The Great Return
Hardywood Park Craft Brewery in Richmond, Virginia, United States 🇺🇸
IPA - West Coast Regular|
Score
6.97
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Bottle and can: Filtered
"IPA"
Bold, resinous and bursting with bright grapefruit aroma, this IPA is a tribute to the decades of hard work by conservationists to restore the James River as a bounty of vibrant aquatic life, eco-friendly recreational activity, and in our case, fresh brewing water. These efforts have culminated recently with the symbolic return of the endangered Atlantic sturgeon, a prehistoric, yet majestic behemoth of a fish, spotted as far up the James River as the fall line in Richmond.
Original Gravity (O.G.):
1.070
Strength (ABV):
7.5 % ABV
Color (SRM):
12 °L
Bitterness (IBU):
70 IBUs
Availability:
Fall
First release date:
October 2013
"IPA"
Bold, resinous and bursting with bright grapefruit aroma, this IPA is a tribute to the decades of hard work by conservationists to restore the James River as a bounty of vibrant aquatic life, eco-friendly recreational activity, and in our case, fresh brewing water. These efforts have culminated recently with the symbolic return of the endangered Atlantic sturgeon, a prehistoric, yet majestic behemoth of a fish, spotted as far up the James River as the fall line in Richmond.
Original Gravity (O.G.):
1.070
Strength (ABV):
7.5 % ABV
Color (SRM):
12 °L
Bitterness (IBU):
70 IBUs
Availability:
Fall
First release date:
October 2013
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7.5/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7
Super hazy deep copper and orange tinted body with a nice, two centimetre tall tan head - this looks like it came right from a tap on the West Coast. Aroma of grapefruit, piney, citrus and slightly resinous hops with a good malt backbone and a touch of apricot sweetness. Medium-bodied; Biting grapefruit and citrus hops with a milder malt backbone than expected showing some grain and cardboard, but the fruit comes out at the end. Aftertaste shows bits of apricot and pears, but the hop bite is present, if slightly underwhelming. Overall, a nice IPA with a solid hop profile, but a little lighter malt body than expected and some subdued and mild tertiary flavours make for a good, but not great beer. I sampled this sixteen ounce can purchased from Whole Foods in Tyson’s Corner (Falls Church), Virginia on 06-February-2014 for US$3.69 sampled at home in Washington on 20-May-2014.
Tried
from Draft
on 20 May 2014
at 22:33
6.6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Like the beaux this has a great initial hop aroma but doesn’t quite follow through. In a sense, there is no great return here. Pours amber with decent head and lacing on cask. Floral and light citrus aroma. Finishes with light sweetness but a light astringent discord. Cask at Churchkey.
Tried
from Cask
on 05 May 2014
at 15:48
7.3/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8
Sample at Kurtkeller 010: Inventory Reduction-tastic 01 on 04/12/2014. This brew is a clear orange-copper color with a medium off-white head that diminishes steadily. Short strings of lacing on the glass. Aroma of hops, grapefruit and malt. Medium-bodied with flavors of floral hops, citrus and roast malt. The finish is moderately bitter with a lingering citrusy hops aftertaste. Above average overall.
Tried
from Can
on 14 Apr 2014
at 10:40
7.4/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Draft at the brewery, 11/15/13. Pours a hazy amber color with a thin head. Aroma of tropical, resin hops and pale malts. Taste is citrus hops, grapefruit, pith, pale malts. Medium bodied, nicely balanced, slight lingering bitterness.
Tried
from Draft
on 01 Jan 2014
at 16:19
7.4/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 6
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Bottle. Thanks Walt! Pours lightly hazy golden amber, small white head, good lacing. Aroma is citrus, dank, pine, pretty good. Flavor is the same, much less pronounced, light plus sweet, medium bitter. Too much bittering hops, not enough flavor. Medium body.
Tried
from Bottle
on 11 Dec 2013
at 16:49
8.4/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
Location: 16 oz can from my Dad, 11/25/13, Thanks for the Hardywood hook-up Pops!
Aroma: The nose is full of resin/pine and grapefruit/citrus hops, with caramel malt undertones
Appearance: This one is a really great looking beer: It pours a murky looking dark orange color with a lasting sheet of frothy beige head that leaves some heavy lacework all over the glass
Flavor: Clean and hoppy taste, much like the nose, a good amount of bitterness, mild sweetness
Palate: The body is medium-plus, creamy and smooth, with a soft carbonation, and a dry finish
Overall Impression: I thought this was an excellent IPA. It is well-made and very enjoyable. It has plenty of hop bitterness, but isn't extremely bitter, it is almost more hop flavorful than hop bitter. There's also just a touch of sweetness to provide some balance. Really well-done. I'm glad I have three more of these.
Aroma: The nose is full of resin/pine and grapefruit/citrus hops, with caramel malt undertones
Appearance: This one is a really great looking beer: It pours a murky looking dark orange color with a lasting sheet of frothy beige head that leaves some heavy lacework all over the glass
Flavor: Clean and hoppy taste, much like the nose, a good amount of bitterness, mild sweetness
Palate: The body is medium-plus, creamy and smooth, with a soft carbonation, and a dry finish
Overall Impression: I thought this was an excellent IPA. It is well-made and very enjoyable. It has plenty of hop bitterness, but isn't extremely bitter, it is almost more hop flavorful than hop bitter. There's also just a touch of sweetness to provide some balance. Really well-done. I'm glad I have three more of these.
Tried
from Can
on 25 Nov 2013
at 13:56
7.4/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Draft at the brewery. Poured a nice amber color with a medium sized white head. Aroma was nice, grapefruit and pine resin notes. Flavor had a lot of pine, grapefruits.. Nice hop bitterness. Pretty well balanced overall.
Tried
from Draft
on 18 Nov 2013
at 10:05