from northern shores

While strolling through the beer store, I spied something new on the shelves - Cyrillic.  Yes, a Russian beer had landed on Spanish shelves.  Top Fuel, from a brewery in St. Petersberg, but brewed at Latvia's Latgales Alus, stood proudly among the now familiar Scandinavian labels.  I had thought to seek out a black beer, but the call of novelty can be irresistible (I had a porter on Sunday anyway: Magic Rock Common Grounds - exquisite). 

It's lighter than I expect imperial IPAs to be now, sort of a straw color.  The sharp, sweet-acidic scent is about right, though.  There's also a firm, white head crowning a most beery looking of beers.  The flavor is heavy on the citrus, alternating between bitter and sweet, and filling the mouth well.  There's something of a fiery aftertaste, making you wonder if there isn't some hard alcohol hiding in the ingredients list; there's a lot of Russian on the label, so I could miss it.  The English ingredients are standard beer, at least.  While refreshing, I have to say there's a little clinginess to the taste, I can feel a sort of sticky bitterness on the back of my tongue.  It's not entirely unpleasant, but the cleanness the beer starts out with makes you think the aftertaste would be minimal.  Getting to the bottom of the glass brings out more bitter than there was at first, but the feel of the beer remains the same.  It's a good, solid drink, although bright and snappy.  A fine beverage for spring evenings.

Supplier: La Buena Cerveza
Price: €4.57