Samuel Adams, Lattitude 48 IPA

Samuel Adams' "Lattitude 48 IPA" is a unique IPA brewed with a select blend of hops from top German, English, and American growing regions all located close to the 48th latitude within the "hop belt" of the Northern Hemisphere."

 6.0% ABV and IBU's...unknown

Review:
Well, as per their usual, Sam Adams has made yet another beer designed to be "balanced." To be fair to them, balanced beers do go down smooth (see "drinkability") and do not take away from the foods you might be eating at the same time. The problem I have is with beers that are too balanced. These beers pair with food specifically because they have no strong flavors! As such, trying to remember the flavor profile after finishing the beer is next to impossible. All you remember is that you were holding a beer and that now it is gone. But I digress.
Referring to my tasting notes I remember that this bottle opened without the inspiring "psst" sound. Not surprisingly, there was a very low carbonation level. This low carbonation level may have contributed to how I tasted the hop character. In any case, the taste started fairly sweet, with caramel, cherry, and honey notes, but finished with a mild, earthy-sour hop character that I wrote, "sits languidly on the tongue." There were some "citrusy", and "gritty" hop aspects also, but not overwhelmingly so.

(Side Note: The original  Samuel Adams brewery was not the profitable giant (largest American-owned brewery) of today. Another interesting note is that the "Boston Lager" produced today is actually based on a recipe developed in St. Louis, Missouri.)

Overall Impression:
An interesting beer that defies the normal BJCP guidelines. Hoppy for an English IPA, drab for an American IPA, this beer falls smack in the middle.  Because of this, there is no fair way to judge the beer's flavor except by personal preference. Although it was a very professionally brewed beer, without any major flaws, I thought the honey malt and caramel malt levels to be too high for my taste. In other words, too sweet for an IPA.

Grade: B-

(bottle purchased at The Liquor Collection)