Diamond Knot India Pale Ale

Brewed by Diamond Knot Brewery
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Mukilteo, Washington USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

Bottle. Great piney and light citrus aromatics in the nose, a rich bronze color, not light, and not golden. Lacing is confetti-like and lingers. Tastes of clean malt and a mint-like bitterness. Cracker-like malt fades into the background toward a relatively dry and crisp finish followed by a slight aftertaste of bitter roasted dark-chocolate....you might not notice it, but it’s there. This is a very dry finishing ipa and is quite drinkable with a medium-light body. Some could say that this is bordering on an American Pale Ale...but it’s nice to see a rather tame ABV for an IPA these days. It’s also nice to see an IPA with a much lighter body, makes for a more quaffable beverage. Most importantly, it avoids the whole bitter rubber band-aid flavor that can be so apparent in low ABV IPA’s.

pours a semi-hazy amber with a medium size off-white head, and good lacing. smell is of grapefruit, floral, citrus, slight amount of caramel, and a touch of pine. taste is creamy, grain, citrus, lots of hops, a touch of pine, caramel, and some nuts, ends nicely bitter.

Just had a pint at dinner. I used to think this stuff rocked, and don’t get me wrong, it’s pretty good, but It’s a pretty inconsistent beer. Sometimes it’s soapy, sometimes it’s a robust IPA, sometimes it’s dull and watery. Zeswaft scale: 7 flavor, 7 bargain (abv/$). $4-5 a bomber

Bottle. Rich amber beer with an off-white head. Grapefruit aroma. Grapefruit and light pine flavor with light darker malts. Medium bodied. Some bitterness. Grapefruit and light darker malts linger.

22 oz bottle. Hazy orange brown with a coating ivory head. Nose is orange and peach with an alluring caramel sweetness. Juicy, medium body that feels a bit watery at times but ends with a nice buzz and lingering resin. Starts doughy with caramel and grapefruit pith. As the flavors merge i’m reminded of Wink (the sassy one) before the piny, peppery bitterness kicks in. Not at all what i expected. Top notch.

Deep gold pour with strange grey-green highlights, and a stark eggshell head which leaves awesome lacing. Nose is biscuit-like malt and floral hops ... registering as hibiscus flowers and herbaceous chamomile. Flavor moves from spicy bergamot tea and cracker-like malts into the aforementioned floral notes; all followed by a hint of fennel in the bitter finish. Mouthfeel is fairly thin but also slightly oily, and super easy to drink. If given the patience, this one reveals itself to be quite unique in regards to other solid (and standard) ipa’s. This is highly nuanced and packed with elegant flavors. I particularly enjoy the floral/herbal approach that is presented. This is a lovely thing, and it makes for an interesting alternative to the more common piney/citrus burst that we have come to ’expect’ from PNW ipa’s.

Bottle from the mystery swap. Ended up with two of these, so not sure whose this was. Pours an orange amber with a touch of haze and a medium sized beige head. Really nice candied citrus and sweet sticky pine notes. Caramel malt. Medium bodied, really nice caramel and hop interplay. Finishes with a soft slow grapefruit finish, much subtler than expected given the rest of the beer. Still really tasty though.

Orange pour with tight foamy head and lace. Aroma of apples, evergreen hops, and sweet malt. Flavor of sweet malt, stout evergreen flavor with a citrusy finishing bitter. Medium bodied with good carbonation.