REVIEW 116: KISS OFF IPA W/ GRAPEFRUIT

Somebody is anxious for hockey season to start!

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:  USA

BREWERY:  Round Guys Brewing Company

STYLE:  IPA

ABV:  6.3%

PURCHASE:  Cask (pint), $7.00

SERVING:  Pint glass. Standard 3/4-inch head from the cask. (A cask system is essentially a draft beer system minus additional nitrogen or carbon dioxide during dispensation.) Okay retention.

APPEARANCE:  Transparent amber-caramel color with a white head. Average lacing with little visible bubbling.

BOUQUET:  Aroma is more malt than hops, prompting me to ask: Is this an IPA? Citrus is very prominent, although it is just as much lemon rind as it is grapefruit.

PALATE:  Very easygoing, juicy taste profile. Carbonation is next to nonexistent. Probably the least hoppy IPA I have ever had--they are barely noticeable, once again prompting me to ask: Is this an IPA? The grapefruit is there, but is tempered and pleasant with no bitterness. In fact, there is no bitterness of any kind--rare for any IPA, but especially for one from the home country. Subtly spicy aftertaste, but overall this is a timid beer. 

MUSINGS AND METAPHORS:  Another entry from one of the "new kids on the block" on the American craft beer scene, Round Guys from Lansdale, PA. "W/ Grapefruit" is in this beer's name due to the earlier version not having grapefruit at all, as you can probably guess. Not a bad brew, certainly. But points off for misrepresentation of its category.

I'll ask one last time: Is this an IPA? This could almost pass for Magic Hat.




GRADE:  C

Get it? It's a MAGIC HAT!