Summit Unchained Series Batch 03

Yesterday, I posted my beer session with Summit's Unchained Series Batch 02. Today, it will be Batch 03. They are calling this beer an India Style Rye Ale or IRA for short. Basically, it is an IPA that has some rye malt in the recipe. "Rye malt?" you ask. Yep. There are actually a decent number of beers with rye that are becoming, or have already become, quite popular.

When I heard about this beer before it was released, I was very excited. I've had this style of beer from different breweries in the past and I've really enjoyed them. There is just something about rye that complements hop flavors really well. When I went on a tour of the Summit brewery a month ago, I was very happy to learn that the IRA was available for sampling. I will tell you right now that I really liked it.

I forgot to mention yesterday that each beer recipe in the Unchained Series is created by a different Summit brewer. Batch 01 was Mike "The Miz" Miziorko. Batch 02 was Eric Blomquist. And now, for Batch 03, it's Mike Lundell. Thanks for all the tasty beers, guys!

On with the session!

I pour the IRA into my imperial pint glass. A coarse, 2-finger head is formed quite easily. It is off-white in color and eventually falls to a half inch layer that wants to keep hanging on. The color of the body is somewhere between ruby and brown.

Wafting up from the glass are some wonderful things. There is a slight smell of sweet malt, but it's not very noticeable. The reason for that is the awesome aroma of grapefruit and pineapple which, frankly, doesn't care about the malt. Those are some of my favorite hop smells, and they're followed by a bit of rye bread in the nose. Man, I can't wait!

Brief caramel flavor from the malt is a nice way to lead into the hops. I savor the citrus fruit flavor, then, the great taste of spicy rye. It all finishes with a nice bitter kick that lingers for a bit.

There is a medium bodied mouthfeel and a moderate level of carbonation. I notice that most Summit beers seem to have the same quantity of bubbles. Some lacing is showing on the glass as I drink.

This tasty brew is right up my alley! I love hoppy rye beers and Summit did this one well. The citrus and rye aromas and flavors go perfectly with each other. If you like floral, hopped up beers, you should definitely give this a try! At 6.3%, it's not too strong to have a few. Don't forget that it's a limited brew, so get out and try it while you can.