.  Hops, malt, and wheat flavors work well together with some nice floral/herbal and citrus accents.  Sessionable. 

My score: 86

Review: Samuel Smith's India Ale

Samuel Smith's India Ale
5.0% ABV
Samuel Smith Old Brewery, Yorkshire, England
18.7 oz btl
Served in Dogfish Head Signature Glass
Reviewed on 1/27/13

This India pale ale pours a pale golden amber color with a frothy bubbly white head that has decent retention.  Decent carbonation and lacing.

On the nose, aromas of light hops, malt, floral, citrus, slight lemon, slight sugar, mild herbs.

Taste has hops, malt, wheat, floral, some citrus along the lines of grapefruit and lemon, some sugariness, mild herbs.

Mouthfeel is light, crisp, smooth, with good if mild strands of bitterness and dryness.

Overall, this is a light and crisp tasting pale ale with a decent if mild profile of flavors. Not bold and flavorful like other hoppy IPAs, but still a decent beer, particularly if you're in the mood for something on the milder side.  Fairly sessionable.

My score: 88