Sebago Fryes Leap IPA

Tap at the downtown Portland brewpub - a solid sessionable IPA - palate-waking, crisp, grassy hops balanced with a malt sweetness that doesn’t become overpowering - quite herbal and floral, lacking the big citrus flavors that many IPAs have, which is a welcome change.

bottle. light orange gold with quickly fading white head (some lacing) - somewhat paler and less orange than your average ipa. nice sweet, fruity hop aroma made the first sip somewhat of a let down. first reaction was to the watery palate (not much bite to balance out the fragrant flavoring hops). a light bitter came through a few sips in and it definitely has a dry quality. the aroma that i first considered pleasant became too much as i made my way though. the sweet pine was just overwhelming. it has all the elements of a decent ipa but i just don’t think that the balance is there. interesting but not one i’d come back to.

(draft, S.Portland) Crystal clear amber body with off-white head. Aroma is medium sweet, grapefruit/orange, some biscuit. Taste is medium sweet, orange/earthy, light bread. Quite hoppy but not very bitter. Medium body, some chewiness.

Decent sized frothy white head of fine bubbles. Minimal carbonation. Wet hops aroma. Little floral and vegetal with a bit of sickly sweet malts in the background. Color is a medium amber. Dry and bitter flavor. Dry roasted peanut skins, more wet hops, light roastyness and pretty grainy. Finish is a little bitter and kind of sweet. Not my idea of a very good IPA.

tried to drink this one, but even my 2-3 ounce sample was a drain pour. Smelled horrendous to me, taste wasn’t quite as bad, notes of citrus hops and malt. alittle bit off in the taste but not as bad as the aroma. no idea of what was going on with this one.

Cold 12oz bottle: Pours a cloudy pale golden orange color with a thin layer of alabaster bubbles, mostly around the edges. Sweet malts, light fruits, citrus and bread. Smooth and light bodied with ample carbonation. Ending is lightly malty with notes of aromatic hops.

First note, massive CO2 explosion upon popping the cap on this one. Massive frothy head pours on the initial pour, and we’re having to wait a while for it to settle down. The bottle has a root beer aroma. Pours a medium yellow color with a very active body. Excellent lacing. Aroma is predominantly yeasty with doughy notes. Mild hop presence. Malt presence in the form of a root beer scent. Initial taste is moderately sweet with heavy carbonation, and the taste slowly moves to a moderately bitter taste with a long duration. Light on the mouth, it initially has a watery texture, but we’re left dry as it moves on through our palate. Reviewed on December 18th, 2006.

Tap@brewery. Grapefruit piney nose. Taste-medium bitter, good hop aroma, good amount of bitter. Semisweet caramel IPA. Good lingering bitter aftertaste. Solid IPA.