Lift Bridge Hop Prop IPA

I first had this one on cask at Firkin Fest, and then again at Groveland Tap in St. Paul, (the same night as the Epic tasting at Ale Jail, in May) where I told the Lift Bridge team how much I liked it and how I would look forward to tapping a keg or two of it. Since last year, they've been calling me for orders, even after I picked up some Minnesota Tan. Week after week, someone would call, and I'd sometimes take it, sometimes not, and when I did, had to let them down gently, with the assurance that when the time, and the beer, was right, I'd be happy to put something new on. (There was a pause when I finally called back with the Hop Prop order, a bit of a shock for them, I'm sure.)I love to support local breweries, but only when in doing so I'm standing behind a quality beer that I can wholeheartedly recommend. That's the case with Hop PropIPA.
This was part of last month's Hop Heads Only Volume Three, and we're still getting through the left-over kegs! We're in the middle of keg two of this guy. Just took notes on it, now. There's some link between the description on their site, linked to above, and my words. I have to take some issue with their notes. Not much caramel malt detected. It DOES linger. Gosh, what else...not too much. I sure am smiling.

Cloudy amber/ crimson coloration, great, big sturdy head, creamy-toned, lace-leaving and lovely. Really nice looking glass of beer.

Aroma: soft, fruity, floral, subtle insinuations of citrus and pine. Beautiful, but not bombastic.

Taste: A flood of hops bitterness, reaches every corner of the senses, and calmly, politely fades back. Linger on the palate just enough to urge another sip and gulp. Very clean, while being unrepentantly flavorful. Plenty of hops to keep me happy. Big time hop flavor never quits in this one.

Medium bodied, long bitter hoppy finish. Plays with and stays with the tongue.
This is a damned respectable IPA that Lift Bridge can be quite proud of, and is easily their best beer, in my opinion. It can go head to head with the best IPAs in Minnesota, Masala Mama, Furious, Flat Earth NW Passage, ...who am I forgetting, write in to tell me, won't you?
Time to bottle this one, it's a winner. I'd suggest a name change, unless they've gotten tired of that game.

Mmmm, mmm, I can highly recommend this one to all hopheads, up, down, in and out.