NHVIPA (Gold)

Can pour into nonic pint glass from the brewery. Appearance is cloudy, light brown-orange with minimal sparkle, less-than-finger-width white foamy head with poor retention and decent leggy lacing. Aroma is grape, orange, melon (all combined like a sweet cake frosting), background hint of herbs. Taste is grape, citric acidity and spice, orange, bread. Palate is medium bodied with thick texture, average carbonation with slight numbing of the lips, dry sweet changing to lightly bitter finish. Overall, flavors, aromas and textures get high marks for variability but could have been stronger.