Surly Overrated

Beer Name: Overrated
Brewery: Surly Brewing (Brooklyn Center, MN)
ABV: 7.3%
How sold: 16 oz. tallboy cans
Where bought: Purchased online at France44 (Minnesota)
Price: $8.99 for 4-pack of 16 oz tallboys

Date Canned: October 16, 2015
Date Purchased: November 11, 2015
Date Opened/Drank: November 19, 2015
When brewed? Year-round beer.

Where distributed: Surly Brewing ships to select U.S. states and is usually NOT shipped to the Pacific Northwest. Click here for more!

What's on the Can: "What's with the hype? It's been said, 'It's easier to brew an extremely hoppy beer than an extremely balanced beer.' And you know us, we are always looking for the easy way out, so we jumped on the West Coast IPA bandwagon and brewed this dry and hoppy ale. 'Surly's a little bit of a one-trick pony, they just brew gimmick beers,' and maybe we are OVERRATED, but at the end of the day, it's just a beer. If you like it, great, so do we. If you only liked us when we were small, then leave this one on the shelf. Let one of the fanboys grab it."

What's on the Website: "Pale gold American (West Coast) IPA with fruity-citrus aromas from generous dry hopping." Click here for more!

REVIEW:

Appearance (5%): Poured a slightly hazy golden into a pint glass. About 2-3 mm of frothy off-white head. 4.5/5

Smell (25%): Predominant citrus-grapefruit aroma with slight malty and pine notes. Definitely embodies the identity of a West Coast IPA. 4.5/5

Taste (40%): Initially a combination of citrus-grapefruit, with pine and slight malty experience. Slight hint of alcohol detected. Extremely refreshing. 4.5/5

Mouthfeel (10%): Medium body with good carbonation. Citrus-bitterness engulfs the mouth. 4.5/5

Overall (20%): An outstanding IPA, bordering on world-class. Yes, against Abrasive and Furious, Overrated scored the "lowest" on BeerAdvocate (91) and RateBeer (98), but in my book, this is as amazing as its Surly IPA brothers. Perhaps it's me just being a fan of West Coast IPAs, but Surly really nailed it. Oh, and the message on the can just plain rules. I also love that Overrated was the cheapest of the three Surly beers I bought, but came through in all aspects. It did not exactly hit world-class level in my book (i.e. one where I have to get it again if given the opportunity), but it certainly comes very close. A must-buy for West Coast IPA lovers. 4.5/5

Final Weighted Rating: 4.5/5