Madhouse Brewing Company Iowa Grown IPA

This 6.0% ABV IPA is from the Madhouse Brewing Company of Newton, Iowa.  The hops used were grown entirely in Iowa by the Madhouse owners.

The beer pours dark copper-amber in color and fairly glows.  The color is intense.  The aroma is subdued for an IPA.  It is not as hop forward as I expected.  There is a refreshing light fruitiness, somewhat floral and a sweet malty base.  The taste is enjoyable, light and fruity, yet full and malty.  It is like a hearty Irish soda bread with a nice fruit jam.  There are also some tea like aftertastes.  As a beer this is good, as an IPA it is a failure.  It is like a good English ale.  Perhaps it was more hop forward when really fresh. 

The original review was of the 2010 bottling.  Trying the 2011 bottling here on December 30, 2011.  The beer is now 6.3% ABV and pours a glowing burnt orange, amber and copper in color with a quarter-inch of thick and creamy head, off-white in color.  The aroma is hop forward, tropical fruit, cantaloupe, and some citrus.  The taste has an odd Juicy Fruit gum component to it, something I have noticed before in their pale ale.  The taste is fruity, tea with lemon and some tobacco.  The aroma is much better as an IPA than last year's version, and the taste is good, yet that Juicy Fruit element is strangely disconcerting.