Me vs. Smuttynose (IPA)

Yup, it's another IPA tasting. Why not wash away the cares of a lengthy Monday in such fashion? So my IPA is called "Eastern Thing," this being a somewhat labored "Big Lebowski" reference. On the bottle cap it just says CIPA for Chinook IPA, its signature hop; though Columbus and Cascade also made appearances, when you first-wort, bitter, and dry-hop with Chinook, it will kind of take over.

Appearance:

Smutty: Pale gold, even yellowish, with quite a bit of particulate matter. Thin head, but leaves lace.

CIPA: Deeper color--not actually a particularly pretty color really. Kind of basic amber, tending more toward brown than red or gold. Pale enough for style. Head is slightly more substantial.

Aromatics:

Smutty: Flowers and perfume, floating on a resiny, grapefruity undercurrent. I think I get tiny hints of yeasty fruitiness peeping in somewhere too. Setting aside nuclear-strength IPA's, the volume of the nose is turned up to eight or nine of ten.

CIPA: This one goes to eleven. That doesn't make it better, but it really does -leap- out of the glass at you. The piney, resiny quality of Chinook that is so instantly recognizable dominates, but Chinook is more complicated than people think, plus I mixed in Cascade and Columbus. I get a melange of pine trees, woodsy undergrowth, grapefruit rind, and so forth.

Flavor and finish:

Smutty: Malt might be perceptible. Mostly, I get citrusy flavors, some clean, balanced bitterness, and a finish that swings back toward some sharp resiny components.

CIPA: Great mouthfeel. Massive, well, actually, excessive, hop flavor. The first-wort hopping (I guess) has imbued this with a gigantic hoppy vehemence. Finish is quite lingering and puckery.

So that's IPA. They're both really fuckin' hoppy, mine even more so. Realistically, I got a little carried away. Probably skipping the first wort step, or knocking down a couple of additions would've produced a subtler beer. But if you want to die surrounded by Chinook hops--as I sometimes do--it's really pretty yummy. So, yeah, Smutty is subtler and more complex, but mine is not an empty beer by any means. Let's give it a month or two.