Sonoran IPA

Brewed by Sonoran Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Phoenix, Arizona USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

Enjoyed on tap at the brewery showcase restaurant. Hoppy aroma, cloudy grapefruit colour with white head and lacey. High carbonation. A bitter that is more than a regular IPA although not at a double IPA level.

Solid representation of the style but nothing that separates it. Glimmers of copper, gold and brass when held to the light. Aroma is grapefruit, lemon peel, pine, and malt. Flavor is quite earthy/grassy...medium mouthfeel and highly drinkable.

Pours ordinary pale ale/IPA amber with contrasting head. Nose is mixed citrus with an herbal grassy quality. Black tea flavors are present on the palate. THe herbal grassy components carry through to the flavor, and the finish is medium. Carbonation is good and this IPA is quite drinkable.

UPDATED: AUG 21, 2007 Originally reviewed back on 4/6/04. Received 4.45 score. Added to my RB list to check "Arizona" as a beer state consumed. Looks fabulous with a head that won’t quit. Aromas are quite hoppy with both juicy and earthy hops splashing about. Ample malt base. Feels great on the palate. Quite a good drinker.

Pours from the growler a brilliant copper-amber color. It is topped by a frothy tan colored head that is initially two-fingers thick. The aroma is sharp and pungent a mix of pine, menthol and perhaps a hint of sweet citrus fruits.

The taste of the beer is sharp and pungent as well. There is a nice maltiness here that is lightly sweet, with a touch of caramel and a dry toasted malt note in the finish with a bit of biscuit-like notes thrown into the mix. The beer is light enough on the palate to be quite drinkable, but still has a richness and fullness to it that accentuates the hop character. There is a solid bitterness throughout this beer as well; starting with a gripping raw hoppy bitterness, moving through to a long herbal bitterness in the finish. The really striking thing about this beer is that there is a striking mintiness to this beer. It is quite noticeable and really dominates the flavor profile.

While this does not have the typical flavor profile of an IPA, the mix it does have is striking, and atypical enough to make this a really enjoyable beer. I was pleasantly surprised by this beer and definitely recommend it heartily.

UPDATED: FEB 1, 2006 Sonora IPA pours to a bright amber color with a tight white head, and a moderate amount of carbonation. The nose is somewhat fragrant with some cirtic and piney hop aroma, but they do not smell as vibrant and zesty as a good AIPA should. If this beer is dry hopped, I could not tell. The palate was a bit on the lean side, with some good caramel and pale malty flavors, and some light touches of fruit. Sonora IPA finishes with a dry, slightly citric and piney bitter tang that slightly lingers. Hummm. This is a good beer, but hardly earth shaking, and the hops didn’t get my teeth buzzing. In all fairness to the brewery, I believe my bottle sample that I had was old and stale, and really this beer is better than the example I tasted. I visited the brewpub in Pheonix after this bottle sample, and had some fantastic, fresh, and delicious beers there. I need another crack at this one, and will have to re-rate, because having sampled their other products fresh, I know this beer is better. Its a nice beer with some nice hop character, but not an IPA that most hop heads would get excited about. That being said, I would enjoy this beer as a nice one to have as a before dinner drink, or a thirst quencher after some yard work. If you see this beer in your market, and the price is right, I say go for it if you can get fresh product. But if you are a hop head, and the bottle looks old, and you are looking for a hop buzz, you might want to think twice before you shell out some cash for this one.

On tap at brewery: This actually has less hop charactor, but certainly more bitterness than Burning Bird; rather simple, but nice round maltiness.. OK.

tap-scottsdale beer fest-pours a clear orange hue with a small white head. citric/pine aroma with some good malt base, more like an english IPA. flavors are piney hops, earthy hops and good malt backbone. not overly bitter, but there is some pine coming through in the finish. well rounded body! I would love to have this again!