Harpoon Brewery Harpoon IPA
What the brewers say
“Our IPA finds harmony in the combination of hops, malt, and yeast. The sturdy malt backbone provides depth of body and color and is balanced by a pleasantly hoppy finish.”
What our panel thought
Aroma: “Interestingly complex and subtle nose of malt sweetness, musky hops character, and slight fruit notes. Slight grapefruit note as it starts to warm up, but not overly fruity.”
Flavor: “Orange zest, grapefruit, slight lemon, and pine up front, followed by a round malt body and then a moderate bitterness. The hops provide some earthy complexity. Slight malt, biscuit note up front that leads to a medium piney hops flavor. Moderate bitterness in the aftertaste. High carbonation creates a slight bite, but that isn’t distracting. Some of the aromatic mustiness comes through in the flavor—from the hops?”
Overall: “The more I drank this beer the more I enjoyed it, but the beer seemed to struggle to find itself. Light bodied and refreshing, it doesn’t overwhelm the palate, but a cloying bitterness appears after the sip—I’d like more of the piney hops flavor and a bit less of the bitterness.”
