Brewery: Finch’s Beer Co., Chicago, Illinois
Beer: Threadless IPA
Serving: 16 oz can
Glassware: Sierra Nevada imperial pint
Information: 6% ABV, no date or info
Style: American IPA
Price: $9.99 / 4-pack
Availability: Year-round
Cellaring: Not recommended for extended aging.
Pairings: Shoot for a pile of nachos with fresh jalapenos and steak fajitas smothered in pico de gallo, guacamole and cream cheese.
Appearance
Threadless IPA starts as a golden light amber color that’s slightly hazed over and topped with a light ivory head. Dense at first, the foam subsides draping the pint in thick webbing.
Smell
Upfront about it’s hoppiness, Threadless IPA showcases a plethora of boil and dry-hopped aromas from sticky resin pine and earthy notes to bright citrus notes for a captivating intro. Amber malt adds some toast qualities with caramel sweetness following also. Despite the bold hop presence, it smells quite well-balanced indeed. Give it a little swirl and you’ll get what I like to call the “burnt rubber” hoppiness; very hoppy, almost too much so. This beer pulls it off in the end.
Taste
Sweet malt underlines all the hop additions so much so that it’s one of the main parts of the flavor, carrying through the whole beer powerfully. The hops continue to push forward though, attempting to cover the malt with layers of sticky pine resin and bitter grapefruit juice flavor.
Mouthfeel
Fuller-bodied, I find Threadless IPA pretty hefty for an IPA. I prefer them a little more drinkable and not so “filling”, but Threadless remains pretty true to style with it’s moderate carbonation and somewhat oppressively bitter finish. Dry and biting, the beer is quite strong despite it’s lower alcohol percent, style-wise.
Overall
Finch’s Threadless IPA manages to balance strong, bitter hops with equally strong malt for a big beer with little alcohol impact. By no means would I consider this beer something sessionable. It’s full body and almost chewy mouthfeel make it something I need to sip for a while but, if you’re a hop head you’ll thoroughly enjoy the gripping bitterness Threadless offers.
Score: 83 / 100 - Very Good
Cheers,
-Andy
