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Big Nose IPA

Florida
United States
Big Nose IPA by Swamp Head Brewery
Judges Ratings 
1 Review
81
Aroma:
20 / 24
Flavor:
34 / 40
Appearance:
6 / 6
Mouthfeel:
7 / 10
Overall Impression:
14 / 20
Description 

Created with crystal clear spring water that originates deep in the Okefenokee Swamp, Big Nose IPA is a mystical nectar brewed for hop lovers. Inhale the aroma and devour the flavor of Big Nose. Big Nose features massive amounts of late flavor hops, augmented with two dry hop additions to enhance the aromatics. A rich malt backbone combines with the intense hop flavors to deliver a balanced finish that keeps you coming back to say… BEER ME!

Beverage Profile
ABV: 
7.3%
IBUs: 
56
Served at: 
50º
Hops: 
Centennial, Cascade, Columbus
Malts: 
Pale Ale, Munich, Crystal
Judges Review 
Jessica Sullivan's picture
Judges Rating:
81
Aroma:
20 / 24
Appearance:
6 / 6
Flavor:
34 / 40
Mouthfeel:
7 / 10
Overall Impression:
14 / 20

I am judging Big Nose IPA by Swamp Head Brewery as a Category 21A American India Pale Ale. 

The aroma has a strong American hop character present, with a low caramel malt background and low red apple esters. There is a surprising amount of sweetntess in the nose (more what I would expect from an American Pale Ale rather than an India Pale Ale), although the malt character and sweetness is certainly secondary to the dominant ganja-esque hop twang.

The appearance is very appealing. There is a rich haze, as I would expect for a beer that was dry hopped. The beer itself is copper colored with small-to-medium sized bubbles and an extremely creamy off-white head with excellent retention.

There is a low hop-derived pine flavor, paired with a medium-high bitterness. This is beer has a very dry finish, and is balanced strongly towards the bitter. While this is to be expected for the style, I found that the overall experience of the beer suffered somewhat due to the lack of a malt backbone -- the malt character that I had expected from the aroma and appearance was very low, even for the IPA style.

This is a medium-bodied beer with moderate carbonation. There was some hops-derived astringnecy, and also a carbonic bite, that led to a drying and slightly puckering mouthfeel at the finish.

In sum, this beer has many of the characeristics of a typical American IPA, although with greater balance, this beer would really sing.

Brewery Introduction

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