Ballast Point Sculpin IPA (North Star)

Brewed by Ballast Point Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
San Diego, California USA

Bottle. Pours a yellowish color with a white thin head. Aroma is hitting me before i even get my nose to the glass. Tons of fruit, im getting everything from citrus like grapefruit, oranges to pineapple, peach and mango. Also some pine and caramel malts. This smells wonderful. Flavor is just as nice. Tons of citrus and tropical fruits, followed by a nice pine bitterness and a smooth caramel malt background. The mouth feel is creamy and smooth, with a bit of oily like resin..

Bottle from Bri @ Holiday Wine Cellar.. Pours a light golden color with a fluffy white head...Alot of citrus hops in the nose. This one has a really great smell..The flavor from begining to the end is all hops. That being said it is not as harsh as other IPAs that I’ve had. It has a nice citrus sweetness that is very easy to drink..This one will bring out the hophead in all of us.

Bottle shared by emacgee. Thanks Ethan! Man, this was tasty. Very fresh, tropical fruits, citrus abound the nose. Flavor is nicely balanced between juice and dry bitterness. Very enjoyable IPA.

22oz bottle from Hillcrest Whole Foods (San Diego, CA). Pours a little paler than most San Diego IPA’s, a light golden amber with large carbonation bubbles clinging to the side of the glass. About one finger of white head. The wonderful hoppy aroma is less citrusy than many others in this style but still fruity -- I do get the mango, apricot, and peach in there as the label promises. Tastes hoppy and bitter with pine and grapefruit but the bitterness finds a very pleasant level. There is a definite hint of some fruity sweetness in here as well. Lighter body than most others in this style; good carbonation.

Bottle. Pours a clear medium gold with a fluffy lil’ head. Nose is dank pine forest, and something reminiscent of juniper berries. Flavor is a gloriuos expression of west coast hops. Citrus rind and pine forest. Maybe a bit on the bold side for a single IPA, but a really good one at that.

22oz bottle courtesy of a trade with KingG, thanks! I always take a sniff off the bottle before pouring and this smells great! The color is a dark, but transparent, yellow and the head is full, sticky and firm. The aroma is pure West Coast IPA, piney, fruity, citrus, very nice. The flavor is a very green, almost vegetal hop flavor. There are also melon-rind notes which remind me of the Dorado DIPA. It does not quite live up to the aroma but it is still tasty. The mouthfeel is decent and the drinkability is good. Overall, this is a good West Coast IPA but I prefer the Big Eye from Ballast Point. update 12/30/08 most recent batch This is a very good IPA. I don’t really taste the vegetal I got last time, just fruity, dank IPA. This is much better than Dorado or Big Eye. Friends said it was like Green Flash westcoast meets odell IPA. Awesome. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 03-20-2008 03:13:20

Most delicious new IPA I’ve had in years. Color is a bright golden hue, transparent, with a slight tinge of orange. Head is white and frothy rich, thick, meringue-like and jiggles when nudged. Head recedes to a thinner, but long lasting lace and Belgian lace surrounds the inside of my glass as this one goes down. Nose is full of bright citrus and citrusy black tea aromas. I’m leaning towards tangerine and peaches with that black tea component, and a slight suggestion of biscuits. Sharp on the palate right away, but not an overwhelming in your face hop presence. It’s big but not an assault like some APA’s can offer. The bright citrus comes through and again some of the black tea qualities. Faint biscuity malt is in there, and it has a smooth creamy mouthfeel. I pick up some lemon towards the end.

Aroma is very fruity, hawaii tropical fruits, coconut, mango, papaya, peach. Taste is sweet and juicy hops. Fruity and smooth. Very nice, no lingering bad flavors and nice too drink. Re-rate. gotta up this a bit. From 4 to 4.2 Just awesome, especially fresh!