After spending the last while drinking standard ales and lagers, I started getting that itching feeling. My skin felt like it was burning, my eyes were twitching uncontrollably... I couldn't sleep... I couldn't concentrate. I needed another hit of hops. It was time for a fix.
HOOK IT TO MY VEIN.
I picked up this at the same time as the Dundee IPA, this number was only $17 for a six pack and is an imported IPA from San Diego, California. The story goes that in the 1980s, under Lifeguard 'Tower 10', two college grads and an old brew master drew up plans to start the first craft brewhouse in the area. This West Coast style IPA pays homage to this moment of grandeur, so lets hope that it delivers truly.
The Tower pours an amber colour with tones of copper, bearing a lovely orange hue bursting through it with some light in the room. It looks pretty good, a bit thin, but West Coast IPAs are generally a few kilos lighter than those from the Eastern Conference. The first impression this beer leaves is deeper than the Chicxulub Crater. The word bitter does not even cut the mustard. Once it really lays the boot in, the bitterness factor of this beer is more assertive than Joseph Stalin's dominatrix. The feel has that slick oily resin element, but it is extremely subtle for a powerful IPA. The balance between meaty flavours and refreshing texture is quite astounding, and is something that has to be experienced.
I recommend this beer. It does come with a warning however. If you have never tinkered with this genre of beer before, then you may walk out of this experience looking somewhat like a napalm victim. There are some subtle citrus fruits and sweet tones, but above all it's a gatling gun full of pine needles coated in a residue so bitter it may have been sourced from Eddie McGuire's tears after last year's Grand Final.
A solid, refreshing IPA at an affordable price. Definitely not amongst my favourite beers, but I still give a nod of acknowledgement in it's general direction.
7.5/10
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