Firestone Walker Union Jack IPA
Beer No: 32/1001
Page No: 529
Category: Blond
Today, Scott and I bottled the second of our two pale ale iterations. This "American Pale Ale" was brewed using a California Pale yeast strain and it is pretty darn tasty without any carbonation. Unfortunately, while bottling we found out that our capping machine isn't working as it should. We got it as a part of an introductory home brew kit a long time ago and we really didn't use it much as we preferred to use 750 ml champagne bottles. But when we started opening our English Pale Ales and found the caps weren't giving us good seals, I though I just was making mistakes while capping. But this time, with Scott on the capping machine, it was confirmed, the little hand held machine is broken. I think I'll probably end up with one of these - since the larger version is used for capping and corking and we already have a floor-standing corking machine. It'll just have to wait until our next grain order...
So while we bottled our own, I enjoyed this Firestone Walker Union Jack IPA. All in all, it's a pretty tasty IPA. It's quite refreshing with a good amount of hops and a nice, crisp finish. Brewed in beautiful Central California, Firestone Walker has won their fair share of awards, including a gold medal in the World Beer Cup in San Diego, a gold medal at the European Beer Star Awards in Germany, and a gold medal in the Great American Beer Festival in Denver...all within the first year of release. 1001 Beers notes that "brewmaster Matt Brynildson and his crew spent the best part of a year developing the beer." And it really shows. A very refreshing and well balanced beer, the hops are definitely in the forefront, but the malts make a nice appearance in the body and it all comes together very well.
My review, cross-posted at RateBeer.com:
Firestone Walker Union Jack IPA from Firestone Walker Brewing Co.
Aroma: 7/10
Appearance: 4/5
Taste: 8/10
Palate: 4/5
Overall: 16/20
Rating: 3.9 / 5.0
Had from bottle from Total Wine. Pours golden orange with slight head and heavy lacing. Aromas of hops, pine, grapefruit, and citrus. Flavor of tons of hops, nicely balanced with malts. Nice crisp finish with hoppy aftertaste. A new must-have addition for my beer fridge.
