Beer of the Weekend #421: Mikkeller Simcoe
Since I have so many hopped Christmas goodies chilling in my fridge, I decided not to have a beer of the weekend in the traditional sense. Instead of buying a sixer of something new, I am going to sample one of the gifts I received. So the beer tonight is another edition of Mikkeller’s single-hop series: Mikkeller Simcoe, brewed by Mikkeller of Copenhagen, Denmark.
Once again, though, the back label says the beer was brewed and bottled by Mikkeller at “De Proef Brouwerij, Lochristi-Hijfte, Belgium.”
Serving type: 330 ml (11.2-ounce) bottle. Numbers are printed on the cap but I doubt they are anything close to a freshness date.
Appearance: Poured into a pint glass. The color is cloudy amber with copper tones. There is a lot of sedimentation floating around; there are some pretty sizable chunks, too. Two fingers of dense, fluffy, eggshell-colored head dissipated slowly, leaving a billowy head and trails of foam along the glass.
Smell: Smells like an actual west coast IPA. Orange and lemon citrus, as well as the usual pine. There are also scents of sweet caramel, honey, pale malts, and toffee.
Taste: The single-hopping gives it a very distinct character. The citrus and pine are there but not overpowering. I get the sense it is missing something. The hops provide a decent bitterness but it is no hop bomb. Much like the aroma, there are also flavors of sweet caramel, toffee, and honey.
Drinkability: This edition of the single-hop series is much more like a finished IPA. It is missing the oomph, though. It would be one hell of an IPA if it had it.
Fun facts about Mikkeller Simcoe:
-Style: BA classifies it as “American IPA.”
-Price: I think the single-hop bottles cost $4.50 at John’s — which is, I have to say, pretty damn pricy.
-Serving temperature: 45-50ºF.
-Alcohol content: 6.9 percent ABV.
-“Theoretical IBU”: 95.
The Quiet Man’s grade: A-.
Once again, though, the back label says the beer was brewed and bottled by Mikkeller at “De Proef Brouwerij, Lochristi-Hijfte, Belgium.”
Serving type: 330 ml (11.2-ounce) bottle. Numbers are printed on the cap but I doubt they are anything close to a freshness date.
Appearance: Poured into a pint glass. The color is cloudy amber with copper tones. There is a lot of sedimentation floating around; there are some pretty sizable chunks, too. Two fingers of dense, fluffy, eggshell-colored head dissipated slowly, leaving a billowy head and trails of foam along the glass.
Smell: Smells like an actual west coast IPA. Orange and lemon citrus, as well as the usual pine. There are also scents of sweet caramel, honey, pale malts, and toffee.
Taste: The single-hopping gives it a very distinct character. The citrus and pine are there but not overpowering. I get the sense it is missing something. The hops provide a decent bitterness but it is no hop bomb. Much like the aroma, there are also flavors of sweet caramel, toffee, and honey.
Drinkability: This edition of the single-hop series is much more like a finished IPA. It is missing the oomph, though. It would be one hell of an IPA if it had it.
Fun facts about Mikkeller Simcoe:
-Style: BA classifies it as “American IPA.”
-Price: I think the single-hop bottles cost $4.50 at John’s — which is, I have to say, pretty damn pricy.
-Serving temperature: 45-50ºF.
-Alcohol content: 6.9 percent ABV.
-“Theoretical IBU”: 95.
The Quiet Man’s grade: A-.
