Cascade Session IPA Tasting

About three weeks ago I brewed a Cascade Session IPA intended to be a low-alcohol hoppy beer appropriate for drinking in quantity over the summer. Today, on this momentous occasion, I taste the results of my tremendous effort. Oh wait, the occasion is momentous and the effort was not tremendous. But I digress.

Appearance: Hazy orange in color. White three finger head that dissipates over a few minutes to a very thin covering of foam. Head leave a small lacing over the sides of the glass.

Aroma: Tropical fruit hop smell like grapefruit or so. Not quite as strong as I'd like though. Smell persists even as I continue to drink.

Can I interest you in my banana?

Taste: Slight fruity hop taste, with moderate bitterness. A metallic taste (similar to the undesirable aftertaste on my previous attempt at a hoppy beer) predominates in the middle and end of my sip. I hoped to get a bold, fruity bitterness from the Cascade hops. I'm not sure if that good taste is hiding under the metallic quality or if it is just absent completely.

Mouthfeel: Low carbonation, but it doesn't feel thin. It doesn't have the resiny tounge coating quality of some hoppy beers or the body and maltiness of bigger IPAs. It's pretty dry though.

Overall Impression: Nice hoppy smell, good appearance, but the taste is not what I want. I'd like a grapefruit type flavor from the Cascade hops and a smooth bitterness.

Issue: WTF is the metallic taste??? Could it be a little bit of rust from the non-stainless steel in my MLT (now replaced by stainless)? Could it be a by product of over or underpitching? What about the water?? Arg!

For Next Time: Increase the late addition hops to get better smell. Find and destroy the source of the metallic taste. Cool the wort as fast as possible to pitching temps. Pitch the correct amount of yeast.

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Currently most of the bottles are sitting in a dark basement room at about 68F. Perhaps the beer will get better over the next few weeks. If so I may post again on this beer.