Widmer Brothers Broken Halo IPA

Broken Halo IPA is a beer produced in the spirit of traditional IPA products shipped from the UK to India in the late 1800s. The almost excessive amounts of Cascade and Columbus hops used in Broken Halo give it notable citrus and grapefruit aromas and flavors. The beer bitterness measures high but tastes smooth due to the full-bodied, Caramel malt sweetness. The finish is juicy, clean, and short lived. A devilishly bold, heavenly smooth India Pale Ale.

malts: PALE, CARAMEL 10L & 20L,carapils
hops: ALCHEMY, CASCADE, zeus

3.3

309 reviews

Portland, United States

Community reviews

2.5 Who gave this IPA a lobotomy? All of the rabid bite that India Pale Ales generally muster up is nowhere to be found. Instead of the shark teeth that this genre of beer feels free to flash on your tongue, Broken Halo behaves like a new recruit in beer training camp. The pine accents are neutered; the smell is virtually nondescript; the valve of hoppiness has been turned off. Oh Widmer, say it ain’t so!

4.3 Clear medium gold color, nice lingering head. IPA-rific aroma full of grapefruit citrus, a bit of orange, some floral hops, and a heaping ton of toffee and biscuity aromas. Texture is smooth yet tingly--perfect. Flavor is super balanced. There is a lot of grapefruit and orange citrus backed up with some floral hop tones, but it’s all side-by-side with a bunch of toffee and biscuit malt tones. Very balanced, and not terribly bitter. In fact, if the bottle didn’t say "IPA", I’d have guessed it was a Pale Ale. I’ve had bitterer pale ales than this one. But Pale or IPA, this is dang good. Worth another buy indeed.

2.9 Bottle. Pours orange/copper. The taste is crisp and hoppy but would like more bitter grapefruit/pine. Average yet lost among the multitude of IPAs.

3.2 12 ounce bottle. Pours a clear orange gold with an average white head. Aroma of pine, florals and citrus. Taste is on the bitter side, but not extreme. The citrus and malt come through. Very good.

3.0 12oz bottle. This was a gateway IPA for me as I started to discover more and better brews. Clear light orange pour with a thin white head. Citrus hop aroma - lots of orange and grapefruit. Not as hoppy in the flavor as I hoped and very oily. Thank goodness I’ve moved on to bigger and better things.

3.1 Bottle- Pours a golden color with a very small head with decent lacing. Has a clean aroma of citrus and pine. with traces of fresh grain. Taste is a mixture of citrus and pine with a trace of sweetness. Has a nice bitterness and a dry finish. Fairly medium body, crisp & refreshing. Very enjoyable. This is not a overpowering IPA. This beer falls somewhere between a Pale Ale and an IPA.

3.3 Has a pine tree aroma with a floral follow up . Has an average appearance. Minimal head with average lacing. Light bitter taste. Oily in texture. The carbonation is soft which may be the reason why it has a long drawn out finish. A good ipa but nothing to brag about.

3.2 12 oz. Bottle- Pours clear golden with a thin white head and nice bubbles floating to the surface, halfway through the glass it almost looks completely flat. Aroma is citrus hops and orange rhind with pine. The flavor is mild sweet citrusy hops, more pale ale than IPA in my opinion. The body is medium light, carbonation is high then deteriorates, finish is smooth. Overall this is a boring and very simple beer.

3.4 23-Oct-06 (12-oz bottle: Gift from SDbruboy, thanks Cliff!) Pouring the beer into my goblet, the aromatic blast of grapefruit I get is what I pretty much expect from all West Coast IPAs these days. It’s a case of Monkey See, Monkey Do with Widmer here as they enter into the foray of bottling a quality IPA. Fortunately, they’ve executed very nicely with Broken Halo, even if it seems I’ve "had" a beer like this a hundred times already. Plenty of grapefruity citrus in the attack, becoming more grainy and decidedly dusty in the evolution. Bitterness is moderate from the first sip to the last, never overpowering the other flavors, but certainly maintaining a lofty place. Medium-bodied with ample carbonation and a definite dusty mouthfeel. Dark-golden in color with modest haze, the small, off-white head doesn’t stick around long at all, settling quickly to a partial film atop the beer. A few strands of lace remain on the glass. Overall, quite an enjoyable IPA, nothing pedestrian here. Looks like Widmer is really starting to pick things up. I’ll be a very happy retailer if someday I see Widmer Broken Halo flying off the shelf as quickly as their Hefeweizen.

3.2 Very nice IPA. Crisp hoppy beer. Pours smooth. Very good beer to enjoy.

2.7 Bottle. Pours a clear golden color with thick frothy white head. Aroma is mostly floral with notes of citrus. Lightly bitter hop flavor but not as bitter as expected for an IPA. Light body and thin texture, not nearly as robust a flavor as expected for an IPA. A good session beer, but not something I would recommend for someone seeking a good IPA.

3.1 Bottle served in a tulip. Pours clear pale honey in color with a medium sized off-white head. Mild malt sweetness behind grassy, citrus hops on the nose. Light sweet, light bitter flavor. Medium-light body, average carbonation, malty palate, and a medium bitter finish. Not bad. A session IPA.

3.0 The beer pours a yellow-orange color with a very small white head. The aroma is bread and papaya, but it is very faint. There is hardly any aroma at all. The flavor is stronger, but is still not too great. I get some orange and pine from the hops, as well as some bready malt. There is also some other tropical fruits present in the flavor such as mango and papaya. Low bitterness. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation.

3.0 (bottle, 3/22/10). Cloudy light copper color. Large off white head. Moderate sweet caramel aroma, with moderate citrus hops. Moderate citrus hop flavor, with light sweetness and moderate bitterness. Short duration. Light bitter finish. Slick texture. Moderate carbonation. Good lacing.

3.4 Hazy golden pour with large floating particles that almost look like citrus pulp - I am fairly surprised by this one - very earthy, dank hop aroma with a semi-sweet malt base that compliments the citrus notes of the hops - a bit sweeter than I typically like my ipas, but the hop presence is strong enough to offset this - bitterness is assertive without being astringent - a touch of white grape quality on the back end - sweetness lingers a bit too much in the finish, but otherwise fairly nice.

3.0 6 pack from Mr. Bill’s. Just a meh IPA. Certainly something that I could drink all the time, but it’s fairly one-note and mundane. Also pours fairly light, almost straw-colored, so it looks less appetizing. Mostly just inoffensive.

3.3 Pours clear golden amber. Nose and taste of caramel malts, hops, citrus and dry pine finish.

3.8 12oz bottle. Orange-tan, slight haze. Big, soapy, steady off-white head. Fresh cool minty seawater fresh hop aroma. A pretty solid IPA, well balanced with some serious hoppitude. Doughy malt backbone. Clean and easy drinking, on the lighter side of full-bodied. Some alcohol laced orange-citrus bitterness in the finish.

4.0 Pours golden with a fading white head. Smells of citrus and faint floral hops and general alcohol undertones. Less bitterness than expected from an IPA but still a decent bitter taste, but the hops are there. Light-bodied with a smooth texture with a very mild carbonation. Finishes a little bitter that lasts long enough.

3.3 Bottle. Pours light hazy golden with a small white head. Aroma is mild malty, some hops, oranges and tangerine. Taste is fruity hoppy, crisp and fresh hops, lively mouthfeel. Ends dry and medium bitter. Good ipa, not overdoing it.

3.5 Medium amber with quick head. has the skunky pilsner hop aroma mixed with graperfruit and (unbuttered) popcorn. smooth in the mouth and lager thin. some pine joins the lemon in flavor. i only know theres malt cause the hops dont get carried away.

3.3 Slightly hazy yellow/orange. Good foamy head. Aroma of "perfume?" and pineapple. Piney taste - not quite of fresh hops, but of hops. Malty, sweet, and a quite bitter finish.

3.3 Nice citrus hop aroma and appearance; good blend of malt, bittering hops and aromatics; would gladly have again

3.3 Bottle at home. Cloudy golden/amber - white head. High fruity hoppy, abricot, medium hoppy, grassy, citrus, light yeasty notes, pineapples, caramel, grape fruits, light malty. OK.

3.2 Pours a medium golden yellow, nose is moderately hoppy, taste is dry and hoppy, not a lot of hop flavor, but bitterness is there. not too bad.

3.2 Bright, golden and bitter ale. Somewhat citrus-fruity but heavier on the leafy hop flavor. Nice to drink but the aroma is subdued, all things considered.

2.9 12 oz bottle. Fruity tasting IPA. Good taste but a fairly average all round beer.

3.3 Fresh floral and sweet malt aroma. Golden-orange, white head with lacing. Flavour is same as aroma with citrus notes. Balanced with a lite bitterness for an IPA.

3.4 Pours a hazy golden with a white head. Aroma is citrus fruit and a little sweet malt. Flavor is citrusy hops, a little sweet malt, lingering bitter finish.

3.3 12 fl oz bottle, courtesy of fiulijn. Pours hazy orange with a small white head. Aroma is mild wooden and orange to tangerine hops fruity. Fruity and sweet hops impression. Ends dry and bitter into the finish.