3.3 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 12/20
UPDATED: NOV 5, 2011 Bottle. Pours a dark, semi-cloudy amber with a medium sized head. A good IPA with a light bitterness. Nothing exceptional, yet very enjoyable.
3.2 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 14/20
Bottled sample. Amber in colour with strong carbonation. Aromas are of pine sap, sweet orange blossom, black pepper, and a bit of caramel. Flavours are of pale malts, leafy and citric hops, kitchen spices, and a bit of caramel. Medium bodied. A pretty basic IPA, and perhaps a touch lacking in the aroma hop department.
3.1 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 12/20
Draft at fallfest. Pour a dark brown. Piney hop aroma. Taste is bitter hops with slight malt presences. Overall really emphasizing the bitter pine hops.
3.1 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 13/20
Light amber with a whitish head. Aroma of weak hops and pale malts, and the taste is similar. Very drinkable, but as IPAs go, its not really worth drinking again.
3 AROMA 5/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 2/5 OVERALL 13/20
pours golden with a nice white head and lots of lacing. weak, mildly citric aroma. watery body, dull bitter flavor. finish is dull.
3.3 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 13/20
12oz bottle picked up at Pizza Port bottle shop in Carlsbad
Appearance: Clear golden with a big off-white head and good lacing
Aroma: Toasted malts and dusty caramel
Taste: Toasted malts and caramel
Nice, but not much hops
3 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 11/20
Bottle. Pours orangey copper with medium-sized off-white head. Aroma is piney, citrusy hops, some sweet malt, a bit o’ honey. Flavor is more of the same plus a distinctly earthy hop element. Surprisingly complex hop flavor, but not really my thing. Somewhat sticky mouthfeel.
3.7 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 14/20
I poured a 12oz bottle into a tumbler.
Appearance: Dark clear copper hue. Plenty of carbonation visible. Forms a small, yellowish, sudsy head which leaves some lacing.
Smell: Light pine needles, brown sugar, some tropical fruit rind or pith, and just a hint of black tea leaves. Complex and pleasant but not intense.
Taste: I drink so many "big" and eccentric India Pale Ales that I sometimes forget what a classic "single" IPA is supposed to taste like and Abita’s Jockamo plays that role pretty much perfectly. This is an East Coast IPA all around. It begins with a confectionary sweetness of caramel or brown sugar - almost as if these ingredients were roasted or burned. Very organic and natural-tasting - nothing candy-like here.
The middle of the palate is piney with slight sap and resin qualities. Some beers take these flavors to the extreme and taste and feel literally like syrup, but this one is more reserved. There’s a hint of black tea and a drop of coffee-like flavors and bitterness to prevent it from being all-around resiny and dry. The finish is very pleasing, actually, with a return to the confectionary sweetness and an aftertaste that is remarkably clean.
Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied in all aspects. Not quite as crisp as most single IPAs, but definitely not a chewy, thick brew, either. Soft and comfortable with little carbonation presence.
Drinkability: I never really think of IPAs as being "sessionable" because the high bitterness levels and lingering dry aftertaste can wear down your palate quickly. However, I’d say Abita Jockamo is quite the opposite - plenty flavorful while it’s in the mouth with no residual bitter or cloyingly sweet aftertaste. The 6.5% ABV seems totally accurate, and the body is light enough to pair it with food or snacks or over the course of a fun sporting event.
Abita has never really impressed me that much, so I think I’m impressed by how impressed I am with Jockamo IPA. If only the rest of their line were as good.
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