Given that Karl Strauss’s “Aurora Hoppyalis” has a punny, extraterrestrial name and that our school’s mascot is the Comets you could expect this review to be littered with space jokes.
But this could ruin the atmosphere; so lets focus on the beer.
Aurora Hoppyalis was the Bronze Medal recipient at the 2015 Great American Beer Festival for international style pale ales; but this seems a bit generous, the beer is modest at best.
When poured into a glass the light, golden color appeals to the drinker and upon smelling the beer you can detect a faint earthy, citrus scent.
But when drinking none of the main flavors (Pineapple and Tangerine) advertised stand out. Unfortunately what entices you to try it, besides the interesting logo and name, is what it fails to deliver and put itself as something that should be in your rotation of go-to beers. With a light, dry finish you expect either the pineapple or tangerine to be tasted but no flavor truly wins out.
There is bit of a fruit taste created by the brewing process using Simcoe, Mosaic, Amarillo and Citra hops; but in the end it finishes like a decent, lighter IPA.
At a 7.0% ABV, and not too bitter of a taste, it is not too strong of an IPA for the casual drinker and could be nice as the night skies start getting warmer.
It’s drinkable, but so are a lot of beers in the same market. And with the flavors it proclaims to have, one could expect more.
It would be more appropreite to recommend other beers such as Karl Strauss’s Tower 10; if someone wanted to try a standout beer from the brewery. Or something like Green Flash’s Le Freak, if wanting to try a beer with a fruity taste.
Karl Straus was founded in 1989, and was an early establisher of San Diego’s craft beer scene. This creation, can be found at your local BevMo! or at one of Karl Strauss’s three San Diego locations.
The beer has a 90 rating on Beer Advocate. To check out the rating or view comments on the beer visit: http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/4146/210049/
But I’ll have to give it a
3/5