Jeff was excited to try Muskoka Brewery’s Mad Tom IPA after really enjoying their Harvest Ale last fall. Here’s his review.
After enjoying the Harvest Ale, I was anticipating they’d do another great beer with this one and raise the bar again.
The beer pours a nice golden colour with about a finger or so of head. The head retention isn’t bad and when it dissipates it leaves a nice amount of lacing.
The description on the back of the bottle says: “this IPA has a vibrant aroma, depth of flavour and crisp citrusy undertow like no other.” I was a little disappointed with the aroma. I get some spicy floral on the nose but to me “vibrant” means it should be unmistakable. Instead, I found myself searching for it.
The taste has a good biscuity malt backbone to balance the hops - the bitterness starts with pine and leads into citrus. Each sip begins with a little sweetness that’s dragged back in - I think the use of “undertow” on the packaging was a good call. And as the beer warms up, I get more of an orange peel. Drinking it, I wouldn’t expect it to be 6.4% ABV. The alcohol content is integrated well into the beer.
As good as this beer is, I think I was expecting more. This beer’s a victim of its brewer’s past successes. It’s certainly a great addition to the Ontario IPA market - being one of only a few - and it’s better than several American craft brewed IPAs, but I think Muskoka could have reached a little further on this one. I would have liked to have seen this one unfiltered and unpasteurized. Maybe next time.
After enjoying the Harvest Ale, I was anticipating they’d do another great beer with this one and raise the bar again.
The beer pours a nice golden colour with about a finger or so of head. The head retention isn’t bad and when it dissipates it leaves a nice amount of lacing.
The description on the back of the bottle says: “this IPA has a vibrant aroma, depth of flavour and crisp citrusy undertow like no other.” I was a little disappointed with the aroma. I get some spicy floral on the nose but to me “vibrant” means it should be unmistakable. Instead, I found myself searching for it.
The taste has a good biscuity malt backbone to balance the hops - the bitterness starts with pine and leads into citrus. Each sip begins with a little sweetness that’s dragged back in - I think the use of “undertow” on the packaging was a good call. And as the beer warms up, I get more of an orange peel. Drinking it, I wouldn’t expect it to be 6.4% ABV. The alcohol content is integrated well into the beer.
As good as this beer is, I think I was expecting more. This beer’s a victim of its brewer’s past successes. It’s certainly a great addition to the Ontario IPA market - being one of only a few - and it’s better than several American craft brewed IPAs, but I think Muskoka could have reached a little further on this one. I would have liked to have seen this one unfiltered and unpasteurized. Maybe next time.
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