AleSmith IPA

Beer Name: AleSmith IPA
Brewery: AleSmith Brewing Co. (San Diego, CA)
ABV: 7.25%
How sold: 12 oz bottles; 12 oz cans; 22 oz bottles; on draft
Where bought: Craft Shack (San Diego, CA)  ****bought online
Price: $2.79 for 12 oz bottle

Date Bought: February 6, 2017
Date Received: February 10, 2017
Date Opened: February 10, 2017 
When brewed? Year-round beer.
IBU: 73

What's on the Website: "It’s Pretty Awesome. A San Diego classic, AleSmith IPA showcases the versatility of American hops. Aromas of grapefruit and tangerine lead into an abundance of fresh pine and tropical fruit notes followed by a crisp, resinous bitterness. The complex hop profile is supported by a firm malt presence to create an incredibly flavorful and well-balanced IPA." Read more here!

Where distributed: As of February 2017, AleSmith Brewing distributes to 24 U.S. states and five other countries (Australia, Denmark, Japan, Scotland, and Thailand). See if AleSmith ships to your area!

REVIEW:

Appearance (5%): Poured clear golden into a pint glass. Frothy white head. Some lacing on the glass. 4.5/5

Smell (25%): Tons of tropical. Grapefruit, passion fruit, stone fruit. Citrus tangerine. Exactly what I crave, and seemingly the ideal balance. 5/5

Taste (40%): Insanely smooth tropical experience, with complementing hoppiness and malty notes. Citrus lasts through the aftertaste, so memorable. Incredible flavor, no trace of octane. 5/5

Mouthfeel (10%): Medium-bodied, some carbonation. Not dry on my tongue at all. Wow. 5/5

Overall (20%): A world-class IPA. When I looked up the reviews on this one (BeerAdvocate and RateBeer), I was initially stunned at the high marks it got. Although AleSmith does ship to Oregon and Washington, I hadn't seen it around my neck of the woods. So curiosity got the best of me and I ordered a bottle. I now plan on getting at least another six-pack. It more than lived up to any hype I read about. I'd gladly pay this price again for this beer. If I could regularly find this, I'd be getting it just about every time. To me, this is a virtually perfect IPA. 5/5

Final Weighted Rating: 4.975/5