Beer of the Weekend #219: Samuel Smith's India Ale

Shit. Two days before I fly to New Orleans, and smack dab in the middle of my samplings for the LV, I am getting sick. I have been tired and chilled all day and probably have a fever. At first I thought I had a heinous hangover. To test that theory, I think it’s time to drink a beer.

This dinner-time sampling is Samuel Smith’s India Ale, brewed by Samuel Smith Old Brewery of Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England.


Serving type: One 355 ml (12-ounce) bottle. A batch code is printed on the shoulder, but there is no freshness date.

Appearance: Straight pour into a becker glass. The color is a hazy, pale amber. Three fingers of thick, eggshell-colored head develop and dissipate slowly to leave trails along the glass, a billowy lacing, and a ring around the edge.

Smell: Honey, sweet caramel malts, lemon citrus, and some floral hop action reminiscent of a helles.

Taste: The flavor is not as sweet as the smell led me to believe, but it exhibits a rounded bitterness that compliments the malts. The floral and citrus hops are the heavyweights, but there is also a considerable malt presence just beneath: the honey and sweet caramel malts are lurking just below the hops, taming them. Each sip leaves a nice bitterness lingering on the tongue.

Drinkability: Good stuff. Far from your typical hop bomb from the west coast, India Ale is a solid English IPA that delivers malts and hops, and does not go over the top.

Fun facts about SSIA:

-Style: BA classifies it as an English IPA:

First brewed in England and exported for the British troops in India during the late 1700s. To withstand the voyage, IPA’s were basically tweaked Pale Ales that were, in comparison, much more malty, boasted a higher alcohol content and were well-hopped, as hops are a natural preservative. Historians believe that an IPA was then watered down for the troops, while officers and the elite would savor the beer at full strength. The English IPA has a lower alcohol due to taxation over the decades. The leaner the brew the less amount of malt there is and less need for a strong hop presence which would easily put the brew out of balance. Some brewers have tried to recreate the origianl [sic] IPA with strengths close to 8-9% abv.

-Price: $2.79/bottle at John’s Grocery in Iowa City.

-Serving temperature: The Samuel Smith website says it is best served at about 51ºF (11ºC).

-Alcohol content: 5 percent ABV.

-Food pairings: Pairings from the Samuel Smith website are:

Spicy foods; green chilli and lime pickle; mulligatawny soup; pork with vinegar and garlic; chicken with roasted coconut sauce; fish on a bed of potatoes; tomato and onion masala; curried prawns; duck risotto.

-Here is the very interesting and educational verbage from the front label:

In the 19th century there was a consider trade in ale from Britain to India. The land of spice was Britain’s major export market. The heavy hop levels of these pale ales shipped on the long voyage to India naturally preserved the ale and complemented the flavourful and exotic cuisine of the East. Samuel Smith’s India Ale is characterised by the colour of a golden sunset, a refined maltiness and an emphasis on the aroma and flavour from Britain’s best hop gardens.

The Quiet Man’s grade: B+.