Brew Blog: Magic Hat's Blind Faith IPA

This "limited-edition," variety-pack schwag sent over by Vermont's Magic Hat brewery is shaping up to be a bit odd. The ginger-flavored ale was fine, if not quite worthy of the glossy folder and multiple press releases that accompanied it.

The third one, which we'll get to on Eating Our Words soon, is an ale brewed with beet juices. But right now, this one -- this "Blind Faith," from the IPA On Tour series. They say it's full-bodied, and it does weigh in at 6.2 percent alcohol, which would seem to suggest you'd feel some body. But you just don't.

The main problem with this beer is that it creeps back to your throat and under your tongue and immediately registers as a cheap lager. We kept slapping our subconscious, telling it to stop being so dismissive and give the beer a chance to improve, but that improvement never really came.

Some hops arrived, sure. It wound up being more bitter than any standard lager. But even that bitterness carried a thin taste. No floral, no fruit, not even any clear acid.

As the session went on, the unimpressive aftertaste got worse. Helpfully a bit hungry when we started sampling, we wound up needing to munch some cheddar and crackers to even have a shot at enjoying this beer. Even waiting until the very last drop, letting it warm a bit, we did catch a whiff of orange, perhaps, but it vanished just as quickly and didn't show up in the subsequent sip. There's no way around it. This just isn't a very good brew.

The only way to recommend this would be to a light-lager fan looking for a slightly higher hop profile and a quicker buzz. But we doubt light lager fans are going to pony up Magic Hat prices for this brew, and we unfortunately wouldn't blame them.