Guest Video Review by Dave Coulter

Here’s a beer that I’ve never tried before: Jackie O’s Mystic Mama India Pale Ale. This beer is brewed by Jackie O’s brewery in Athens, Ohio, and is not a beer that is sold in my area. I received a sample from our own Dave Coulter, and you can see his video review of this beer above.

So I didn’t know much about the beer or the brewery going in, except that the can was really cool and claims the beer is “brewed with copious amounts of pungent hops.” That sure sounded good. I hopped on over (pun intended) to Jackie O’s website, and it took a few tries but I finally got some information:

This is that big sticky hop elixir that I have always wanted to brew. Columbus and Warrior hops lend an assertive bitterness. Amarillo and Simcoe hops give this beer tons of great flavors of grapefruit, tangerines, and pine needles. A big dry hop addition of Amarillo and Simcoe give Mystic Mama a nose to stand up to the flavor.

Malts: Malt: American 2-row, Crystal 10, White Wheat

Jackie O’s Mystic Mama India Pale Ale is about average in alcohol content for the style at 7% by volume. Let’s dig in and go looking for those copious amounts of pungent hops, shall we?

Jackie O’s Mystic Mama India Pale Ale pours to a bright orange color with a medium sized head of rocky foam and an absolutely explosive nose of citric and resiny hops. A thick layer of Brussels lace coats my glass and follows the liquid down the sides. Taking a sip, I love the thick chewy caramel up front followed by, well, copious amounts of pungent hops. They hit you fast, and this beer is really loaded with resiny pine tar, citrusy grapefruit and orange in both aroma and flavor, and at the last it’s so mouth-puckeringly bitter that it’s not a beer you’ll soon forget. Indeed, you can’t really forget it easily because that bitterness lingers on the palate for a long, long time after sipping. Just a wonderful IPA with great hop burps and grapefruit seeds in the aftertaste, too.

Not to be missed, folks. If you can get it.