Review: James Squire get into the sessionable scene with their Cabin Fever American IPA

James Squire have just released a new limited edition Indian Pale Ale going by the name of Cabin Fever, a brew which presents a modern take on more the traditional style, when IPAs contained a higher alcohol content and extra hops in order to survive long sea journeys from London to colonial India. Cabin Fever is a strong hat-throw in the ring of more sessionable American-style IPAs, which is undoubtedly what the trend has been heading towards recently.

By sessionable, that generally means that the beer steps in the direction of a lower alcohol offering, while balancing that loss of strength with the hoppy aroma many readily associate with an American IPA. The biggest reason this trend has been taking off in the past few years is that a more ‘sessionable’ beer doesn’t leave one feeling weighed down, making it a more approachable way for a wider range of people to enjoy an IPA.

“We’ve been hearing for awhile that hop-lovers are asking for a more modern IPA from James Squire”, offered Chris Sheehan, Head Brewer at the brand’s Malt Shovel Brewery. “That’s why we have introduced James Squire Cabin Fever”.

Sporting a cleaner finish than one would usually expect from James Squire, the Cabin Fever does pretty much what it promises. Big and bright aromas shoot from the liquid thanks to the use of Citra, Centennial and Fortnight hops, blends which come together to give Cabin Fever a tropical profile full of citrus both on the nose and through the palate before capping of with a clean bitterness. Seeing as the Fortnight is a very recent blend, made up of five different U.S hops, it was just as likely this would be a flop given the excessive recipe but it’s all balanced quite well, giving James Squire an excellent addition that should bring on a few news fans without alienating existing ones.

James Squire Cabin Fever will be available on tap in James Squire Brewhouses and in pack at First Choice, Liquorland and Vintage Cellars across Australia from mid-June.

———-

This content has recently been ported from its original home on The AU Review: Food & Lifestyle and may have formatting errors – images may not be showing up, or duplicated, and galleries may not be working. We are slowly fixing these issue. If you spot any major malfunctions making it impossible to read the content, however, please let us know at editor AT theaureview.com.

Chris Singh

Chris Singh is an Editor-At-Large at the AU review, loves writing about travel and hospitality, and is partial to a perfectly textured octopus. You can reach him on Instagram: @chrisdsingh.