FLOWERS ARE BACK! MEET THE WEED EATER

FLOWER POWER, man. From ITHACA BREWING in upstate New York. You know as well as I do that there’s really no such thing as a West Coast, East Coast or Michigan IPA any more. There’s just great, good and not-so-good. Unfortunately this ITHACA FLOWER POWER falls on the short side of the ledger. Sure, I liked its bottle artwork – maybe that’s worth a half-point right there. And check the picture – it certainly “presents well”. But after the superficial stuff it gets a little shaky. Definitely one of the more bitter IPA’s we’ve had in recent months, with accents of citrus, especially grapefruit. Ordinarily all well and good, but this one’s a little off. It’s a little dry and at times reminiscent of aspirin. If they’re going after a “perfect summer quaff” they’ve fallen down a bit, as this is a little too carbonated and chalky to be something really enjoyable and refreshing. I have to think that even a hippie would be seriously bummed out on this one. 5.5/10.