4 June 2015 - Best Beer HQ

Big Swell IPA beer review

Big Swell IPA beer review

ABV: 6.8%

The can: Surf’s up! This can I hold in my hand (maybe I should put it down; it’s making it difficult to type) of Maui Brewing Company’s Big Swell IPA promises much in the way of big, bold, hoppy flavours.

On the label, the silhouette of a surfer stands beneath a massive wave, presumably at some awesome surf beach on the Hawaiian island of Maui.

Are we about to wipe out? Only time and this review will tell.

Blurb on the can: Big, hoppy, bold, smooth and hoppy. Did we mention hoppy?

Big Swell IPA is a fresh handcrafted India Pale Ale brewed with huge amounts of American hops and malted barley… dry-hopped to perfection!

Why cans??? Welcome to the microcanning revolution, is what it says on this can of Big Swell IPA from Maui Brewing Company. That’s a good question. Let’s see what it has to say…

Cans eliminate light damage and reduce the risk of oxidation, keeping this craft beer fresher than in bottles! Cans are lighter, chill quicker, and can be enjoyed on beaches and in sensitive environments. Aluminium is the most recycled and most eco-friendly material.

IBU: 82

Tastes like: Okay, the Maui Brewing Company has promised us hops – now let’s see if it delivers… yep, this beer tastes like it was brewed with a crap-load of hops. In fact, that’s pretty much all we can taste. Hops, hops, hops. Did we mention that it’s hoppy?

And yet the aroma of this beer is even more intense. A person with a blocked nose could tell you this is an IPA from across the room, just by the smell of those American hops.

As our palettes grow accustomed to the Big Swell IPA, we can taste some citrus – perhaps some essence of grapefruit? There might be some pineapple in there as well. It’s more complex than our first impressions let on.

Drinking it straight from the can, we can’t comment on this beer’s colour. However, we can say that this beer feels slicker than most in the mouth, with decent carbonation.

Is it the best beer ever? We’d hang ten with Big Swell IPA. It’s a good, strong IPA – and what it lacks in balance, it makes up for in strength. This certainly isn’t a beer for wimps.

Having said that, hop heads will not be disappointed, and we could certainly see ourselves drinking at least two Big Swell IPAs each in one session.

What else should I drink? Kona Brewing Company, Another craft beer brewer in Hawaii, also puts out a mighty fine IPA by the name of Castaway. You should also check that out, and come back in a couple of day’s time to read Best Beer HQ’s review of that.

Craft Beer review / USA /

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