Valley Brew IPA

Formerly brewed at Valley Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Stockton, California USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

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Served only lightly chilled, this is amply carbonated as a steady pour produces an almost four-finger thick, pale tan colored head in my 25cl tulip glass. The beer is a burnished deep copper color with amber tints to it that shows an almost clear, rich copper hue when held up to the light; lots of carbonation is seen as well when held up to the light (too much actually). The head leaves a fair amount of lacing on the sides of my glass and forms some interesting structures as it slowly subsides. The aroma has a pungent, fruity hoppiness to it that definitely satisfies the cravings of my inner hophead. Notes of lychee, tangerine, bright citrus oil concentrate as well as a backdrop of softer herbal hemp oil, and a touch of pine needles are easily noticeable in this loud smelling IPA. If you really dig for it there is some malt noticeable towards the end; this is defined by a biscuit like maltiness, perhaps a touch of toffee, and some caramelized crystal malt notes.

The beer tastes a bit drier than the fruity hop aroma may lead one to believe, but there is still just enough malt sweetness here to accentuate a fruity hop flavor as well. The malt sweetness has a bit of a crystal malt edge to it towards the finish with a touch of sweet tea like notes, some caramelized biscuit notes and a touch of dry toasted grain in the final finish; this is definitely a hop dominated beer though as the malt only plays a supporting role here. A solid bitterness starts out light as the beer first hits my tongue, but it has a clean, biting character in it through the middle and the finish has an ample, lingering bitterness that couples with a light menthol hop note. There is a lot more herbal hop character than was in the aroma; notes of pine, a touch of grassy menthol, and a bit of hemp oil are all fairly noticeable. The fruity hop components still play a big role in the flavor though, as they contribute clean notes of lychee, kumquat skin and a nicely fruity citrus component. As the beer warms up the hop character becomes more spicy; almost peppery at times and it has an subtly woody component as well as a bit more menthol character.

My second pour of this that I immediately started drinking is a bit too carbonated, but some swirling of my glass gets this down to a more manageable level. This has just a hair too much crystal malt flavor for my taste in a West Coast IPA, but this is really almost a nit-pick as this is most certainly a hop lover’s beer. At the end of the day this is a very nice IPA and one I will happily drink fresh anytime; actually I wouldn’t be surprised if this beer has already lost a bit of its hop edge from its bottling date.

Tap at the brewpub. Amber gold with creamy white head. Nice hoppy aroma. Resin?, citrus, and floral. Medium body with mild carbonation. Flavor is light caramel with quite a lot of hop-pine-citrus-near floral. Nice clean flavor. Finishes decently bitter.

22oz bottle from wavers1 - thanks, Baker! Nice pale copper pour, with some cloudiness in the body and a moderate head and retention. Fresh and oily hops dominate the nose, an invitingly resinous intro. Mouthfeel is moderate, not too sticky and in fact very clean. There is some crystal malt in the flavor but overall the beer is solidly bitter, and unapologetic about its leanings. Smooth and enjoyable on its own merits, a pretty good IPA.

On tap at the brewery. This golden ale poured with a nice off-white head and a floral aroma. There is considerable hop bitterness to enhance a delicious caramel malt base.

bottle thanks to Bman1113VR. poured a light gold with a nice white head that laces. aroma was pine, mild butterscotch, citrus, and fruits. flavor was pine and alcohol. light body and high carbonation. i actually preferred this over the ubberhoppy.

Bottle thanks to bman1113vr. Nose: brown sugar, burnt sunflower seeds, citrus specifically pink grapefruit. Taste is bitter malty and burnt.

( 22oz bomber thanks to Bman1113vr) Pours a clear golden yellow with no head. Great nose of grapefruit oils. Taste is piney, bitter and not sweet. Linger is bitter too and overall a little unbalanced.

bottle, thanks to bman1113vr, clear golden pour with big white foam, aroma is sweet malty caramel, flavors of hoppy pineapple, green pine, nice bitterness

22 oz bottle via Wavers (big big thanks!!). Pours a semi-hazy amber with a large off white head. Nose is grapefruit, orange, pine. Taste starts with orange, then a little caramel, some grapefruit, and pine. Hops absolutely take center stage, although this could use a bit more in the aroma department. Body is light/medium. Carbontion is near perfect. A nice IPA.

Bottle courtesy of BMan1113VR. Foggy golden orange pour. Smell of heavy hops. Some musty scents as well. Whoa! Way hoppy taste. BIG hop spice on the upfront taste. Interesting and quite intense. Good, and a trip.