Caldera IPA

It was a dark and stormy day off of work. At least that's how this glass started. I usually visit my parents on Fridays, and was just getting ready to leave their house today when the sky opened and began to pour down rain. This was the variety of storm that has you soaked even within the 20 foot dash from their door to my car, and of course I had to check on my newly planted Fuggles hops out in their back yard. Which was, consequently, currently taking the form of a lake. So when I had taken care of everything and finally managed to get home and inside, I thought what better way to leave the nastiness of the storm behind than with a fresh glass of IPA.

Caldera is a brewery from Oregon, which has just recently gotten distribution into Maryland. When I stopped by the liquor store yesterday I was in the mood for something flavorful but still appropriate for warmer weather, and an IPA fits that bill for sure. As a result, I have a fresh 6-pack of Caldera IPA cans.

Upon pouring, the beer supports a 1 finger rocky head. It's copper body remains crystal clear, a product of the filtration Caldera does on all its beers. The head dissipates within minutes to leave a mottled coating of thin bubbles floating on top. Around the top, a ring of foam clings to the glass.

The initial smell for me at least evokes memories of a dense forest. At first the hop and malt qualities mix to create a woody and leafy aroma. As the foam dissipated, this went away, being replaced by the more standard citric fruit scents often found in an American IPA. Grapefruit dominates with just a bit of toffee underneath.

The first sip has tangy citrus fruit flavors in abundance, a bit of toasted bread, and a substantial bitterness in the back of the mouth. This bitterness clings to the back of the throat for minutes after the beer has already made its way to the stomach. A light sweetness compliments the bitterness of the beer, making it palatable even if it is substantially skewed towards the bitter side. There is a little harshness to it, but that is somewhat expected in a west-coast IPA from my experience.

In the mouth, the brew is moderately carbonated and medium-light bodied. It's a bit dry, but quite smooth in going down. I'm a little surprised that it doesn't feel at all oily in the mouth considering the substantial hop content.

All in all, this is a great flavorful IPA that is bitter enough to satisfy all but the most substantial hop cravings. It still remains quite drinkable though, since I wouldn't mind having multiples of these in the same night. I enjoyed the beer thoroughly, although at $12.99 per 6/pack I imagine it won't make it into the regular rotation of hoppy beers for me, since Loose Cannon, 2XIPA, and Lot 3 can all be had for less. Still, it was worth picking up for sure, and has a more substantial bitterness than the others mentioned so if that's what you're looking for, this is the beer to get.

- Adam