Monday, February 6, 2012

47º North IPA (Leech Lake Brewing, Walker, MN)

After the first two bottles of tasty Leech Lake brews, I'm looking forward to getting to the big dog IPAs that are left in the beer fridge.  Next is 47º North IPA that's 93 IBUs of pure hoppy Fuggles fun. The name refers to Leech Lake's GPS latitude and, according to the label, you won't find nothing like it anywhere below the 47th parallel.

Similar look to the Blindside Pale Ale, but definitely a bit darker--more of a copper with only the thinnest of old gold highlights. Off white head bubbles up for a bit before falling to a thin, lingering film.  Nose is earthy with a very subtle spice that can be easy to miss.  Taste has a malty caramel base with an assertive but not overwhelming hop bite. Flavor is a bit muddled, and the body of the beer is thin.

I was imagining the Blindside on steroids, but it didn't live up to my expectations.  Had I drank Blindside and 47º North side by side and blind, I would have reversed them except that the bitterness of the IPA is little more in spite of the 93 IBUs.  However, the nose of Blindside is much bigger and enjoyable.  A decent IPA, but clearly not my favorite so far.  

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