Sweetwater IPA

Victory is sweet! It is even sweeter with a great beer! Perhaps the best sports experience (that I can remember) was this year's Super Bowl with the Pats and Giants. It came down to the last minutes and the underdog pulled out a "W" for the big game. Now I am not a Pats or Giants fan, per say, but I really do appreciate some good football. What made this experience more enjoyable was the presence of a half keg of Sweetwater IPA. Sweetwater Brewing Company is an Atlanta, GA. brewery that definitely lives up to its name. It was founded in 1997 and has made an impact on the beer scene throughout the country. It was voted Small Brewery of the year at the Great American Beer Festival in 2002 and has gone on to receive recognition at the World Beer Cup as well! It is primarily available in Georgia, but is branching out its distribution to the surrounding southeastern states (sorry Yanks, but you do have some other fine beers not available down here).

It is my great pleasure to start off with the aroma of this beer. It smells like a citrus-y flower blooming on a warm spring day! Mix that with a prominent hops aroma and it makes for one dandy smell, kind of like honeysuckle....only not!

If this beer were a tall blond, there would be some rubberneckers out there! It has a pleasing amber tone to it, and gives a very nice head. Use a frosty mug to catch this nectar and you will see what I mean by that. Notice that it leaves a little residue on the glass once the head has subdued, kind of makes me feel like pouring some more (and you know I will)!

And finally, we talk taste. One word: ohmygod! This is a hopheads wet dream. The hops are prominent and the citrus flavor is more than noticeable. I would also venture to say that it has a sort of toasty lingering to it. In short, it makes for one damn fine beer!

Would I recommend this beer? Recommend? I am considering forcing this beer upon people. It makes me sad that so many people will go their whole lives without ever tasting this treat. It would be like not ever tasting honey. I am pretty sure this beer would go great with about anything edible, but I just had a spinach green salad with broccoli, carrots, sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, and pork loin strips marinated in a honey dijon sauce, all topped with a light honey mustard dressing. It was better than my first meal after boot camp, mostly in part due to the beer.

Beer-O-Meter: 24 pack -- possible Kegger