REVIEW: Samuel Adams Rebel IPA from Boston Beer Company

A year-around IPA from Samuel Adams, all I can say is, “about time.” Samuel Adams has done a couple seasonal IPA’s (Latitude 48 and Whitewater), and maybe a couple more are buried in the depths of their specialty collections (Grumpy Monk comes to mind), but they have never put up a year-around offering.

Samuel Adams was started back in 1984 and is one of the original breweries that started the reemergence and upward swing of craft brew popularity in America, which makes the absence of an IPA in their lineup that much more puzzling.

Shop for Samuel Adams Glassware on Amazon

Rebel is marketed as a “West Coast” IPA. What does this mean?

Well, this particular beer is an IPA that combines five varieties of hops grown on the west coast. These varieties include Cascade, Centennial, Chinook, Amarillo, and Simcoe.

Is this all that separates it from other IPA’s? I’m not sure. Maybe. I’ve never quiet understood the distinctions of west coast and east coast IPA (or why it was felt this distinction even had to be made in the first place).

Sure, one is supposed to have more hop character, one is supposed to have more malt presence; one is more citrus and tropical fruit, while the other more offers more pine and wood. But, across the spectrum of various IPA styles, crossover of these typical characteristics makes this type of distinction rather moot, almost expected, in my honest opinion.

If it’s a good IPA, it’s a good IPA. Period. Which brings us to Samuel Adams Rebel.

THE TASTING

Below are the tasting notes I took while drinking Samuel Adams Rebel IPA. If you’ve had this beer before or are reading this with one in your hand, please share your personal review or tasting notes with everyone down in the comments below.

Pour and Aroma

The rebel pours a very light amber color, settling into the glass like liquid copper washed-out under the direct blaze of a desert sun. Two fingers of strong, densely packed foam slowly collapse to a thinner layer that persists throughout the beer.

The aroma here is very fresh and light on the nose. It is citrus-dense; grapefruit and pine come through the strongest, but I can catch suggestions of tangerine and maybe even some non-citrus fruits… papaya possibly, which could be contributed by Samuel Adams’ Ale yeast. Safe to say, it overwhelms in its freshness, like peeling an orange in a pine forest after a hard rain.

Mouthfeel and Taste

The mouthfeel is much like most IPA’s, leaning toward the lighter side of medium. It carries the surging wash of citrus well, though I find the crisp-clean effect of pine also. The back of the taste has a almost-hidden woodsy quality to it. Warming alcohol is noticeable, as is a slight grain-malt character. The after taste is dry, with noticeable astringency across the palate.

I was expecting much more of a forward “tropical fruit” presence, which from what I gather, is a “west-coast” defining characteristic. It might have more citrus then other IPA’s; but is it enough of a defining point to distinguish it from other IPA’s? I’m not sure.

Finishing the Impression

This is a highly drinkable IPA. It has less woodsy depth than other IPA’s, but again, this could be called a style defining characteristic and not something to be frowned upon. To me, IPA’s do start to fall into two distinct categories, but the differences don’t have much to do with a designation on a map.

They either fall into those that stay in the sun. Bear with me here… Think of the edge of a wood. Trees once in a while, but mostly open and bright, it is fresh and warm here. There is less depth to explore, but the place holds up well to a spring foray. The other, tracks the heartwood, leaves the sun behind. It brings a complexity forth that is somewhat lacking in the other. Something only found when the open brightness is left behind and the sun-dappled darkness of the woods is ventured. Both are excellent experiences; both contain subtleties of memory and place for me.

The Rebel IPA falls nicely into the first of these categories. Its lower IBU of 45, big citrus character, and higher, but not Imperial-level alcohol, makes it easily enjoyed. The lower hoppyness, along with the fact that it comes from Samuel Adams, a craft brewing company known by even the mainstream, speaks well for its chances at enticing a little adventure out of those who have yet to try (and like) an IPA. It is certainly an IPA I will revisit in the coming months.