A taste of Brew Free of Die IPA
21st Amendment Brewery
563 2nd St
San Francisco, California 94107
(415) 369-0900
Preface: This brew was sent to me as part of a promotional plan by 21st Amendment Brewery that involved an online tasting. These notes have not been influenced by reading promotional material or any other review of this brew.
I am including this preface to inform the reader of any and all circumstances that might be conceived of a creating a biased review or a conflict of interest regarding the choice of words used in the following review. I could go on and on with semi-legal jargon but I guess you will just have to trust me eh?
The following are my tasting notes:
Appearance: This is a golden bronze brew with not overpowering carbonation. It is topped with a fairly dense golden tan rocky head of small to medium-size bubbles.
Aroma: The first impression is a clean clear combination of sweet malt and hops. A second impression brings more of the malts out. A third lingering impression introduces a bit of the hops but still maintains a rich malty aroma.
Mouth feel: Here is a medium bodied beer that gets a little help in building its body from the mild carbonation.
Flavor: After the first chilly refreshing sensation, the sweet malt flavors are the first flavors followed by a relatively light hop bitterness. The second sensation continues with the rich roasted malt flavor while the hops bitterness is left fighting for recognition. The third sip introduces a slight mineral sensation that ties together the aggressive malt and a less than aggressive hop bitterness.
Finish: The finish is nonaggressive, concentrating more on the malt than the hops but allowing the hops a very pleasant exit.
Comments: This is a surprisingly light IPA that seems to fit all summer season because it lacks the aggressive characteristics hop flavors that normally make this a cool weather beer. Should you be invited to a beach party this summer it would do you no harm to take a case of the spear along the matter what food is served. I feel it is one of the most refreshing IPAs I've ever tasted.
The Brewery: http://www.21st-amendment.com/
What others say:
BeerAdvocate: http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/735/20781
RateBeer: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/21st-amendment-brew-free-or-die-ipa/8189/
