Long Leaf India Pale Ale

From the “Old North State”, North Carolina, comes Long Leaf India Pale Ale. Brewed in Boone, by Appalachian Mountain Brewery, this stuff contains 7.1% alcohol and comes in a 473mL can. According to the copy, some of the proceeds from every can go to support the “revitalization of our mountains and rivers”, so that’s cool.

Long Leaf is a hazy gold-orange. It pours with a fluffy off-white head, and exudes a a sweet, dank, and fruity aroma. The beer is extremely sweet to the tongue, with a slightly syrupy mouthfeel. The flavour has sweet citrus notes, evergreen and resinous hops, and a boozy streak.

Strong-tasting and flavourful are normally some of my favourite adjectives in an IPA, but in the case of Long Leaf, these attributes are a bit undermined by the overpowering sweetness that clings to this beer from start to finish. It’s not a bad offering, but I wanted it to be a bit different. To its credit, the back of the can has the “NC State Toast”, which was immortalized (at least to me) in song by American Aquarium in “The Old North State”, which is pretty cool.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10.