Mad River Brewing Company Steelhead Double IPA

Hello beer lovers and welcome to another edition of the NorCal Beer Blog's brew review. 

Tonight’s featured beer is Mad River Brewing Company Steelhead Double IPA. Some beers take coaxing to try – I’ll admit. With so many fantastic beers on the market, particularly double IPAs, it isn’t easy to buy a six pack on faith. After all, I have a frighteningly large amount of beer that is known to me. My buddy Brian spent some time working near Blue Lake and he spent some time at Mad River Brewing Company. He brought back some of their beers, their Steelhead Extra Stout and their Steelhead Double IPA to share with me. Unfortunately the six pack of Double IPA crashed to the ground as he pulled them out of his cooler. He did bring over the Extra Stout, but I was left wondering about this fantastic Double IPA that he was talking about. Well, needless to say I didn’t need too much encouragement and I picked up a six of Mad River Brewing Company Steelhead Double IPA.
From the Mad River Brewing Company website: “Maltier, hoppier and stronger than regular IPAs, Double IPA is dry hopped with Amarillo hops for a fresh citrus flavor and aroma. Goes great with red meats and life in general. Does not go well with driving or machinery.”

Let’s get started!

Appearance: Pours a slightly orange amber with a nice foamy head and nice lacing.

Aroma: Starts a nice malt scent followed by sweet citrus (pineapple, grapefruit) and pine notes.

Taste: Hoppy and malty, smooth and balanced. A classic West Coast Double IPA executed to perfection!

Overall: Extremely drinkable! Mad River has scored another fan with this exceptional brew. Looks like I’ll be adding this to my “regular” beer list.
At 8.6% ABV you need to work on these slowly unless you’ve got incredible drinking prowess.

Cheers!

Mark Harvey