Left Coast Trestle India Pale Ale

Left Coast Trestles India Pale Ale, Left Coast Brewing, San Clemente, CA. Alc. 6.8% ABV.

Hazed, amber-hued, bright white head.

Aroma: citrus and pine, orange and grapefruit, doin' the thing. Pithy, and pleasing.

Taste: Intense bitterness greets the tongue, hop flavors blaze the palate. Medium-bodied, plenty of malt, lots of ballast for the bitterness. I got this bomber for $3, seemed like a good deal for a big bottle of a beer I've never tried. So far, so good, it's a perfectly adequate IPA. Just right on, nothing special, though

Hey, what's it say on the back" "Trestles IPA is light bodied, clean, and pleasantly hoppy, with every sip this tasty india pale ale will take you back to your escape s, such as local surf spot Trestles. It's strong copper color and clean finish on the palate are created by brewing the IPA with 2-row malt and light imported crystal malt. We use CTZ and Chinook hops and follow it up with the addition of dry hops of Chinook and Centennial in the fermenter, bringing out a citrus aroma. Find your escape!"

Left Coast Hop Juice Double IPA

Left Coast Hop Juice Double India Pale Ale. Alc. 9.7% by Vol. Left Coast Brewing Company, San Clemente, CA. Sample from Brad the Beerguy.

Hazed, copper/amber color, slim cream-toned head.

Aroma: Sweet caramel malt notes hit first, chocolate and toffee, too. Hops creep in afterwards, dank, piney, resinous. Sweet malt and bitter hops do battle.

Taste: Blast of sweet heat at first. Massive malt, huge hops. Tasting more like a barley-wine than a double IPA. It's big, and boozy, and has a load of hops, but I, like so many others, like them pale, lean, and piney. I'm wavering between calling this either complex or messy. Not among my favorite double IPAs.

Let's see what they say on the label: "At Left Coast Brewing Co. we pride ourselves in being one of the pioneers of double IPA style craft brew. This hop monster uses premium American 2-row and a touch of light crystal malt to create a solid malt foundation. Five different hop varieties are used in the Hop Juice. It spends two week dry hopping in the fermenter contributing to it's great hop aroma. Starts out sweet and finishes with the crisp bitterness of a double IPA. This drinkable blend will have you hopping till night's end. It is approximately Alc. 9.7% by Vol. & has massive IBUs."

I don't wish to be mean, but that reads like it was written by an imbecile. What kind of a number is "massive".

I won't return to this one, with so many better ones out there.