Ninkasi Maiden the Shade

Brewed by Ninkasi Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Eugene, Oregon USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

Bombers last summer and just tried it again on tap. A lighter, but still plenty hoppy, style India Pale Ale. Citrus and mild bitterness with malty caramel for balance. Crisp and refreshing. Pretty tasty.

(22oz bottle) Pours a clear orange body with a small white head. Aroma of orange, biscuit, and grapefruit. Flavor of orange, cantaloupe, marmalade, and biscuit.

In short: A bland fruity IPA with an annoying solvent flavor. Meh.
How: Bottle 22oz. Consumed fresh, 4 weeks after purchase, bottle sent to me by mcberko, thanks a lot Matt
The look: Many small particles in a clear shinning pale golden body topped by a small off-white head
In long: The ordinary hoppy nose feels a bit muted, far an explosion of freshness although the beer was relatively fresh. There was mostly aromas of dried light-color fruits. The taste is even less interesting. There was an annoying slovent flavor, bitter grapefruits, discreet white-bread-ish malts, hops oil, other citrus fruits, phenols. Oily bitter finish. This wasn’t a bad beer, but it wasn’t a fun IPA, not refreshing, not nourrishing, just some off flavors with bitterness. Well below average for the style, especially from a west-coast brewery. Not bad but no quite what I want from an IPA, especially a west-coast IPA. As Bill Clinton used to say when interviewing ugly new interns "Close, but no cigar".

22 oz bottle
Aroma: citrus,pine, spicy- all hops
Taste: huge hop presence- citrus, pine, floral, nice toast/bread malt,br> This is one of the best Ninkasi beers that I have had. I enjoyed this more then their other IPAs.

Excellent bomber of 72 IBU, like a 1.5X IPA. Very flavourful citrus that is a bit of a palate shredder and a great hophead delivery. Above average mouthfeel, and good hop aroma. Great drinkability. Thanks Ryan.

A: Hazy golden peach body. Massive white frothy head. Good retention. Sheet like lacing. S: Delicate grapefruit, orange and pineapple. Beautiful grassy hops. The grass notes are reminiscent of a fresh german pilsner hop profile. This beer is a tad on the older side of things, but still quite nice. Looking at past reviews it seems the citric notes have faded a little compared to fresh. T: A nice assertively hopped up IPA. A bit of grass, pine, grapefruit and orange. Moderate bitterness for the flavor. Malt bill is a real clean lightly biscuity base. A good canvas for the flavor explosion. M: Smooth creamy body. Moderate carbonation that works well with the grassy notes. Crisp refreshing finish. O: Who can complain when a beer is named in honor of Iron Maiden, features artwork from Jerry Garcia’s daughter, and is made by a brewery that knows hop to make a good IPA. Oh, and rocking out to some Maiden doesn’t hurt the experience either.

On Tap at Country Side Pizza in Veneta, Or. A nice hoppy aroma with scents of grapefruit and a little orange. Brownish tan with a good head and lace. Sweet hoppy goodness, medium body and a nice bitter finish. A very good IPA.

This is an odd tasting IPA--not very hoppy and reminds me of Rogue’s Dead Guy.