Whenever I get to talking about craft beer to folks who aren't into it so much (I try not to do this too much, because let's face it -- a beer snob can be really annoying, and people should drink what they want), one of the more common reasons I hear is that they don't like IPAs. And I get it, because I used to feel the same way.
"They smell like grass clippings."
"They taste like pollen."
"It's like licking a pine cone."
And they're not totally wrong. A lot of the more well-known craft outlets are always trying to see who can out-IPA each other, and some of the results are kind of gross.
Still, the more stuff I tried and liked, the more I felt like I needed to give IPAs a chance a bit, and so I have. Really, it just comes down to degrees and figuring out just how far you want to go before that hoppy bitterness becomes unpalatable. So when a couple of bottles of Lake Placid's Big Slide IPA came in the mail, I was eager to try it out. And found that what you might consider the "classic" IPA isn't so scary anymore.
Lake Placid is out of exactly where you imagine, about a year shy of 20 years. Sadly, they don't appear to be available out of the Tri-State area.
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This one is right at a 7 percent alcohol-by-volume
Review
The malty, sweet, yet floral bouquet of a typical pale ale, and with a crisp opening with the texture of the hops. The beer flows through a light bit of sweetness before closing with a nice, but not overly expressive bite. Honestly, you feel the hops more than you taste them. I mean yeah, there's that bitterness, but never so much that it overwhelms you. On the other hand, there's an actual texture to this that kind of blends well with the flavor, and makes it pretty enjoyable as a warm-weather beer. I give a comfortable four stars. Very much a classic representation of the style.