You've got to love a beer that is "Made with barley, water, hops, and yeast. And more hops." You've got to love a beer that comes unfiltered with a big ring of yeast on the bottom of the growler. You've got to love Ipswich IPA. The painted label gives the history of IPA on the back and recommends that you "pull on a pair of ghurka shorts, crank up a sitar CD and turn off the AC" while enjoying the beer. All that isn't really necessary to enjoy this beer, just popping the growler open and pouring yourself a glass is enough.

Ipswich IPA is a beautifully murky, goldish-orange beer with a tangy hop nose and a fair amount of carbonation. As with all of Ipswich's growler-packaged beers, the bottle conditioning imparts a pleasant yeastiness to the beer. A firm malt presence serves as an excellent backdrop to showcase that yeast character, until the finish where the hops slowly steal the show with a spicy, aromatic, lingering bitterness. I've always found IPAs to be a fine complement to spicy food, and this beer is no exception: it went very well with a plate of fresh jalapeno nachos. I'm very glad that this beer comes in growlers, 12 ounces just wouldn't be enough.

And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.

*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.

(B)=Bottled

(D)=Draft



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