Ninkasi Brewing Company Maiden the Shade

**Aroma:** “Orange, grapefruit, lots of fruit, some peach, slight pine. Nice malt sweetness. Smells very juicy. The most malt-forward beer so far. Caramel and toast along with a bit of tropical fruit and spiciness from the hops. A nice combination, but it’s unexpected for a hoppy style like this.” **Flavor:** “Some nice orange and citrus fruit character, with some malt sweetness in the front. Grapefruit-peel bitterness hits in the middle and carries through the finish with some sweetness and strong bitterness. Pretty rich malt bill. Hops character is resinous and intense.” **Overall:** “This beer has some bold flavors with some nice orange fruit character and strong grapefruit sweetness and bitterness. It needs a little more sweetness in the finish to balance the bitter character. It’s missing the huge hops one expects from a double IPA.”

**Aroma:** “Earthy hops character is overshadowed by sweet candy with a slight vanilla, butterscotch, and graham cracker character—smells a bit like a Werther’s Original candy. It’s interesting, but slightly out of place for a pale. Hint of oxidization in the nose detracts from grapefruit and pine notes.” **Flavor:** “Malt is definitely the most interesting thing about this beer, which isn't always the best thing said about a pale ale. Hops character is muted and subtle but some notes of grapefruit creep through. Toffee and butter character lead to a finish that’s a little sweet for a pale. **Overall:** “An odd pale ale, with minimal hops depth but plenty of malt complexity. A bit more classic in its approach than some of the new APAs, but still tasty. The dialed-back bitterness helps the malt character shine—maybe a bit too sweet for the style, but pleasant.”

__Aroma:__ “Clean piney resinous notes with some bright lemon citrus beneath. Hints of candy-like malt. While it doesn’t beat you over the head with aroma, the aroma is fairly big.” __Flavor:__ “Well-balanced pine-forward IPA with some light lemon character and light toasted and bready malt notes supporting. Medium body with a balanced bitter finish that has some fruity notes.” __Overall:__ “A really good American-style IPA. It has none of the fancy, fruity shenanigans but just a straightforward bitter, clean, piney hops profile. Everything comes together and persists nicely on the swallow.”