Elysian Brewing Co. – Seattle, WA
Avatar Jasmine IPA – 6.3% ABV – 22 oz. bottle – $6.99
“Ale brewed with jasmine flowers”. Purchased 9/2/10, best by 11/21/10.
Saw this on the shelf at Super Food Town in Lansdale and was intrigued by the jasmine. The temperature hit 96 degrees today and I hoped it would be refreshing.
The pour is a bright orange with no haze at all. It’s very clear. There was barely any head, and just a bit of visible carbonation. It does have a nice appearance.
The aroma is sweet with a definite jasmine presence… cool! There is also some fruitiness and lots of malt aromas. The jasmine sits at the end of each breath, just in the background.
The flavor has more of a malt presence than hops. Lots of caramel sugar variations in the flavor. I was hoping for more hops since they are calling this an IPA. Hops are a main flavor characteristic of IPAs. There is a low enough bitterness so the wife likes it; definitely not representative of the IPA style.
The mouth feel is fine and there is a decent level of carbonation. It is a refreshing beer, so I was satisfied with that aspect.
The jasmine in the flavor is definitely fun, but I think it’s more of a gimmick than an improvement. I would recommend improving their IPA before trying to jazz it up with jasmine… Yes, I went there.
Final Score: B-
Phillybeerambassador's Blog 