Waterloo Traditional IPA

Waterloo Traditional IPA hails, not surprisingly, from Waterloo, Ontario.  It's brewed by the Waterloo Brewing Co. and comes in very snazzy 473mL cans. Alcohol-wise, it clocks in at 5.2%--not quite as strong as I was expecting from an India Pale Ale. I'd been hankering to try this stuff for ages.  It showed up on the offerings board at my local beer store ages ago, but they never actually seemed to have it. I ended up having to buy it in a six can variety pack.

The Traditional IPA poured a cloudy golden orange colour topped with a cream head. It had a fairly mild hop aroma with some caramel notes. The flavour starts with some toffee notes and builds to a bitter finish.

Typically, when I crack open an IPA, I want loads of character (which this beer does reasonably well), but I also want loads of hops. Still, it's a reasonably well-balanced ale, and I'd buy it again.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.