7% ABV, Sierra Nevada Brewing, Chico, California, & Mills River, North Carolina.
One thing that I will never be is that person who says “do we need another IPA?” However, there are circumstances when that question is indeed appropriate. More on that later.
It must again be noted that I have established an embargo against the hazy IPA, except in the occasions when I get them for free. But there are times when the hazy is not listed as such, and I have learned to identify the usual perpetrators. Sierra Nevada is a company I’ve come to trust through the years. This is labeled as a “juicy IPA”, whatever the hell that is...
...but it’s hazy, though not so murky as some, bright golden, slim white head.
In the nose: citrus, stone fruit, peach, melon, slight sweetness.
In the mouth: ver little bitterness up front, mostly juicy fruit, turning dry at the end. Just enough bitterness to qualify. The flavor is more of that melange of fruit salad identified in the nose. Medium bodied, easily passed past the gullet. Has certain delightful attributes, but seems hardly necessary.
I may seem harsh in my assessment, but I am not alone. This the second beer that SNBC has released this year that no one asked for, and which replaced a beloved seasonal. Summerfest lager was replaced by Summer Break, a hazy IPA, of course, and this one replaced, of all things, their Oktoberfest. “Sorry, no more seasonal lagers, you guys, just hazy IPAs from now on....that’s all you guys like anymore, right?”
Sierra has since announced that those beers will be back next year. It’s a good thing they didn’t mess with Celebration or there would be pitchforks and torches descending on Chico, California.
Ride the rapids of Liquid Hoppiness, flowing through canyons of hops and haze where fruity notes of grapefruit, orange, and fresh berries thrive in this juicy IPA flavorscape.
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