Widmer Brothers Rotator IPA Series - Spiced IPA
In the spirit of collaboration, Widmer Brothers Brewing teamed up with QUAFF to brew Spiced IPA, a beer that offers an intriguing twist on the West Coast’s favorite style. The spices used in this beer include Malty Assam Black Tea, Ginger, Cinnamon, Clove, Star Anise, Black Pepper, and Cardamom.
3.4
157 reviews
Portland, United States
Community reviews
Bottle. Very cool concept! Slightly hazy orange pour with a small but foamy white head. Terrific citrus hop aroma with a hint of pepper and other spices. Taste is initially citrus, then comes the tea and cardamom, then the warm peppery finish as it goes down the throat. Fun brew!
Very slightly hazy copper coloured body with some bright orange tints and a one centimetre off-white head. Aroma of fresh earthy and grassy hops with a bit of citrus or curacao and some definite coriander seed notes. Medium-bodied; Sharp grassy and herbal hop notes with a pungent belgian yeast strain noticeable tucked in with some good malt and a bit of light spice notes with coriander seed and a bit of an earthy pungent finish. Aftertaste very full flavoured with the hops the strongest, then soon afterwards the spice and bitterness make the beer nice on the tail end. Overall, a nice IPA with some good flavours that make it different than most - most like a belgian/farmhouse ipa. Definitely worth trying if you can find it or mix in with any other Widmer beers at a store. I sampled this twelve ounce bottle purchased from Total Wine in McLean, Virginia on 01-August-2012 for US$1.49 sampled at home in Washington on 20-August-2012.
Golden color with a white head. Interesting blend of citrus hops and spices. Heavy on the anise, pepper, ginger, and cinnamon. The other aromatics are there, but less so. Decent tea aroma. A hint of sweet malt in the background. The flavor has a nice hoppiness to it with mild to moderate bitterness. As with the nose, heavy anise, pepper, ginger, cinnamon, and tea. The finish is fairly bitter, which is likely augmented by some of the spices. Really interesting and different.
12 ounce bottle thanks to Mike. Pours a clear copper color with a medium white head. A nice nose of ginger and spices with sweet hops. A unique flavor with some spicy bite, light tea, ginger, oranges, lemon. Very smooth and good.
Gold, clear, white head. Aroma: strong ginger and earthy/musty notes dominate, followed by citrusy hops. Flavor is less dominated by spice (but ginger pretty evident), allowing IPA base style to come through more, featuring citrusy and lightly resiny hops, grainy malt with some crystal malt and toasty notes. The balance of this beer as between the spice and base style improves as it warms, with the two working well together. Very interesting beer.
Clear golden color with ivory head. Pine, floral, sweet spicy herbal aromas. medium body, average carbonation. Nice hoppy pine, citrus flavors with herbal cumin, other spice on a solid pale malt base--good
Clear amber color with no head. Aroma of hops, ginger, and cardamone. Sweet bicsuit and tea-like flavor upfront with ginger and cardamone, but a sharp hop bite at the end. First sip I did not like, but as the beer warmed, the spice became more present.
Bottle from my bro - thanks ck1! Pours a very clear orangewith a white head. Nice lacing. I completely flunked the aroma test, not knowing any of the "ingredients" ahead of time. A thick, somewhat sweet spice and perhaps some caramel. I completely get ginseng and cardamon after KNOWING they were in the makeup. Nice aroma. Taste is of tea and sweet spices, with a definite malt presence although dialed back a bit. Syrupy and thick. Finishes with bitterness that is not very present otherwise. Probably an ipa over a spice beer. I enjoyed it.
Hazy gold with a thin white head. Aroma is ginger with pepper and floral notes. Taste is like a mulled tea and cider, with some notes of sulfur on exhalation. $2
gold pour with a white head. nose is spices, hops, citrus, and hot. nice on the palate, spices, hops, chewy, and a malty finish.
Bottle pours light gold with medium white head. Aroma is big pine and dank hops. Flavor is light toasted malt with big notes of cardamom and black licorice. Interesting but good.
Such a nice change from a general IPA, ad try don’t lie about the spice! Good for one but too intense for a second back to back.
Clear pale amber with small white head and lots of small bubbles like champagne. Smells sweet, and lightly floral, like honeysuckle. Flavor is more "spiced". Clove and cardamom, star anise. Tasty and interesting with a hop bitter bite on the finish. good stuff.
Fresh, fruity, biscuity AIPA aroma. After it warms, it reminded me of biscuits and marmalade. Average bottle and label. Mostly (if not) clear orange brew. Just weird - not unpleasant, but weird. Peppery, bready, good bittering. I will finish this one, but if I’d had a sixpack then five would have ended up as marinade - because they would be good for that. Or mac and cheese sauce base. Or braising cabbage. It’s just not wonderful drinking. A starchy mouthfeel, with a hoppy and black pepper aftertaste. Widmer swings, Widmer misses.
Sampled on 7/5/12. This IPA pours a slightly hazy orange gold color from a 12oz bottle. Medium sized white foamy head, with decent lacing and nice retention. The aroma is fruity and sweet, spicy and hoppy. A medium bodied IPA. The malts are fruity and sweet, orange and orange peel. The hops are grapefruity and piney. The spices and there are lots of them, Malty Assam Black Tea, Ginger, Cinnamon, Clove, Star Anise, Black Pepper, and Cardamom, really mix well with the hops. I keep picking up something slightly different each sip. Good carbonation. I have really enjoyed this series of beer. Some more would be nice. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is slightly bitter.
Pours a clear yellow golden color with a nice white head. Aroma is herbal tea and other spices. The taste is very interesting. It reminds me a little of a stone beer I had with Yams recently but there’s no yams here. All of the flavors mix together in a nice, somehow drinkable beer. It’s really surprisingly good.
Draft. Hazy gilden yellow color, large fluffy white head, great lacing. Aroma of freshly cut wet grass. Taste is bright grass and pine. Very nice.
Bottle. Poured a darker orange color with a smaller white head left some lacing on the glass as it went. Aroma was pine and spruce. Flavor was spice and hops. Longer finish. Hops in there. Decent beer.
12 ounce bottle from a Kroger. Pours a clear amber color with a medium sized frothy white head. Good head retention. Aroma of tea, ginger, clove, grapefruit and caramel. The taste is tea, spices, ginger, grapefruit, pale malts. Medium bodied. Interesting.
Bottle. Pours clear light copper with a big offwhite head, some carbonation, and decent lacing. The aroma is pretty much straight pine, nothing complex. The taste is just off, really funky and not enjoyable. Watery palate and a weird finish. Drain pour.
Bottle: Poured a orange with a bubble carbonated off white head. Aroma is spice and hops. Taste is a peppery spice with hops and fern to aloe middle. There is more pop of spice in the end that tingle the tongue.
Bottle: Straw colored, a bit hazy, moderate to large foamy white head, spotty lacing. Strong cardamom and ginger nose. Not what I was expecting at all. Slight cinnamon and pepper as it warms. Odd beer, spicy more than it is an IPA. Seems like a Pale Ale with an assload of spices. Not sure what to make of this, seems like a fancy soapy/fragrant IPA. Body and mouthfeel are moderate. More IPA on the finish, but super fragrant. Not bad, different, but this really needs to be put on wood or perhaps been on a bigger beer. Interesting change at least.
Poured from a bottle into a pint glass. Just under two fingers of head. Color was golden orange. Light white lacing on the top and sides that dissipated slowly in the middle and retained OK on the sides. Just a little bit of stuff left on the sides of the glass.
Smelled lots of different flavors, all pleasant. Got citrus hops - orange, tangerine, lemon, lime and even some raspberry. Also some sweet floral notes, like a rose flavor. Some candy flavors, too, like Sweet Tarts or Smarties. Pretty potent on the nose.
Tasted citrus hops up front, mainly tangerine, orange and lemon. But still got that raspberry/strawberry. Still got those Smarties taste and some sugary floral notes. Very bitter finish on the tongue after. After awhile, I got some spices. Seemed to be pepper or some kind of spicy taste. Tons of different flavors, very surprising.
Light-to-average body. Oily texture. Average carbonation. Long bitter finish. Spicy hot feeling on the throat after.
Not a bad beer overall. The smell may have been the best part and I almost pulled the trigger on a 4.5/9.0.
Aroma: Hard to describe accurately, Notes of hops and grain with a verity of spices. Almost like a coffee shop that also sells craft beer
Appearance: Pale orange, very clear snow white head
Taste: unique but still very grounded. A typical balanced IPA with varying spice notes.
Overall: I may give this a tad to much credit, but it is well mad and has charter
The appearance is brassy with a large head. The aroma is very hoppy with pine, citrus, and herbs. There is also malt and a touch of tea and spice. The taste is like the aroma. The palate is smooth but not thick. Overall a nice beer but I wish it had more tea.
Clear amber with a small, short-lived off-white head that laces very lightly. Aroma of caramel, citrus, tea, and light spices. The taste is herbal and malty; a little sweet and a little more bitter. Medium bodied with average carbonation. Though the IPA in this is weak, it nevertheless is a fine beer, as the tea especially comes through quite nicely. High drinkability with balance.
Pours light amber. Clove and spice on the nose. Frothy head clings to the glass. Oddly sweet. Brown sugar. Spice. Bitter hops. The flavors don't mix well.
A - Pours a slightly cloudy golden-orange with a finger of frothy white head. The head fades down at a normal pace leaving behind some lace.
S - Aroma is a mix of sweet caramel malts with some biscuit malts, citrus hops, some coriander and other spices, with a hint of tea.
T - Starts off with sweet caramel malts with some coriander and other spices, and some citrus hops. Through the middle some light pine hops come through with a bit of bitterness and a bit of tea. The finish is a mix of sweet caramel and biscuit malts with some citrus hops, light bitterness, and some spices.
M - Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Feels smooth with a dry, bitter, and lightly spicy finish.
D - Very drinkable. Nice IPA with a nice malt and hop balance and some nice complexity with the other flavors.
Poured groin a 12 ounce bottle. Not picking up on the spices, aromas of citrus, slight pepper, floral. The flavor has spicing in it, notes of black pepper, citrus, floral, bready malts. Not a bad IPA, but I would not call it a spiced IPA.
The aftertaste is so-so, but the finish is otherwise smooth and the beer is a solid option if you’re only drinking one.