Waifs and strays

I should really have covered this Sainsbury's American Pale Ale back when I wrote about its sister IPA in October, but to be honest I didn't notice it was even in the fridge. Once again it's from North American Breweries under the false flag of the Tap Room Brewing Company of Rochester, New York. 5.3% ABV and rather fizzy with it, showing a lovely rose gold colour under the foam. There's a bit of soapiness in the aroma though thankfully it's not found in the flavour. Not much else is, however, just a half hearted squeeze of satsuma and some light toffee. Easy drinking and inoffensive, it's also utterly forgettable.

Thanks again to Thomas for the bottle.

Not a stray beer next, but a stray tasting note. I found this on a piece of paper I'd left on my desk some months ago, though I've no memory of the circumstances in which it was scrawled. It's for Red Hook's Long Hammer IPA, and it seems I quite liked it, finding it possessed of a similar sort of marmalade flavour to good British IPA, though with perhaps a bit of a cheeky lime shred through it. At its core it's quite sweet and biscuity. There you have it; I ought to take my own recommendation and buy it some time. Thanks, past me.