Tree House Brewing Alter Ego IPA

Beer Name: Alter Ego
Brewery: Tree House Brewing (Monson, MA)
ABV: 6.8%
How sold: 16 oz tallboy cans; 750 ml growlers; 2L growlers
Where bought: Online
Price: Unknown (I bought it as part of a package deal)

Date Canned: June 16, 2017
Date Bought: June 20, 2017
Date Received: June 26, 2017
Date Drank: June 30, 2017
IBU: 72 (according to Untappd)

When brewed/released? Rotating beer. Tree House Brewing rotates their main lineup of beers each week; with up to 4-5 different releases throughout the week. It usually takes just 1-2 days for the particular beer release to sell out. Their beers are in very high demand.

What's on the Can: "We are excited that you are holding Tree House Brewing Company's twin brother to Julius, Alter Ego! Alter Ego builds upon Julius with juicy citrus & tropical fruit flavors and aromas as a result of an intense Mosaic & Amarillo dry hop. Alter Ego is the result of our uncompromising dedication to fresh, progressive, & delightful beer. We hope you enjoy it with laughter, good cheer, and in the company of those you love."

Commercial Description: "A beer brewed in the spirit of experimentation and the celebration of our 3rd anniversary. What we did here is we took a whole bunch of Mosaic and Amarillo hops, a classic punch of citrus purveying goodness, and added them to the Julius dry hop. The base beer is exactly the same, but the dry hop is altered tremendously. The result is a beer with all the deliciousness of the base beer with a layer of added citrusy complexity. Like devil Julius or something. A real treat!"

Other Rating Sites: Check Beer Advocate, RateBeer, and Untappd for those reviews!

Where distributed: As of June 2017, Tree House Brewing only sells their beer at their Monson brewery/taproom.

REVIEW:

Appearance (5%): Poured hazy peach to burnt orange-colored into a pint glass. Off-white head; some lacing on the glass. 4.5/5

Smell (25%): Mainly tropical melon, berry, peach, and other stone fruit. Dank. 4.5/5

Taste (40%): Again follows the nose; a wave of dank in the middle, finishing with more melon, peach, and citrus. The dankness makes it feel stronger than 6.8%, but lots of good flavor in there. 4.5/5

Mouthfeel (10%): Medium-bodied, some carbonation. Some dry tongue, but otherwise a controlled blend of dank melon and berry. 4.5/5

Overall (20%): An outstanding IPA. While Alter Ego is on the Beer Advocate Top 250 - and Bright is NOT on that list - I actually liked Bright more than Alter Ego. This one scores points with me for its tropical and dank flavors - maybe like a New England IPA version of Block 15 Sticky Hands. Another tasty beer from Tree House Brewing! 4.5/5

Final Weighted Rating: 4.5/5