Baird Rising Sun Pale Ale

Brewed by Baird Brewing Co.
Style: American Pale Ale
Numazu, Shizuoka, Japan

Honeyed golden. Fat, rocky white head deposits ample lace with each sip. Complex yet restrained herbal and citric hop aromas of grass, lemon zest, orange pith, and unripe peach. Background notes of minerals, aniseed, airy esters, and honeydew melon add to the complexity. Soft on the palate. Bottle conditioned. Hops immediately assault the palate with a forceful yet clean bitterness reminiscent of grass and pine. Aspirin flavor exudes mildly, but is largely absorbed by an ensuing burst of fruity esters and nutty yeast accents. Lemon zest imparts trace acidity which beckons you to take another sip. Minerals lend firmness to the body which accentuates the bitterness and underscores the sophisticated hoppiness. Steadily intensifying bitterness morphs into a tight medley of peach fuzz and assorted citric rind. Hops, both the flavor and bitterness, are quite clean despite their unruly leanings. Fairly oily as well, but never overbearingly resinous, commendably. Supportive malt is exceptionally full and clean, but appropriately takes backseat to the hops as it gently displays its lightly toasted hay qualities and dainty sweetness. Stops just short of setting the tongue ablaze with its zesty, slightly spicy hoppiness. Closes with a grassy- and herbal-hop bitterness which is beautifully rounded out by polished, softly textured malts and a lingering dab of pistachio-tinged yeast. Belches beautifully with herbal and grassy hop flavors. What is there not to like about this? It’s complex yet clean and dangerously quaffable, and has a spellbinding nose filled with yeast-driven nuance. Combine that with adeptly extracted malt wrapped in a full, fluffy, bottle-conditioned mouthfeel, and there you’ve got a world-class beer.

Bottle (also had draught at Popeye, Tokyo in April, scored a 3.8). Head is initially large, frothy, off-white, fully lasting. Body is hazy medium amber, bottle conditioned. Aroma is lightly to moderately malty (cookie, toasted grain), lightly to moderately hoppy (flowers, apricot, orange), lightly to moderately yeasty (cobwebs), with notes of dried mango/papaya, dusty cedar, honey, Juicy Fruit gum. Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly sweet, lightly acidic, moderately bitter. Medium body, watery/velvety texture, lively carbonation. If you prefer your pale ales simple and hop-forward, this one won’t wow you. If on the other hand you are a fan of elemental balance and aromatic nuances galore (as with Hitachino Nest’s amazing Japanese Classic Ale), this will rock your socks off. Amazing depth in the aroma (and sooooo enticing right from the very first whiff), excellent balance with nice yeasty tartness in the background and assertive (but not abrasive) bitterness. Better from bottle than draught, obviously thanks to the benefits of bottle conditioning (on both appearance and aroma). A beautiful beer that is low-alcohol and well-balanced enough for quaffing but aromatically engaging enough to sip. Amazing brew doomed to forever be underrated here.

Frothy thick head and clear amber body. Baird beer has a certain pine and rose floral quality that runs through the whole lineup, and its present here too. Nice floral nose, malty. Bitter start moving to a full bodied malt, finishing slightly piney. Soft, long palate. Fantastic.

Orange with big, foamy off-white head / Nose of citrus and melon, with a touch of dry hops / Light to medium body, somewhat tart, with good balance and nice, dry finish / Mild, restrained yet elegant flavors of dry hops, orange, grapefruit, melon, and dry hops / Lacks the oomph of American pales, but very pleasant approached on its own terms. I could picture this with sushi.

RBSG2005
Reddish orange, like those coral necklaces, a spritzy head that died off eventually. An enticing scent of tangerines and jasmin tea, this really had an oriental spin to it.
Again, the flavor is like taking a trip to the far east in a bottle. The first few sips are like lychees in a mild syrup and the hops are flowery, the bitterness is progressive and creeps up on you and the aftermath was very similar to green tea. I love tea, so this really hit it off for me. As Japanese as an IPA could possibly get.

Appearance: Pours a clear, copper body with a large, foamy, whitish head. Smell: Pale malts with a thin vein of graininess. A single, nearly missed drop of wildflower honey. Citrusy hops with just a distant pinch of earthy spice. Taste: Pale malts with a touch of fresh, steeped grains. Meager, short-lived hint of sweet honey. Touch of apricot pulp. Citrusy hops mainly display a taste of pithy lemon rinds. Medium-plus bitterness. Small hints at delicately toasted grains. Dry, lightly bitter finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied. Medium carbonation. Drinkability: A quality, well-crafted APA that, while good, didn’t quite sing to me as well as my previous Baird beers have. In all honesty, the somewhat heftier cost of this import mars the chance of a re-visit.

Medium sized, 12oz bottle. Wonderful appearance. Orange color, thick and creamy head. Good lace. Aroma of rich citrus. Mild flavor. Chewy malt. Not much malt flavor or sweetness. Citrus rind bitterness. Lighter bodied. Superbly balanced. Very smooth.

Highly sedimented cloudy golden body. Vast amount of sediments floating around. Incredibly original and attention-grabbing hoppy nose full of cedar and perfume. Most interesting IPA nose since hitachino classic. It explodes with dry-hopped minty goodness, tannic, soapy floral hops in a yeasty fashion. The same goes on in the palate in a more restricted way. The plentiful wood character lingers toward dhis water soapiness. It stays adequately dry, but heads toward the citrusy grounds and is so very thin that you wonder how it could smell so great. Almost absent carbonation surprises a lot too.