Following the St Arnold penchant for amber beers, this IPA tastes more like a dark beer and lets the malt bring out the flavor of the hops, resulting in a musky aromatic spice that perfuses the otherwise gentle flavor of this beer.
For those who like extreme IPAs, this beer will fall short from a lack of the bitter grapefruit juice flavor of the post-hipster IPA, but it has a warmth to it that balances the hop extremity which results in a depth of flavor.
This also feels more like a dark beer in that it is heavy in flavor and requires a moment to savor. It has more sweetness than most IPAs, but more texture of different flavors which makes it perfect for contemplative drinking.
Cirrhosis is \m/
Alcohol is in my veins
Pass the bottle, pass the wine
Pass me your unholy IPAs too
The sensation of drinking like a darker beer is accuracy to the origin of the IPA style, vs. the modern hipster interpretations. Originally, IPAs were brewed to survive transport to India without getting skunked or infected. To this end, they were brewed to a higher ABV by using more malt in the wort, and were heavily hopped both to balance the heavy malt profile and because hops helped act as a preservative as long as the beer was kept out of light.
Ironically, as the “IPA” has increased in popularity, that popularity has killed almost all real IPAs, in much the same way as Cradle of Filth and Dimmu Borgir killed all real symphonic black metal. Elissa is one of the very few remaining real examples of the style.