330a. Left Hand 400 Pound Monkey

I flew off to San Francisco today, leaving Elli on her own for a couple of days of sampling on the solo tip. Her opening choice was another beer from Left Hand Brewing, located in Longmont, CO. And as she observes, the “label art would be funny, if you liked monkeys. Which I don’t.” Poor monkeys. Our previous beers from Left Hand include Fade to Black and Milk Stout.

400 Pound Monkey is a clear, light copper with a thin, ivory head. The malty and bready nose carries with it a touch of fruitiness, and there is no hop aroma, making this very English; as well, it could be the nose of an ESB, as it is slightly toasty as well. Starting with a slight sweetness, 400 Pound Monkey is bready and malty rather than caramel flavored; as well, there is a bit of a lake-y/wet dog flavor at first. There are fruity flavors in the middle that linger into the finish, as well as bitterness; the finish is biscuit-y and dry. There are no noticeable toffee, butter, or diacetyl flavors, although the overall breadiness of the beer grows as the beer warms. As well, there is not much in the way of hop flavor; there is some spiciness in the middle, and good bitterness across the flavor profile. 400 Pound Monkey has a light to medium body with substantial carbonation; overall, a very good beer—it is a good example of the English IPA style (although it might not be quite malty enough), and I’d happily drink it again.

From the Left Hand website (which is on a temporary haitus; this is from the blogspot temporary site): “Why does the world need another IPA? Becasue this one ain’t like them others. We use hops of a different color, earthy and herbal, vell-balanced by bready malt. The result? An English-style IPA that separates itself form the ubiquitous-bunch. Cartloads of bitter monkeys flinging wasteful amounts of bananas into the jungle...we’re so done with that.”

ABV: 6.8%

OG: 14.2° P

Malts: Pale 2-row, Crystal, Munich, & Malted Wheat

Hops: Magnum, Boadicea, & Sovereign
Bottled: 4/26/2010

(5/26/2010)