Crew AleWerkstatt – IPA

A German IPA. I must thank Paddy from ATG for pointing me in the direction of this when he was running the Brewdock. Thanks Paddy! 

Considering some of the costs of IPA Beers in our Craft Pubs it was a pleasant surprise to see this one coming in comfortably under the €6 barrier. Versus say O’Dells IPA which i’ve seen selling for above €7. This represents a really good value option.

So the humble IPA, was developed  as a way of ensuring beer could be sent to far flung corners of the British Empire in the days of yore. High hop and alcohol content to survive the perilous journey.

Infact, the powerful hop flavour isn’t for everyone. But i suppose those colonial soldiers didn’t really care about that did they, they just wanted the booze.

The first thing that comes to mind when you pop open the bottle is the unmistakable aroma, hops, but really fresh smelling. With citrus smelling notes. It pours a deep orange colour into a nice glass, and a nice head. I take a big breath and take my first mouthful. I’ll be honest, I loved it. Despite the large amount of hops, it didn’t really take your breath away like some IPA’s can.

The vital statistics:
ABV 6.4%
Hop Varieties: Herkules, Cascade, Citra & Simcoe
Bitterness Units: 58 IBU

I was really impressed by this beer, which is brewed under the well known purity law “Reinheitsgebot” so there is no rubbish in here. 

I’ve not seen it in too many places, mainly in Brewdock & Against the Grain and other craft pubs, but its improving in availability as it’s currently on special offer in your local O’Briens Off License, 4 x 330 ml bottles for €10.00 which is a cracking good deal in my opinion.

We all know Germany is famous for its beers, and it seems this would go nicely with a nice Bratwurst with Sauerkraut and mustard! Mmm.

Anyway, onto the scoring. The quality of the product is a 5/5 for me. Though availability is quite low but i’m sure this will improve as it gets better known, you can pick it up in most good independent off licenses, I know the lads @ Drinkstore have it in, and with nationwide in O’Briens I hope more and more people try this fantastic beer. However availability wise it only scores 2.5/5.

Now fly out and get some!