LaConner India Pale Ale

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Gifted to me by the girlfriend of the brewer (she's a classmate). Very interesting and impressive IPA. The scent was a bit weak, but I'm fighting the tail end of a cold which isn't helping my smell. It poured a brownish orange, had just a small head, and left a nice lace down the glass. Flavor was complex and very hoppy, though not unbalanced at all. Palate suffers because there wasn't much carbonation, but it might just be this bottle. This is a *very* thick beer, though. Overall this one is worth seeking out.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 10 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

Yes, it's true -- I'm a diehard Left Coast hophead, and yet also a LaConner Virgin. How is that possible, you ask? I'm not entirelly sure, to be honest. But when my mate xlperro said that his wife Beth was headed up to the PacNW, and was willing to carry back a few bottles, this brewery's offerings were quickly at the top of my wish-list.

That was a month or so ago, and only now (after quite a few business trips keeping me away from my beer `fridge) am I finally able to bust my cherry, to find out what the much-discussed LaConner is all about, with one of their flagship beers, for sure.

Poured a bit on the flat side of things -- what little head that rose up from the initial pour disappeared soon after, leaving behind a totally becalmed medium-gold/amberish body, that reminded me of the color of the raw and unprocessed honey that the meadsters in my homebrew club like to use for their love-it-or-hate-it wares....

Even with the liggering remnants of a cold, there was no denying this beer's aroma -- holy crap, that's nice! Hops, hops, and more hops, all up in your business, and don't you forget it brother...!

With the hoppy aroma "welcome mat" out in full force, it was no surprise that this beer's flavor profile puts the almighty hop in the forefront, the background, and all points in between. But this isn't as nut-checkingly bitter as you might think, IMO. Yeah, it's hoppy n' bitter, but still has enough of a balance with the malt profile to keep this beer in the realm of drinkability, I should think. Yeah, it's got some balls-to-the-wall hoppiness to it -- hell, it's an IPA, and it's from Washington state, so what do you expect?!? -- but still made well enough to keep it both sane and nicely quaffable.

My only semi-qualm with this beer is the very back-end finish.... A little drying and astrigent, that could perhaps make this beer something of a burden to drink all by itself all night long. But seeing as how I rarely buy sixers, let along larger quantities, this is really a non-issue to me, to be honest....

Tks to Mrs. xlperro for the much-appreciated sample hand-carried back to SoCal...!

Music: Slayer's "Die By The Sword".
//TB

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

Medium brown color, medium head. A full-bodied IPA. Malty and very aggressively hopped. Some malt sweetness. Clean and smooth taste. Hops predominate in this beer, but there is enough malt balance to make it really interesting. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is bitter.