Castle Island Brewing Company
Microbrewery in Norwood, Massachusetts, United States 🇺🇸
Established in 2015
Contact
Subsidiaries
6.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Canned 2/8/17, drunk 3/4/17.
Bright pale-golden body is quite bubbly and topped by a small, white head showing moderate to moderately-low retention.
Mosaic is strong in the nose adding fruity notes of pineapple, melon and light mango. Of course, it does completely takeover and not much of the pilsner is left behind. Light vanilla and a touch of biscuit behind it. Clean, though and with no alcohol.
Soft, dry and with a light wheat and biscuit character to it, the beer has almost no sweetness. Fortunately the hops add little acidity and are contributing mostly just pineapple, mango and nectarine character. Engaging carbonation and no alcohol but it needs more malt suppleness/malt depth. Just a bit papery/waxy on the end. Kind of weird to use this hop on a low gravity pilsner, but whatever. Objectively, it’s quite drinkable.
Bright pale-golden body is quite bubbly and topped by a small, white head showing moderate to moderately-low retention.
Mosaic is strong in the nose adding fruity notes of pineapple, melon and light mango. Of course, it does completely takeover and not much of the pilsner is left behind. Light vanilla and a touch of biscuit behind it. Clean, though and with no alcohol.
Soft, dry and with a light wheat and biscuit character to it, the beer has almost no sweetness. Fortunately the hops add little acidity and are contributing mostly just pineapple, mango and nectarine character. Engaging carbonation and no alcohol but it needs more malt suppleness/malt depth. Just a bit papery/waxy on the end. Kind of weird to use this hop on a low gravity pilsner, but whatever. Objectively, it’s quite drinkable.
Tried
from Can
on 12 Apr 2017
at 18:51
7/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7
Draught at Canary Square, 1/7/17.
Dark, ebony body of undetermined clarity. Tan head atop is medium-sized, falling to cover quickly.
Fudge, strong roast, light prune and vanilla, with little to no appearance of the alcohol. Clean, neither heavy on the caramel or roast/ash character, so it comes off pretty balanced.
Same in the flavor, with low but engaging carbonation and a nicely attenuated body with a slick and lightly chewy texture. Sweet fudge counters dark prune and roast character as vanilla, cocoa and a hint of alcohol warmth linger on the finish. Pretty standard Impy, but nice to see it’s not a booze/syrup bomb.
Dark, ebony body of undetermined clarity. Tan head atop is medium-sized, falling to cover quickly.
Fudge, strong roast, light prune and vanilla, with little to no appearance of the alcohol. Clean, neither heavy on the caramel or roast/ash character, so it comes off pretty balanced.
Same in the flavor, with low but engaging carbonation and a nicely attenuated body with a slick and lightly chewy texture. Sweet fudge counters dark prune and roast character as vanilla, cocoa and a hint of alcohol warmth linger on the finish. Pretty standard Impy, but nice to see it’s not a booze/syrup bomb.
Tried
from Can
on 02 Feb 2017
at 14:49
6.6/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Draught at Canary Square, 1/5/16.
Moderately hazy, golden-brass with a small white head atop showing moderate retention.
Begins very juicy with lots of tropical fruit, key lime, pineapple, etc...Some stronger citrus creeps in there and there’s a touch of resin and maybe a bit of alcohol but it’s still got some very pleasant frutiness and the malt stays out of the way.
Starts off juicy, as in the nose, but gets a bit too bitter and overly citrusy. Sharp and lightly alcoholic on the finish. Low, engaging carbonation and good attenuation. Good but nowhere near as nice as Swipe Ripe.
Moderately hazy, golden-brass with a small white head atop showing moderate retention.
Begins very juicy with lots of tropical fruit, key lime, pineapple, etc...Some stronger citrus creeps in there and there’s a touch of resin and maybe a bit of alcohol but it’s still got some very pleasant frutiness and the malt stays out of the way.
Starts off juicy, as in the nose, but gets a bit too bitter and overly citrusy. Sharp and lightly alcoholic on the finish. Low, engaging carbonation and good attenuation. Good but nowhere near as nice as Swipe Ripe.
Tried
from Can
on 01 Feb 2017
at 15:57
7/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Can - etched - pours gold white head - nose/taste of pine, lemon, citrus, dry cracker - medium body
Tried
from Can
on 29 Dec 2016
at 00:09
6.6/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Pours slightly hazed gold into a shaker. Bright white head with excellent retention recedes leaving soapy lacing. Caramel and resin aromas. Soft with sour malt and lemon joy upfront turning to stringent pith in the lasting finish.
Tried
on 17 Dec 2016
at 18:46
6.4/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 5.5
Draught at Canary Square, 11/11/16.
Black body shows light clarity and a beige head atop with good retention.
Dry, roasty and very much given to the baker’s chocolate sort of stout character. Burnt caramel, ash, dry vanilla; you get the point, it’s dark. The coconut is there in the nose, but adds only one aspect instead of dominating. No alcohol or flaw.
The dryness from the nose certainly speaks to the flavor/body as the beer is incredibly dry itself, heavily influenced by the roasted barley, with zero sweetness from the base malts. So you could definitely call it thin, though there is some very light softness to the texture. The coconut is mild, thank God, as I hate coconut in beers. Bitterness is moderate, with tons of ash, roast, char, black chocolate, cocoa powder, etc, etc...lingering.
Black body shows light clarity and a beige head atop with good retention.
Dry, roasty and very much given to the baker’s chocolate sort of stout character. Burnt caramel, ash, dry vanilla; you get the point, it’s dark. The coconut is there in the nose, but adds only one aspect instead of dominating. No alcohol or flaw.
The dryness from the nose certainly speaks to the flavor/body as the beer is incredibly dry itself, heavily influenced by the roasted barley, with zero sweetness from the base malts. So you could definitely call it thin, though there is some very light softness to the texture. The coconut is mild, thank God, as I hate coconut in beers. Bitterness is moderate, with tons of ash, roast, char, black chocolate, cocoa powder, etc, etc...lingering.
Tried
from Can
on 16 Nov 2016
at 17:30
6.4/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Can thanks to Seth. Pours a yellow gold with small white head that lasts. The aroma is grass, oat, citrus. Medium body, citrus, oat, earth hop, lingering dry bitterness, good.
Tried
from Can
on 09 Nov 2016
at 20:59
6.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Imported from my RateBeer account as Castle Island Candlepin (by Castle Island Brewing Company):
Aroma: 7/10, Appearance: 3/5, Taste: 7/10, Palate: 3/5, Overall: 14/20, MyTotalScore: 3.4/5
3/XI/16 - 1Pt. can from a trade @ 50/50-tasting (50% of the bottles are in the top 50 of their own beer style), ElManana's place - BB: n/a (2016-1271) Thanks to dogfish120love for the trade!
Slightly hazy blond beer, aery white head, unstable, non adhesive. Aroma: upon opening the can: citrus and pineapple; in the glass more malty, bit oxidized, caramel. MF: soft carbon, medium to light body. Taste: pretty soapy, sweet touch, bit fruity, peaches, bitter. Aftertaste: more soap, bitter, malty, passion fruit and grapefruit, nice tropical fruit notes, bit resinous.
Aroma: 7/10, Appearance: 3/5, Taste: 7/10, Palate: 3/5, Overall: 14/20, MyTotalScore: 3.4/5
3/XI/16 - 1Pt. can from a trade @ 50/50-tasting (50% of the bottles are in the top 50 of their own beer style), ElManana's place - BB: n/a (2016-1271) Thanks to dogfish120love for the trade!
Slightly hazy blond beer, aery white head, unstable, non adhesive. Aroma: upon opening the can: citrus and pineapple; in the glass more malty, bit oxidized, caramel. MF: soft carbon, medium to light body. Taste: pretty soapy, sweet touch, bit fruity, peaches, bitter. Aftertaste: more soap, bitter, malty, passion fruit and grapefruit, nice tropical fruit notes, bit resinous.
Tried
from Can
on 03 Nov 2016
at 16:12
7/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Can from Drum Hill Dark brown/black with a decent off white head that persists. Pretty hoppy on the nose, somewhat like a roasty black IPA. Bitter hoppy roasty flavor. Kind of on the dry side. Imho this could have used a bit more sweetness to counter the hop and roasty bitterness that virtually overpowers the taste buds. Nice beer cleanly made but low drinkability
Tried
from Can
on 01 Nov 2016
at 20:26
7.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
Draught at Canary Square, 10/15/16.
Nearly soupy, indeed, as a good NE IPA often is, with a deep, apricot-orange-golden body and a medium-sized, yellow-flecked white head showing moderate retention.
Didn’t read about this beer prior to having it and thought it was just an unfruited NE DIPA. And in the nose, while the apricot is certainly there, it’s got papaya, mango, lemon, orange and peach to go along with it and can easily be taken for a hop note. There’s a good balance of juicy fruits and light acidity, though this thing is by no means resinous. No sign of pine and grapefruit. Malts behind are substantial but fairly dry, it would seem, adding biscuit, cracker, light graham cracker and a touch of honey. No alcohol and clean.
Very soft, malty texture with good attenuation and a little bit of residual fruit sugar. Bitterness is moderate and the thing is juicy as all hell. Nectarines, apricot, mango, papaya and oranges all give a zesty, fruity, juicy character and there’s gentle to moderate acidity from the apricot puree, as well. It all comes in very nicely balanced and for a beer this strong, it’s quite drinkable. Low but fairly engaging carbonation, not boozy and no flaws.
Nearly soupy, indeed, as a good NE IPA often is, with a deep, apricot-orange-golden body and a medium-sized, yellow-flecked white head showing moderate retention.
Didn’t read about this beer prior to having it and thought it was just an unfruited NE DIPA. And in the nose, while the apricot is certainly there, it’s got papaya, mango, lemon, orange and peach to go along with it and can easily be taken for a hop note. There’s a good balance of juicy fruits and light acidity, though this thing is by no means resinous. No sign of pine and grapefruit. Malts behind are substantial but fairly dry, it would seem, adding biscuit, cracker, light graham cracker and a touch of honey. No alcohol and clean.
Very soft, malty texture with good attenuation and a little bit of residual fruit sugar. Bitterness is moderate and the thing is juicy as all hell. Nectarines, apricot, mango, papaya and oranges all give a zesty, fruity, juicy character and there’s gentle to moderate acidity from the apricot puree, as well. It all comes in very nicely balanced and for a beer this strong, it’s quite drinkable. Low but fairly engaging carbonation, not boozy and no flaws.
Tried
from Can
on 01 Nov 2016
at 16:29