Snoqualmie Falls Wildcat IPA

Brewed by Snoqualmie Falls Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Snoqualmie, Washington USA

Original rating:from a 22oz bottle on Jan 24, 2006.

Pours a golden-orange amber, relatively clear with some floaty bits, with a robust foamy head.

The aroma is grapefruit juice and a hint of yeast, but it is understated relative to the big blast of flavor that this beer offers. That flavor is all grapefruit juice hops, backed up with generous and well-balanced caramel malts. The beer manages not to be sweet, though, but rather simply citrusy with a pleasant but not overwhelmingly bitter finish. The mouthfeel is fine though not exceptional.

All in all, a nice example of a straight-forward high octane PacNW IPA. 7/3/8/3/15=3.6

Revisited on tap at Bai Pai in Seattle. On tap, this one just doesn’t live up. The restaurant deserves some of the blame for serving it at about 35 degrees F in a Pilsner glass - but as the beer warms, it doesn’t get better. Instead, a big salty unbalanced malt comes forward, along with an astringent hoppiness that is less citrus than outright chemical. Deeply unimpressive given multiple previous experiences with this in bottled form (though it did pour with a beautiful fine head.) What went wrong? 7/4/5/3/12=3.1

I’ve averaged the ratings.

Herbal, floral, perfumey hop aroma is sticky without being pungent. Hazy orange tan coloured body is topped by a decent white head that recedes to partial cover with excellent lacing. Nicely balanced flavour offers citrus-grapefruit hops, moderate bitterness and toasty malt character. Medium body with moderate carbonation. Bottle enjoyed with beerbuzzmontreal, MartinT, Oliver_MTL, Rastacouere and Yowie.

Pours a clear caramel amber color with a thin white head. Excellent aroma and flavor of floral and fruity hops with a well rounded caramel malt and a bitter finish. The body is light to medium with a creamy texture and soft carbonation. Good stuff.

A light haze tampers the golden-amber pour wearing a beautiful off-white head that lasts as a cover. Gently woody nose offers herbal and salty hop nuances with just a touch of citrus gearing toward mintiness. Strong liquid hops finish is teeth grasping, salty, slightly astringent and floral. Limited malt development disturbs a bit the overall balance in mouth, but the hops don’t come out too standard, so I still take enjoyment from it. Mellow carbonation, light-medium body, slight oiliness in the texture.

Any first impressions?
-A thick, lofty head thrones atop a glowing amber, bustling with minute yeast particles.
-Levitating leafy, wooden, resinous hops salute the nostrils.
-An airy, round maltiness offers ample support, but few distinctive flavors.
-Expressive hop bitterness segues into a salty/sandy finale.

What if you dig deeper?
-Biscuity malts lie under the fruity, resinous hops.
-The citrus fruit makes it all very quaffable.
-A healthy mouthfeel, not too big, not too thin, is perfect for flavorful quenching.
-This is unfiltered, unpasteurized goodness, plain and simple.

Bottle, no date.

Bottle, courtesy of my folks’ recent trip to Seattle. Pours a beautiful clear copper with a thick off white head. Aroma is on the lighter side; subtle hop flowers and a little pine. Flavor has notes of grapefruit, pale malt and a twinge of orange at the end. Very bitter lingering finish. Very nice medium, smooth body with lively, crisp carbonation. Some lacing left on the glass, good head retention. Could use a little more sweetness, more aroma hops, more flavor hops and less bittering hops. Overall, solid.

22oz bottle courtesy of Andre. Pours a cloudy amber/orange with a thin but prevelant off white head. Smells of oranges, roses, lemons, wildflowers, caramel and slightly breaddy. Tastes bitter initially with some strong hop notes eventually giving way to a nice steady malty taste. Mouthfeel is bitter and a bit thin. Finish is peppery. Nice, but not as good to taste as it was to smell.

Poured a hazy light amber color with a medium sized off-white head. Light piney hop aroma with sweet malt underneath. Flavor was mostly malt. Sweet caramel. Some citrus. Dry bitter finish.