Siren Craft Brew-Rainbow IPA ABV 7.9%

Another winner here from Siren I think. I was just reading up on types of beers before writing this one up. It says on the bottle that it's 'A Belgian Golden style ale hopped to IPA levels'. So it turns out that a Golden Beer is obviously Belgian and apparently made with pilsner malt. IPA is a type of beer that was brewed during the English occupation of India, when they used to ship the beer to India (the 'I' in IPA) it used to go off. So they increased the amount of hops and alcohol in it, and IPA was created. And boy am I glad it was.

Appearance-

Great label again, Siren seem to be good with labels. My usual place (The Bottle Shop at The Goods Shed in Canterbury) has a few lined up on the shelf and they are a delight to look at. With their arty labels. Also I like the detail on it, like the info above about the type of beer. Handy for a nerd like me. The stuff itself is opaque kind of yellow/orange but not quite, maybe a little brown? Lovely white bubbly, short lived head. Quite fizzy this one, be careful pouring it.

Nose-

Now I love a good label as you know, but I should really stop reading them before I smell or taste the contents. I could definitely smell the good level of hops in this one, with the familiar citrus/grapefruit notes (oooh get me, notes). So, I also swear I could get a slight hint of apple, but it does say that there is apple juice in it on the label. Like I said above, though, I'm a bit impressionable, so take that one with a pinch of sugar (also on the ingredient list).

Taste-

Fantastic smack across the face that only an IPA can give. Beautiful citrus taste also, as expected. what I didn't expect really was the initial sour hit I got also. This combined with the tiny bit of sweetness makes it almost like a sour sweet...a bitter, ale flavoured sour sweet. Okay maybe not, but you get the idea. I would like to reiterate my above disclaimer here, but I swear there was a fruity character to this, aside from the citrus. Please try it for yourself though, and let me know, I would be interested.

Conclusion-

I was very impressed by this offering from Siren. After the heavy stouts I've had recently, I really appreciated the change. I do have a lovely stout ready for some time soon. The next 2 I am going to drink though come in pink bottles, and have flavours including bacon, and banana! Watch this space.