If you haven’t made it out to the new Saint Arnold beer garden, you’re completely tripping! Not only is it a beautiful spot to enjoy a beer and watch the sun set on the skyline, they’ve got great food, and a handful of beers you won’t find everywhere.
The first time I checked it out, Chris and I were interviewing another new contributor for the blog. I had to start off simple and true with a Summer Pils, but next up, I had to try the Citrodos. I stopped at two that night, but I’ve been longing for some Saint Arnold Citrodos since then, and Chris got me some from Drink of Ages Pub. Thank God for Crowlers.
Saint Arnold Citrodos sports a true-blue can with white and yellow line-art illustration. Per usual, the Patron Saint is praising the Texas in the sky, and this time, there’s a big white and blue hop beside him. Since Saint Arnold decided to make the word Citrodos up out of thin air, it makes sense that the artwork is a bit more abstract than say, Art Car IPA or Elissa IPA. The tap handle is the chunky white plastic you expect from Saint Arnold, except this one says Citrodos. You’re welcome.
The antithesis of the hazy IPA trend, Saint Arnold Citrodos pours a brilliantly, crystal clear golden-yellow that’s so bright it should be a gem. The head foams up into a chalk-white, airy mass with decent sustain.
It smells like tropical cereal. Between the grains and the hops, there’s a real balance on the nose, and it’s not quite as citra-forward as you might think if you’ve been pre-ordering your beer on Eventbrite lately.
The first sip of Saint Arnold Citrodos is a super clean, super bright, burst of tropical citrus hops. The sip starts off light, and it finishes with a gentle hop bitterness. Overall, it’s a lighter IPA – from aroma to flavor to mouthfeel, but the 6.3% ABV is slightly higher than your senses might assume. It’s not quite a session IPA, but it’s definitely lighter than others on the shelves, and it’ll be perfect year round.
It’s easy to want to compare Citrodos to Art Car or Elissa, since all three will be competing for shelf space, but it’s pretty far removed from both of them. Instead, it reminds me more of Copperhead’s Striker IPA, just in a bit more of an approachable fashion. The brilliance, brightness, and tropical notes make me want to compare it to Brazos Valley Welcome to Brenham Brut IPA, but that’s kind of a stretch.
Now that Citrodos IPA is available in cans, you can find it all over town. We’ve already spotted it at HEBs, Krogers, Specs, and a few other spots in between. You won’t have to loo far for this one, and chances are, you’ve already got some in your fridge. If you’re smart.
My Overall Rating
3.5
Saint Arnold Citrodos IPA
Overall, Saint Arnold Citrodos IPA is a welcomed addition to their deep and wide offerings on Houston’s shelves and tapwalls. It’s not mild enough to change the minds of hop-haters, but that’s alllright with me. There are plenty of other beers for that, and that just means more Citrodos for the rest of us hopheads.
Have you had any Citrodos IPA yet? Wether at DOA, or at the Saint Arnold Beer Garden, let us know by voting below with a single click or tell us about it in the comments! Beers to you, Houston!
Anthony's a Houston native, a Creative Strategist at https://ledgeloungers.com/, an adjunct instructor of Visual Communication at Lone Star College, and a UH Coog that loves good beer almost as much as he does his city. Anthony lives to help others and that's found a home helping some of the coolest breweries on earth with creative and marketing projects that can be seen on our Portfolio page. Fueled by hoppy lagers, sessionable IPAs, and gangster rap, he's ticked his way through H-Town, rocking the most unusual Nikes he can find. When he's not writing for us, he's with his family or very patiently rooting for the Rockets.
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