Schlafly Brewery - American IPA

Tonight I'm going to try another brew from the mixed 6-pack brought up from Kansas City by my ugly Uncle Mike - Schlafly American IPA from Schlafly (pronounced laugh-lee) Brewing in St. Louis, MO.  This brewery has been around for about 20 years, and is well-known in the St Louis area for their long list of unique brews.  Never seen any Schlafly brews in these parts, it's only available in the surrounding states of Missouri.  This brew is a limited release, available during the summer months, and comes in at 7.2% alcohol, with 65 IBUs and a boatload of American hops. 

The label on the bottle includes a quote from Benjamin Franklin, "There can't be good living where there isn't good drinking."  Amen to that!  This beer is a beautiful, clear orange-copper color with a big frothy head and excellent retention.  The lacing leaves a foam-screen on the glass.  The smell follows the appearance, with terrific citrus that mainly includes grapefruit and pineapples.  Also a big bouquet of flowers in there, fresh spring-time smell.  The taste starts off very hop-forward with plenty of bitter citrus concentrate up front.  That wave subsides to a middle ground of pine resin mixed with honey and marmalade, sticky and sweet.  That sticky sweetness lingers all the way through the finish, going through a strainer filled with grapefruit pulp.  The end leaves a lingering, refreshing zest that keeps me coming back for more.

Overall Rating:  This was a solid IPA, to be sure.  One of the better IPAs I've had in a while...the beer practically vanished from my glass!  Highly recommend this brew for you hop-heads out there!   A-