Another brew from Coney Island - Sword Swallower. The label says it's an IPA brewed with lager yeast which I suppose means that it's an IPL. Four malts and eight varieties of hops are used with hops being added during the boil as well as dry hopping. Add in that it has an ABV of 7.2% and you've got yourself a pretty big beer all around.
My pour left a big head of nice, large bubbles atop a bed of dark yellow beer goodness that was slightly hazy. Considering all the dry hopping, I could only detect a trace of hops in the nose. Instead my proboscis mostly caught a malt sweetness with peach and toffee.
Being an IPx, I expected a hop rush in my mouth. While it was very hoppy, I was surprised to taste a strong malt backbone. Very strong indeed. The sweetness in the nose was evident here as well with some peach/apple flavors. It had a very smooth, balanced mouthfeel. Not too syrupy yet a good, solid mouthful that was also effervescent and crisp as you'd expect from a lager. As far as the hops go, it was, well, very hoppy, with a spicy and floral bitterness and not a West Coast C-hop citrus festival. The beer finished dry and bitter, not unlike a good pilsener.
I was reminded of Sixpoint's Bengali Tiger in that both beers have a strong malt as well as a strong hop profile. To my palate, the flavors of BT are prominent yet separate, like being at opposite ends of seesaw. Contrariwise, I found that Sword Swallower's malt commingled with the hops in an exquisitely satisfying way.
Junk food pairing: Would go well with a Chicago dog or similar preparation of kosher beef tubesteak that does not involve ketchup/catsup.
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