Mt. Carmel IPA

Brewed by Mt. Carmel Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Cincinnati, Ohio USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

Nice color; bronze, orange, amber, yellow. This thing is thick and natural, nicely full-bodied. The head dies quickly. Aroma is spicy, with wet earth and a little vegetation. When cold the aroma isn’t that strong. But the thickness belies some change will occur over warming. Initial flavors are a bit dull; a heaping of cloying sweetness and an overlay of pine and citrus make this chewy, but not in the best way. But overall it is a handmade, very natural feeling beer and that is good.

Very slight haze in a dark amber brew with light head and spider-web lacing. The first impression is of an oily texture that coats the tongue and roof of the mouth. The taste is a straight competition between sweet caramel and hop bitters. I can’t recall ever having a brew in which both match each other from beginning through the finish. In more ways than one, nobody wins, including me. Not hard to drink, but not a winner, either.

12oz bottle, thanks to Taylor for picking this up for me during our tour of their brewery. Clear orange color, a sort of thin cream-colored head that quickly faded to minimal. Nice liht carbonation. Pretty light-tasting overall for an IPA, not as powerful or hoppy as I’m used to, but what is there is certainly still good. Very drinkable, in any case. A great one to gulp down, would be a good IPA for the warmer weather. Good balance, a sort of sweet taste to the bitterness, but still good.

Poured into a snifter. 3.0 A: Clear medium orange color. Just over one finger of off-white, dense frothy head. Retention is poor, but a small ring of lacing is left. 3.5 S: Pretty tame. The dominant aroma is caramel, while the hops are subdued and offer flowers and a bit of sugariness. 3.5 T: Again, the hops don’t do much to pop, but this still tastes pretty good. I’d call it an amber ale before I call it an IPA. Speaking of which, this is a much better amber ale that their actual amber ale. Caramel with a pleasant neutral malt sweetness backing it up. Bitterness is low. Hop flavor is mildly fruity in a flowery way. Borderline 4.0 here. 3.5 M: Lighter medium to medium body. Good moderate carbonation. Fine here, but nothing spectacular. I’d prefer it to be silkier on the tongue. 3.5 D: Not a bad beer, but a terrible IPA considering it offers little hop taste and even less hop bitterness. Still, this is a decent amber ale. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 10-26-2011 02:11:05

12oz bottle poured into a pint glass. No freshness date. Pours a clear copper with decent carbonation. 1 finger head along with some lacing. Smell is pretty weak. Definitely pick up on the malt but very little hop nose. Hops are hardly detectable at all. Beginning to wonder how old this is. The taste is odd. The caramel and biscuit from the malt is definitely there but then a strong bitterness rushes in and lingers for a long time. There is no hop flavor at all, just this sharp bitterness. It is not very pleasant at all. I’m willing to try this again if I get it fresh but until then, I can’t recommend this beer.

12 ounce bottle from Belmont Party Supply. Pours a very hazy orange color with a medium creamy tan head. Good head retention. Big caramel malts in the aroma with a bitter hop finish. The taste is bitter citrus hops, berries and toffee malts. Bitter throughout. Thin-medium bodied. Decent.

Bottle. Nose is heavy toasted malt with light sweet caramel, more of a nut brown or an amber than an IPA. Dark orange pour with a yellow-tinged beige head. Taste is bittersweet, no more roast but definite resinous grit and again, a trace amount of that funny rubbing alcohol/acetone flavor. Aftertaste is bone dry and lightly gritty with a rubbery astringency. Medium body, somewhat juicy, but I just don’t like how the hops are used here at all.

Pours a clear orange color with a medium off-white head that recedes steadily to a film. Small patches of lacing on the glass. Aroma of citrus, hops and malt. Medium body with flavors of grassy hops, citrus and sweet malt. The finish is fruity with a short hoppy aftertaste. Slightly above average overall.

Bottle. Amber, cloudy, tan head that lasts. Strong pine hop aroma. Sharp bitter taste, medium body, and more pine release in the mouth. Good, strong distinct flavor.