Pours deep amber into a shaker. Off-white head with medium retention recedes leaving spot lacing. Resin aromas. Crisp dark caramel upfront and well-balanced with a lasting resin finish.

Draught glass at Sweet Tomato, Falmouth on 9/3/07
Very dark IPA, obviously an East Coast rendition. Large, rather dense, light-beige head is very well-retained and provides moderate lacing. A slight chill haze is found in the dark honey colored liquid (auburn tinted).
Earthy, crusty medium malts and a very clean, but obviously unpasteurized, unfiltered yeastiness overlay the aroma, as bitter, leafy and citric hops break through. Not your typical fruity/resinous West Coast display, but much more focused and bitter, cutting through nearly all of the malt sweetness (caramel, pale malts) and lingering on the finish. Not overly complex, and the low alpha hops that seem to be in here are dominated by the alpha hop bitterness (lots of sharp lemon and white grapefruit). Medium strength of aroma, no flaws or alcohol.
As expected, it’s got a very, very dry body thanks to the somewhat scratchy/bready toasted malts, though enough light caramel notes are able to break through the dryness and hoppiness to provide some balance. Furthermore, the mouthfeel is unfiltered and supple, without any suggestions of hardness brought on by overuse of crystal malt or excess filtration. Light fruitiness, mostly tons of bitter lemon/lime and grapefruit. Floral aromatics and flavors open up somewhat with warming, though the acute perfuminess does nothing to ameliorate the already acute citric bitterness. Still, it’s very well-made, and flawless.