I grabbed two 12 oz bottles of this at the Binny’s by work the other day for $1.19/each. We had lunch at Panera which was right next door to Binny’s so I knew I was going to be buying more than just a bread bowl. I had my eyes on Goose Island Christmas Ale, which I got, but I also found a few lonely bottles of decent beer so I grabbed the best of what they had.

I’ve had Lakefront IPA before and this was much like I remembered. A solid, bitter, but yet quite drinkable IPA. Almost, dare I say, a go-to IPA. I could drink a lot of these in a sitting.

Immediately after pouring into a pint glass there was a thick, dense straw colored head that almost overflowed the glass. Once it settled I went in for the sniff. Citrus and peel. Not really any particular fruit, but just citrus peel. First sip is bitter and the body is dry. This beer, like many, is more enjoyed during the second 2/3’s than the first. Once you get into this beer it is quite pleasant and drinkable. The medium body gives you some malt sweetness to balance the typical IPA-type bitterness.

I noticed this time that the beer is very carbonated, almost too carbonated for my liking. It feels foamy in my stomach, which is never enjoyable if you are the kind of person that likes to drink more than one beer in a sitting. But as with the bitterness, this beer really mellows out over time and the second I finished it I was happy and eager to pour the second. You know, to make sure I didn’t miss anything noteworthy.

As I think about it now, every sip of that beer was good, and I suppose that is a great thing to say about a beer.

ABV: 6.9%

Grade: B (If you see it on the shelf or on tap, get excited and drink it- but not a beer I’m going across state lines to get.)