Alameda El Toreoro Organic IPA

Name: El Toro IPA
Date: September 19, 2009
Mode: Draft
Source: Brewfest, Portland Indie
Appearance: cloudy burnt orange, frothy beige head
Aroma: light sweet malt and citrus aroma
Flavor: sweet malt flavor, nice balancing citrus, touch of caramel, light earthyness, bitterness starts of light and leads to a long bitter finish

Name: El Toro IPA
Date: September 21, 2009
Mode: draft
Source: brewpub
no different from the fest version, just comes off too mild with the bitterness being dominant

Aroma: 5/10; Appearance: 6/10; Flavor: 6/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 12/20
Rating: 2.9/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: ** /4

On tap at Alameda Brewhouse. Colour... cloudy amber with a thick head. Nose... citrusy hops with a pinch o’ pine. Palate... moderate C02, piney and citrusy but not overtly so, slightly sweet and bitter ’round the edges and on the soft palate.

I was not as impressed by this IPA as I expected. Granted it came third in a series of hop bombs, but I found it too bitter and without as much aroma and pineyness as I’d heard, at least not enough to compete with the malt.

Tap @ OBF... Poured amber/orange with a white head. Floral hops and light fruits on the nose. Dry, well carbonated with a balance of hops and malt grains. Kind of fell short with the bitterness.

Draft at the brewpub. Pours a hazy orange color with a small off-white head. Has a malty hoppy pine needles aroma with hints of grapefruit. Sweetish malty hoppy piny and grapefruit flavor. Has a sweetish malty hoppy bitter finish.

On tap at the brewery. Pours amber with a soft white head. Maltier IPA, the hops gave balance but were softer then your typical NW IPA. I didn’t pick up much floral hop quality, maybe with the increase in hop prices they have stopped dry hopping.

Draft. A hazy dark golden beer with a lazing orangey head. The aroma is sweet malty with notes of caramel as well as a lighter note of citrusy hops. The flavor is sweet with strong notes of grass and grapefruit from the hops, leading to a dry bitter and grassy finish.

This was actually suprisingly good. Most of their stuff ranges from good to mediocre, but this I really enjoyed. The nose has big fruity hop aromas, lots of citrus and an actual malt presence. Suprisingly bitter in the finish. Tasty and refreshing.