Beer of the Week

After all this talk on pale ales this week, it would seem odd not to nominate one for BOTW. I'm sure after hearing the tales of the pale ale, bitter, IPA, and APA, you're more than ready to pour one over your tonsils. Fear not loyal hop surfer, I have a brew for you.

In addition to the new school of craft brewers from the Pacific Northwest, Colorado has emerged as a front in the American beer revolution. I'm not talking about the Silver Bullet here; with quality breweries like Flying Dog and New Belgium, Colorado has shed it's Coors image and now produces some of the nation's finest beers.

Billing itself as Colorado's first microbrewery, the Boulder Beer Company of Boulder (of course) has been brewing beers since 1979. Although perhaps not as popular as their Hazed & Infused dry-hopped ale, another recent addition to the brewery's line is their Mojo IPA. Mojo is made with Amarillo and Centennial hops, which are similar to the Cascade hops that made Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale famous. The beer has a deep yellow, approaching orange color and a nice clean smell spiked with notes of citrus. The hop aroma is there, but it won't singe your nostrils. The mouthfeel is light with a dry crisp finish...not much malt balance here. At 6.8% ABV, this probably isn't a beer you can drink a ton of, but it sure rolls off the palette like you could. This isn't the caliber of a Liberty Ale or a Sierra Nevada pale for me, but the intense citrus makes this an interesting IPA, and a very drinkable beer that I actually prefer to Boulder's flagship Hazed & Infused.

A nod goes to Colorado and Boulder Beer for being our first non-Wisconsin Beer of the Week. Cheers!

Links of Interest:
Boulder Beer