Sculpin India Pale Ale

Beer Name: Sculpin India Pale Ale
Brewery: Ballast Point Brewing Company
ABV: 7%
Serving method: 16-oz draft in a pint glass
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I seem to remember saying something about trying a wider variety of beers this year and not just drink stouts and IPAs all the time. Well that's dumb. I like stouts. I like IPAs. So that's what I'll be drinking, and variety be damned. You know what? Out of spite, I think I'll brew a stout myself this weekend. You might be wondering who I'm spiting, and that's a valid question to which I have no answer.

Sculpin is, possible, a nice coppery ale. I say possible because I drank it at The Hangar, and the lighting in there is horrendous for beer color judgment. It arrived with a fluffy head around a finger in height or so. This head faded very slowly and left a heavy lacing pattern behind. The aroma here is a fantastic citrus hop, with just enough malt in the background to suggest that this beer is going to be amazing.

There were several beers on the menu that I wanted to try, but I have a fridge full of beer at home that needs drinking so I had to pick just one. I ended up panicking when the waitress asked for our drink orders and picking the Sculpin because it had a weird name. Well, I must have pleased the beer gods, because it was a good choice. The flavor has a great citrusy punch to it, and there is a big malt backbone to add a sweetness to the bitterness from the hops. There was only a light carbonation, but that's good because the beer itself was a great accompaniment to the hot wings we were eating. What a delicious brew.

Final thought - I enjoyed this beer immensely, and it also received Kate's highest IPA rating of all time. Granted that rating was "I don't really like it, but if I had to drink an IPA, this is the kind I would drink," but that's really high by her standards. Seriously, this is on par with me recommending a Belgian white*. Clearly you need to go out and try this beer.

-Jon

* Ok, in the interest of honesty, I should probably admit the following: I was at the restaurant Judie's once, and my mother asked me for a beer recommendation. Based on her previous beer drinking, I suggested Allagash White, which of course she loved. Obviously I need to open up a beer store and sell craft beers to people. If I can get my mother to drink craft beers, I can get anyone to.