Penrose Desirous

Brewed By: Penrose Brewing Company in Geneva, IL  

Purchased: 64oz Growler bought at Penrose in Geneva, IL; 2014 

Style/ABV: White IPA, 6.2%

Reported IBUs: 60

Penrose is the latest brewery in the ever-increasing landscape of Illinois breweries. And that's okay with me. Illinois is a big place, home to many big towns. Penrose is situated in the quaint town of Geneva, about 60 to 90 minutes outside of Chicago depending on if you drive, take the train, or get caught in traffic (who am I kidding; if you hit Chicago rush hour, it could take you three hours to get to Penrose from downtown). 

Penrose opened its door to the public about two months ago, and I have been hearing noise about the brewery from various social media sources, as well as from this great write-up in the Chicago Reader. There was also a good article in The Chicagoist, as well as one in the Chicago Tribune. 

Penrose: dat logo

I guess the real question is: what sets Penrose apart from all the other new breweries in Illinois? Founder/owner Eric Hobbs and Brewmaster Tom Korder have an interesting perspective, so that's a good start. The duo want to focus on making high-quality, Belgian-inspired beers. Their ace-in-the-hole: an emphasis on beers with alcohol content bordering between sessionable and medium-strength. I found this to be a refreshing change of pace as I quaffed their Devoir, a bright and refreshing table Saison clocking in at 4.3%. The duo bring tons of experience to the table. Founder Eric Hobbs worked for years with Goose Island on the sales side. Tom Korder worked as Goose Island's brewery operations manager AND headed up their barrel program. That's nothing to scoff at. 

I'll try to sandwich some of my thoughts about my trip to Penrose within this review. Because I'm a thoughtful guy like that. Oh, and the tl;dr -- about Penrose:

Penrose was founded by owner Eric Hobbs and partner/Brewmaster Tom Korder in early 2014. The duo are both former Goose Island employees, and they want to focus on brewing Belgian-inspired session ales, oak barrel-aged beer, beers that use alternative fermentation. Located in the lovely town of Geneva, Illinois, the brewery has a local element that is quaint and inviting. For more info, check out the brewery's website or their Facebook page. 

The Penrose Desirous is a limited-release (for now) White IPA described as having floral hops, orange zest aromas, and citrusy hop goodness and coriander bitterness throughout. This one features Pilsner malts; Columbus, Cascade, and Amarillo hops; and Forbidden Fruit yeast.  

Penrose Desirous

This one pours into a cloudy/hazy yellow body, kicking up a finger of white, Belgian-esque head. This is a juicy beer in appearance, with good carbonation. There is some lacing, and the beer retains a hazy coating of head as the beer settles in. Even from the growler, this holds up in presentation.

The aromas here are bright, vibrant, and refreshing. Fresh. Right up front, especially when the beer is fresh on the pour, you get big citrus. Namely sliced pineapple, resinous orange and tangerine, and hints of tropical fruit. If you camp on the nose, you start to get some Belgian funk, bubblegum, and banana. There's a lot of banana, bubblegum, and clove on the nose. There's also a really nice bready/creamy heaviness that I can't quit finger...just blissful malt integration. Some coriander and white pepper show up for good measure too.

Penrose offers flights and full-glass pours. Of the beers they had available -- and I tried them all -- the White IPA was definitely towards the higher end of the ABV spectrum. But even at 6.2%, this beer goes down with refreshing smoothness. There's a touch of crisp, watery refreshness, hoppy spice and pepper, crisp cracker and biscuit, and big floral hops on the finish. If you want to get into specifics, I'm getting a lot of sliced pineapple in here. It's a delicious, sweet pineapple note. There's also some resinous citrus in here, ala orange and tangerine and grapefruit. This is spicy with citrus zest, coriander, and white pepper. I'm also getting mild bubblegum and clove.

In terms of mouthfeel, this is medium-light, carbonated, and refreshing. The 6.2% is nowhere to be seen, and you can definitely clear a growler of this stuff in a day or two. Palate depth is spot on, and the complexity is pretty good. The whole White IPA style is kind of meh. Don't we have American Wheat Ales and Belgian IPAs? I guess this kind of blurs the line between the two, so update your style guidelines. Up front: an explosion of citrus and gentle Belgian funk, stone fruits, pineapple; the mids roll into more pineapple, some resin, peppery citrus spice, growing bitterness; the back end drops a little cracker and biscuit, with trailing pineapple and orange. Just refreshing and clean and drinkable. It begs for a 6-pack format.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average here. Per my notes at the bar, this is how I rated it then and this is how I'm going to rate it now. It's just a very well-executed beer without any particular bells and whistles that elevate it to some sort of national must-have status. Having said that, this is elegant and drinkable and quite tasty. I really hope they get this into cans or bottles for consumption, I would buy this again for the warmer months. Food pairings here have to include fruit salads, ceviche, sushi, and anything slanting towards the warmer weather. Pineapple upside down cake would be my dessert pairing.

Random Thought: Penrose itself is somewhat small, and I suspect they will fill up during busy hours. Fortunately, I have already seen their beer on tap at various watering holes in Chicago. Geneva is a cute little town with tons of food stops and scenery to check out. So your best bet is to get some food in your tummy, go get a few beers at Penrose, and then top it off with one of the many nearby restaurants. When I make the trip back up to Penrose, I will probably do so by Metra.