Town Hall Masala Mama IPA

Brewed by Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Minneapolis, Minnesota USA

Draught at the brewpub. Clear orange color with sea foam white head that laced the glass. Enticing flowery/citrsuy hop aroma and flavor with a strong malty backbone and bold hop bitterness. There was also a cornucopia of subtle dried fruit flavors hidden in each sip. Very good IPA.

Growler. Thanks, BVC! Pours crystal clear burnished medium amber with a dense, pillowy tan head. Salty, earthy, tangy hop profile thats neither piney nor citrusy. Hard to place for sure, despite its being quite bold. Garlic? Earthy sub-continent spices? Interesting. Creamy medium body. Light carb. Sharp resiny bitterness at the end. Woody mid-palate. Absolutely delicious and completely sessionable. Words dont do it justice. Great little IPA.

Seems insane, that it took me so long to have this, growler shared by smokepot23, thanks Joe! Pours orange with a tan head. Nose is sweet with citrus and quite nice. Taste is Sweet citrus, rich and all in all a superb IPA.

In short: An incredibly intense “small” IPA focussing of intense foresty dry bitterness. Very tasty dry. A fantastic beer. My desert Island American hops fix.
How: Growler, a million thanks to oakbuff (Scott) for this unexpected gem. Drank fresh the day I received it
The look: Clear shinning golden copper body topped by a medium off-white head
In long: Enchanting strong nose of resinous and foresty hops. A very big body for such a small IPA. The toasty caramelized malts sweetness are quickly taken over by a very tasty intense bitterness and a surprisingly dry finish. Very resinous with coniferous bark. The pine tree flavour is very dry and feels like chewing on dried pine needles with the juice sucked out. Very light on the fruity side with only hints of dried fruit peels (orange, citrus). A little fluffy and dusty. The dryness of this IPA is off the chart. This beer is more intense than most 9% Imperial IPAs but is more refreshing and highly drinkable. Clearly one of the best hop-fix I’ve ever had and without any doubt the best below 7% hop-fix I have had. It may not have the intensity of the best IIPAs out there (Dreadnaught, etc.) but I cannot think of an American (I)IPA I’d like to drink more often. As much as I love the stronger IIPAs if I had to chose only one American hoppy beer to drink for the rest of my life it would be this one. Hence the perfect score. Too bad it’s only available on tap. Growlers are expensive to ship and shipping price from USA is proportional to the weight. It’s a good thing for Americans that this pricing rule doesn’t apply to plane tickets.

Dark coppper color. Aromas of fruit and hops. Flavors of candy, sugar, hops, and fruit; unusually complex for a town hall beer. Sweet with good bitter taste. I can’t believe I waited so long to try it.

On tap at Town Hall during the RBSG 2007 Pub Crawl. Clear amber body with a small white head. Sweet floral and citrus hops aroma. Sweet citrus hops flavor with a caramel background.

Growler: Orange pour with a tan head. Resiny aroma- a touch catty, but mildly, with fruity hop notes of apricot. Rounded carbonation. Resiny/catty flavor. Some caramelized barley comes though underneath the piny sharp bitterness. A typical IPA; nothing stands out about it.

Nice amber hue. Creamy-smooth texture. Big and richly malted ... chalky-cocoa goodness. Earthy and a little yeasty, with really nice hop aromas. Citrusy, organic and wholesome.