Firestone Walker Union Jack IPA

Brewed by Firestone Walker Brewing Co.
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Paso Robles, California USA

Bottle at the Stuffed Sandwich. After a day of moving this was just perfect. Light white head, orange gold body, not too citric hops, nor piney, with above average bitterness and all in all nearly on the malty side for darkness.

Oh where has this brewery and beer been all my life. Thanks to snojerk for getting me on of these finally. Looks a surprisingly clear copper color. Incredible pine and floral hop aroma. Smells thick with sweetness as well. Flavor is bitter grapefruit upfront. In the background is a caramel sweetness that cuts through all that bitterness. It looks like it is going to be thin but this is a full bodied, full flavored beer.

Pours a copper with almost no head. Flavor is pungent hop with a nice bready finish. High on the bitterness hop scale, but also pretty strong in florals as well. Has a fully-encompassing tongue-scraping bitterness that I do love. Not really sessionable, but great as an after dinner IPA.

Really a refreshing, sessionable offering from Firestone Walker that at the same time is over the top in hop aroma and flavor, quite a feat indeed. Light bodied, full aroma of grapefruit and orange, with resinous flavors that are even stronger, lemon,orange and pine, with a lingering but pleasant bitterness. A note of toast and carmel, but the hops dominate this!

12oz Bottle Yet another great beer received in recent trading with errantnight, thanks again Derek! Union Jack IPA pours a glowing orange with a slight haziness. Very few streams of carbonation rise to the surface throughout the glass. The cotton white head grew to two fingers on a standard pour and as it slowly fell to a finger left some great sticky lacing behind. The drink lines after each sip were chunky as well. As soon as I popped the top the intense hoppiness greeted me. When I stick my nose in the glass it’s no different. A dense resinous hoppiness combines with bitter grapefruit and mild orange to produce a hoptastic smelling IPA. The malt that does manage to barely squeak through is cake like and has a slight candy sweetness to it. This IPA makes my mouth water. Each swirl intensifies the hoppy goodness. The flavor lives up to the aroma and may even be a little juicier. The sappy hoppiness still takes the lead but the citric qualities are more pronounced than the aroma suggested. Bitter grapefruit comes along mid-palate and takes over before a squeeze of orange says hello. There’s even a nice apricot zing on the swallow that I really enjoy. What little bit of the malt backbone I can taste (and it isn’t much) has that candy like sweetness. The mouthfeel is all incredibly smooth with a medium body. The carbonation is on the lower side of the spectrum and creates just enough frothiness for that incredible body. The feel of this beer is right where it should be. The bitterness grows as I drink. I’ve gone through this glass far too fast and I’m sure the next glass would be the same way. This is an incredibly flavorful, easy drinking IPA. The flavor and hop bouquet keep my diving in for more. Union Jack is another great IPA from the West Coast and another quality brew from Firestone Walker. I wish this was available in my area because it would be a mainstay in my fridge. Thanks again for the taste Derek; I’m sure I’ll be asking for more soon. 6/27/08

on draft,hollingshead deli amber pour, nicely balanced between hops & malt, citrus aroma, good beer

Bottle thanks to a trade...justn. Pretty beer, dark golden almost amber, with lots and lots of little tiny bubbles streaming up to the top of the glass. Very dense but thin head, about a finger. Lots of scents kicking out on this one. Lots in the citrus range, also a bit of malt. Really packs a nice punch of hops when you drink, leaves a little tingle in your mouth. Leaves a creamy sticky residue that is a nice parting gift. Pairs very well with Hebrew National All Beef Hotdogs...with coarse stone ground mustard.

(10/31/08) Draught sample at Blue Palms in Hollywood (thanks Brian for the free beer!). Clear deep golden color with a white head. Aroma of piney hops and some citrus notes. Sweetish flavor that turns into a bitter hoppiness with a bit of resinous notes and some grapefruit. Rounded mouthfeel. Nice stuff.