Jun 14, 2017

Flying Dog Raging St. EADman Abbey IPA

Yesterday, we tackled the first of three new products found in Flying Dog’s Blenders variety pack. Uno de Snake is a wonderfully balanced, easy-drinking IPA. This next one is balanced as well, but much more complex. Raging St. EADman Abbey IPA is features a blend of the company’s awesome Raging Bitch at 40% of the mix and Belgian-style strong dark ale, St. EADman Abbey Ale at 60% of the blend. And it is every bit as dynamic as the label artwork hints.

The dark brew smells mostly like the dark Belgian with a hint of citrus and hops lingering at the edges. It’s the flavor, however, that has more curveballs than your average Major League game. The initial impression at first sip carries all the flavors of a strong Belgian dark ale before taking a quick left to citrusy, hoppy IPA goodness.

That initial shift is a bit confusing for a brief moment, but once your tastebuds catch up, everything settles into a groove with bready malts, caramel, dark fruits, yeast, citrus notes and lingering pine. The hop bite isn’t massive at 36 IBU, but is still enough to leave a lasting bitterness long into the warming finish.

Raging St. EADman Abbey IPA is a hell of a blend of flavors. The dark fruits and maltiness of the Belgian ale balance nicely with the citrus and bursting hop flavors the build the foundation for Raging Bitch. The combination surprises at first, but eventually composes itself before once again throwing you for a loop with the next sip. I can dig it.

This is a review of a promotional sample.