Modist illbrewmanati Vol. 2 triple dry hopped triple IPA

Modist illbrewmanati Vol. 2 triple dry hopped triple IPA.

10 % ABV. Modist Brewing, Minneapolis, MN.  

When this beer arrived on the scene, it's seemed like something I ought to try. However...according to my rigid rules, this beer had several strikes against it. It is a New England IPA, a thing which I rail against. It is in the current fad of the triple dry hopping, something else which doesn't fall in with my favor. And thirdly, it's one of these "triple IPAs" that is merely 10% ABV, a thoroughly stupid trend. Also, it was nearly $20 for the 4-pack, and I was hesitant to buy one...until my former co-worker J.B. stopped in and offered to split one with me. And so, I paid a mere $10 for 2, instead of the full $20. And I had one without taking notes, as I do, and now it's time to take the matter into hand ...

Completely hazed out, bright golden hue, slim white head. 

In the nose: Swimming with citrusy goodness. Popping with orange, lemon, grapefruit, and various stripes of the tropical tones...some pineapple, guava, etc. Accompanied by the yeasty fuzz.

In the mouth: Soft, and sufficiently hoppy. Plump with citrus feels on the palate. Big orange and grapefruit, low bitterness, smooth and nearly silky. Just about juicy, and ever-so drinkable, despite the ABV. I still wish for a more profound bitter bite, which this beer will not allow me. It's tasty, and enjoyable, but this new style does not deliver what I'm looking for...I guess I just have to face it. I will never understand the drive to fashion the bitter-less double  (or triple!) IPA....what happened? Where did everyone else go astray? 

I'm old, I guess, put me out to pasture, but leave out a bucket of beer, please...the hoppier the better...

Alvarado St. x Modist x Other Half

Tri collaboration triple dry hopped New England Triple IPA brewed with Golden Promise, Barke Pilsner, malted wheat, flaked oats, hopped and triple dry hopped with Citra, El Dorado, Strata, Nelson Sauvin, Citra Cryo, and El Dorado Cryo

Elder Pine Villeinage Dry-hopped Table Saison

Elder Pine Villeinage Dry-Hopped Table Saison. 

4 % ABV. Brewed & canned by Elder Pine Brewing & Blending, Gaithersburg, Maryland. 

Highly clouded, bright golden-hued, slim white head. 

In the nose: Citrus & straw, some floral notes, bold lemon. Lovely stuff. 

In the mouth: Slight funk & moderate hops kick it off on the palate. Light bodied, easy drinking, with a rustic charm. Fairly juicy and fruity, with citrusy notes in the lead, stone fruit behind it, with a touch of banana. It rolls into a dry finish, with spelt and wheat malt aiding in the clean drinkability. 

Very nice, dry and tasty saison. A pity I only have the one, I could drink a few of these. 

Table-strength Saison brewed with an insane amount of Pilsen  spelt malt & raw wheat for the creamiest body a 4% abv beer can offer. Heavily dry-hopped w/ Pacific Jade from New Zealand at a staggering rate of 3lb/bbl for bright citrus notes that meld perfectly with the stone fruit, banana and bubblegum aromas & flavors derived from our house saison yeast. Bone dry, effervescent, and effortlessly drinkable. 

Steel Toe Floriane Blanc Dry Hopped Tart Ale

Steel Toe Floriane Blanc Dry Hopped Tart Ale.
6.2 % ABV. IBU: low. Steel Toe Brewing, St. Louis Park, MN.

Clear, bright golden hue, slim white head.

In the nose: Floral, funky, fruity, tart. Delicate and intriguing.

In the mouth: Starts out with the tart, nearly sour, and continues with the smack of citrus. Fairly effervescent. Definitely delightful. Lip-smackingly fruity flavors abound in this, lime and peach and melon, with the kiss of hops planted upon it. Light bodied, and refreshing.

This is one of the most unique beers yet in the Steel Toe repertoire and a step forward for their beers. I think I need to return to the brewery for some more bottles to share with friends.

FLORIANE BLANC “WHITE FLOWER” (DRY HOPPED TART ALE)

SEPT. 2019

The newest release in our Brewers Evolution Series, Floriane Blanc “White Flower” a wine-like spritzy lightly tart ale. Unlike anything we’ve done before, this beer pushes the limits of what beer can be. Refreshing, fruity, tart, dry hopped. The aromas are of white peach, melon, kiwi and lime, with a ripe berry undertone. The aromas carry through on flavor, bright citrus fruit, wine like, with a bright refreshing acidity finishing. Tantalizing the taste buds at every sip, this beer is sure to please the palate!

Color: Bright pale straw, clear
Alcohol content by volume: 6.2%
International Bitterness Units: Low

Insight Picnic by the Wicked Thicket Dry-hopped Witbier

Insight Picnic by the Wicked Thicket Dry-hopped Witbier. 5.3 % ABV. Insight Brewing, Minneapolis, MN.

Cloudy, golden-toned, bright ivory head.

In the nose: Citrus notes. Nice and hoppy, Coriander and orange zest lurk just below. Sweetness and spice.

In the mouth: Enters the palate smoothly and sweetly, with a side order of gentle hop bitterness. Soft and mellow. Yeast and wheat flavors intermingle with fruit and spice. Citrusy hop flavors stay on top of the scene, mingling nicely with the witbier taste. Damned delicious. Best of both worlds in this one.

A delicious balance of orange peel and lemon-zest blend well with the richness from the wheat. The malt and wheat backbone provides a velvet mouthfeel while layers of Citra hops deliver orange blossom and lemon on the nose while the yeast hints at pepper and coriander. Crisp and refreshing with citrus finish.

Town Hall East Kent Dry-Hopped Ale

Town Hall East Kent Dry-Hopped Ale. 5.6% ABV. English Mild Ale. Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery, Minneapolis, MN.

Clear, amber/bronze coloring, slim white head.

In the nose: lightly floral & fruity, mild malt, slightly sweet.

In the mouth: Bold & assertive hop character bombards the palate, with a bright, crisp flavor.
Light bodied, easy-drinking, and ever, ever-so tasty.

I'm interested to know more about the ingredients on this one, but I can't find anything online. It's a uniquely delicious ale which particular flavors I can't really pin down. I wish I knew why I liked it so much. Which hops should I thank? What malts worked their magic? It's a mystery.

I'm going to try to stop bashing my friends at MTHB for their lack of info on the seasonal beers. It may get tedious and redundant. But I'd rather they correct it and give us just a little more. Pretty please? With hops on top?

I'll admit one thing here. The keen-eyed observer may spot in the photograph a tell-tale date. Town Hall has always stamped the growlers with a best-by date two weeks away from the time of filling. I have so many beers in the fridge, I've found it too easy to pass this this by, and I've been trying to drink less, especially while I had a cold last week. Imagine my surprise that I was drinking this 3 weeks past the best-by date. And what is the result? It tasted just as good as the first growler I enjoyed (didn't take notes on that one) and every pint at the pub. This doesn't mean you shouldn't take their suggestion into consideration, but know that it's not a hard set rule. There's not need to pour it out, as if it's spoiled milk.

Surly 3dh (Triple Dry-hopped Double IPA)

Surly 3dh Triple IPA. 10% ABV. BC Small Batch. Surly Brewing Company, Brooklyn Center (& Minneapolis), MN.

Clear, bright golden color, lasting, lace-leaving ivory head.

In the nose: Fruity, citrus, tropical, but straying from sweet, ending on dry. Quite likable.

In the mouth: Whoa! Bold blast of bitter from the start, a jolt of hops to the palate, exiting swiftly and turning dry on a dime. Big citrus and pine, with alcohol rushing on in. Aburst with flavor. Stays quite far away from being overly sweet.

This has got just the right hop tastiness, the correct juicy, and all the booze without going over the top. It's giving me all the things I like, and it's getting juicy and boozy together at once.

This, I dig.

From the label: Cloaked amid the brewhouse shadows, rites and rituals conjure impossible hop flavor. Over the low rumble of equipment, whispers of a triple dry-hopped beer arise. New and unknowable, 3DH is your initiation. Join us and live.

And from the website: “The trouble with a lot of triple IPAs is that I’ve never really had one I liked.”

This, from Surly Head Brewer Ben Smith, was the hurdle to clear for making 3DH, the triple IPA that’s our latest BC Small Batch offering.

“Finding one I truly liked was difficult,” said Smith. “They’re under-attenuated, too boozy, and too sweet. It was a challenge for our brew team to solve. I think we succeeded. Maybe too well, because it’s real easy to drink for a 10% (ABV) beer.”

3DH is triple dry-hopped (hence the name) on Simcoe, Amarillo, and Citra. “We added glucose solids to make it super dry, we used a simple malt bill, and then we dry-hopped the hell out of it,” says Smith. Experimentation came into play with FLEX® by Haas, a kettle bittering addition that boosted the IBUs without losing the yield one would expect from an extensively hopped beer.

The result is a highly aromatic and flavorful triple IPA that goes right up to the edge without going over. But you can see it from there.

With that in mind, and with that many hops, the recommendation is to drink it fresh and drink it now. 45 days from the brew date is ideal. The turnover on our BC Small Batch beers is monthly, and most beer geeks don’t need to be told to chase fresh beer, but we really mean it this time. Cellar something else.

The particulars:

ABV: 10%
Hops: Simcoe, Amarillo, Citra
Aroma: Lemon, honey, biscuit
Visual: Light orange
Where: MN, ND, WI, Chicagoland
When: Now

Prairie Artisan Ales Twist Dry-hopped Farmhouse Ale

Prairie Artisan Ales Twist Dry-hopped Farmhouse Ale. 5.8% ABV.  Prairie Artisan Ales, Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Very hazy, bright golden/straw-colored, big white head that dwindles down in a quickness.

In the nose: Tart and fruity at first, with big citrus busting out. Grapefruit, lemon. orange. Zesty.

In the mouth: More puckering, more tartness and fruit. Maybe too much. Once the grip of the citrus leaves off, it's a light-bodied affair, terrifically easy to guzzle and gulp. Bright and refreshing.

If you want a "saison" that leans a little hard on the citrus, by all means. Knock yourself out.

Lupulin Straight Hash Homie Double IPA

Lupulin Straight Hash Homie 100% Hop Hash Double IPA. Lupulin Brewing, Big Lake, MN. 7.7% ABV, 60 IBU.

I haven't been to Lupulin Brewing since 2016, and I can offer no excuse as to why not. When this beer was being talked up and highly hyped, by both the beer geek community, and the brewery itself, I wasn't on board right away, and had a few questions. "Hop Hash?" Oh, you mean Lupulin powder. I guess we're doing drug references. They had a 4/20 release for it, on 4/20 at 4:20. "cause it's so dankalicious. I tire of drug references.

So, I listened to the raves and convinced my bosses that a keg this expensive is worthwhile. And I bought a 4-pack to do this review. These notes are from can #4. I'm not too sad that they're gone, because it's on tap now I can drink it every night after work. Unless we get swamped and the keg runs dry. I see this as a challenge for you, dear reader, if you live in proximity to where I work. Try to drain the keg before I do.

Lightly hazed,  bright golden hued, slim slab of ivory foam above.

In the nose: Fresh, lively, vibrant. The citrus notes are at play, and the piney ones, too. Hop bitterness and flavor rings and echoes through the caverns of the senses. Quite nice.

In the mouth: Here. it's more clear, intense, incredibly flavorful. An essential distillation of all things lupuloid. Day-yum. I may have an issue or two with their insistence on using the potty talk, but if this isn't "the good shit", I don't know what is. Juicy, slightly sweet, luscious. Pineapple and papaya meet a touch of grapefruit and lime, and it lingers long on the palate. Did I say "delicious" yet? Well, I should have by now. Unless I plan on using up every synonym before I get to it.

This is just strong enough, bitter enough, and flat out fantastic enough to make it one of my favorite IPAs of all time. Favorite beers, even? Maybe. It's so damned good.

Straight Hash Homie is made using only pure, 100% Lupulin powder. In the boil, while whirlpooling, and dry hopping(or Hash Hopping), not a pellet or cone saw the beer. Bursting with flavors of fresh tropical fruit, with a soft bitterness.
Don’t get left holding the bag! This beer is a limited edition beer!

Lupulin Strange Illusion Imperial Stout

Lupulin Strange Illusion Imperial Stout. 9% ABV. 75 IBU. Big Lake, MN.

This one went by another name, one that's appeared here before.  But new name and new package means new beer, so I'm re-reviewing it now.

Solid blackness, rich, brown-toned head, leaving lace, looking nice.

In the nose: Chocolatey malt meets grassy hops. More hop flavors emerge, citrus-y, orange and pine, matching the mocha-ish malt. Nice.

In the mouth: Hops are huge in this RIS, and the malt is big and tasty. Great balance in a big beer. Increasingly delicious. Creamy, hoppy, strong, delightful. I like this more and more.

I don't normally go for hoppy stouts, but this one has got me.

A world of nonsense. Nothing is what it isn't, because otherwise it would be what it is. An Imperial Stout with dry hops? What a Strange Illusion that would be.

Fair State Mirror Universe India Pale Ale

Fair State Mirror Universe IPA. 7% ABV. 33 IBU. Fair State Brewing, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota.

Bright yellow, high haze, slim white head. Looking alright.

In the nose: big citrus, large grapefruit mixed with the tropical tones, too. Bitterness rides in the middle. Lovely stuff.

In the mouth: Big bitterness leads the charge, with smooth malt holding it down. Citrus and tropical fruit flavors are in command. Refreshing. Tasty. Citra and Mosaic? Of course, the classic combination that's sweeping the nation. Flat-out delicious. Yu-u-um. Nothing else left to say, it's pretty damn groovy.

A Double Dry Hopped Hazy IPA brewed with Wheat, Oats, and (too many) Citra, Mosaic, and El Dorado hops. #donthazemebro 

Clown Shoes The Exorcist Dry Hopped Stout

Clown Shoes The Exorcist Dry Hopped Stout. 8% Alc./Vol. Brewed and canned by Clown Shoes Beer, Boston, MA.

Utter blackness, deep and dark, huge head, vast and cocoa-toned, leaving lace, looking nice.

In the nose: dark tones bump up against high hoppiness. Do we say dry hopped stout instead of Black IPA now? It's interesting, I'll say that.

In the mouth: Big, vibrant, bitter hop notes butt up against chocolate malt and the rich toffee/caramel notes. They don't go together well. Some one put pine cones in my chocolate....and it doesn't really do anything for me. Huh. It's not bad, but I don't like it, and I won't return to it. Maybe the stouts shouldn't be dry-hopped? Perhaps that's not the best thing to do. Just throwing that out there.

I love hoppy beers, and I love stouts, but I don't think the two need to be so entwined.

Mankato Duly Noted Dry-hopped Pale Ale

Mankato Duly Noted American Pale Ale. Brewed and bottled by Mankato Brewing Company, North Mankato, MN. Alc. 5.4% by Vol. IBU: 40. OG: 1.046.

Appearance: clear, pale golden hue, slim white head.

Aroma: Bold citrus hop aromatics, seems like the C hops at work. Fresh, vibrant, leafy and green.

Taste: In the mouth, it's aborts with pungent, pithy citric hop character. Clean, lean, and easy-drinking. Bright, bold, sunny and just plain lovely. Now, here's an American Pale Ale. This is everything it ought to be and then some. unbelievably likable. All APAs should be this good.

There is no gobbledygook.

Piraat Triple Hop

Piraat Triple Hop Dry-hopped Ale, alc. 10.5% by Vol. Product of Belgium. Brewed & Bottled: Br. Van Steenberge. Ertvelde, Belgium.

I've been a fan of Piraat for quite some time and now, at last, there's a triple hop, dry-hopped version? Sign me up!

Appearance: lightly hazed, bright golden amber hue, snow-white, lacy head. Beautiful.

Aroma: dry, spicy, floral, bristling with noble hops. Gorgeous.

Taste: Bone-dry. Ultra-hoppy. Or, uber-, that works. Citrus notes abound, little traces of pine, all types of spicy delights. Pear, apple, pepper. Mmm. Long, spicy, hoppy finish. Lean-bodied, light malt character. Goddamn it, this is good. It hits me right where I live.

Any gobbledy-gook on the label? Nary a whiff of it. It is what it is, and it is wonderful. More, please!

Blacklist Or de Belgique Verte

Blacklist Verte Or de Belgique, Belgian-style dry-hopped ale. Brewed & bottled by Dubrue for Blacklist Brewing, Duluth, MN. 9.5% ABV. 750 ml bottle.

Appearance: clouded, golden-hued, under a beautiful head of snowy white foam.

Aroma: Hop bitterness hits the nose first, floral, fruity, piney and resinous. More spice and fruit just below. Belgian yeast funk emerges after a minute.

Taste: Hop forward once more, blast of bitterness right out the gate. Sweet malt rushes up to match, with a twist of Belgian yeast character. High carbonation, plenty of zest on the the palate. Nice dry ending, fruitiness and hop bitterness continue until the finish.

Delicious. The Blacklist streak continues. I'm going to have to go back for more.

Label gobbledygook: "Elegant and assertive, Or de Belgique Verte mixes Belgian beauty with hoppy beastliness. Saphir dry-hopped, the aromas of light citrus mingle with the pear and tropical fruit of it's mother beer, Or de Belgique. A balancing act of sweet and bitter, Verte dances between styles to create a uniquely beautiful beer."

Okay, I'll go along with that.

Duvel Tripel Hop--Mosaic

Duvel Tripel Hop, Special Edition Golden Ale, dry-hopped with Mosaic, 9.5% ABV. (this one was $18 for a 4-pack, versus $20 for a 750ml bottle previously.)

Hazy, golden hued. Beautiful. gorgeous. lace-leaving, ivory head of foam. Lovely looking.

Aroma: ah! Ahh! Ahh, ahhh, ahhhh, ahhhhh, ahhhhhh!!! Nothing but …wait, did I use up my adjectives? It's luminescent, is what it is. Zap-tastic, pretty much. Tropical fruit, some citrus, a glimmer of pine, lemon and pineapple, it's zestful, to be sure.

Taste: On the palate, it's pretty much Duvel Plus, if that helps you. Everything you expect from a well-conditioned bottle of Duvel with this extra addition of Mosaic, which is a most complex and rewarding hop.

Man, if you're in need of relief from a bad day, drink this, buddy. If you want extra succor, something to soothe you after some hardship, this is the key to the salve of your salvation. If you're a dyed-in-the-wool hop-head of course. You're not? Why are you reading this?

Most delicious, this. Tons of hop bitterness, but never too harsh.

From Hedwig Neven, Brewmaster: "For this edition, I have selected Mosaic. This new U.S. hop variety enhances the beer with a tangerine sweetness, hints of tropical fruit and an interesting blueberry flavor."

Here's the thing. Mosaic does have that "blueberry" thing, but I never pick it up until I read something else. Oh, yeah, blueberry, I get it, now.



...........

Here are notes from December, 2010, of an earlier version, dry-hopped with Amarillo:


Duvel Triple Hop. Special Edition Ale. 750 ml bottle. Complete with lushly illustrated booklet. Saaz, Styrian Goldings, plus Amarillo, the newish tropical-fruity American hop. $20 bottle. I don't usually drop that much on a single beer. But, this is Duvel. And, well, I've heard good things. Brewed on May 18, 2010.

In a Duvel goblet, of course. Bright golden coloration, fierce, incessant carbonation, bubbles rising valiantly to the top, with a typically enormous, bone white, lacy, and lovely head.

Aroma spills out at first pour, and distracted me while describing the appearance. This addition of Amarillo to the usual combo of Saaz and Styrian Golding hops was ingenious. Floral, fragrant, aplomb with many associations found in these hops, the citrus, the spice, the distinctive pungent "cat pee" , well, that one peeks out, but is smothered by the pleasanter feelings. And underneath the pretty floral and fruity emanations, comes the bitterness. Beautiful bitterness.

Taste: Light is the body, and high is the bitter hop flavor. A great cornucopia of hoppy goodness. Fruit, spice, and bitter-tangy. Some pineapple pops up, with a twist of lime, trickle of pepper. Smooth down the throat, and over the palate, with the pleasing hop flavor riding along. Each sip is quenching and bracing, with bitterness. You get the sizzle of the Saaz, the classic feel of the Belgian-y Styrian Golding, the funky twisted nature of the thing, with the tropical fruity American Amarillo bringing that pineapple, mango, banana. Wonderfully hoppy. And, as it ages, it gets better an

This = yum.  Unfortunately, it won't be returned to, due to the price. Amazing, for what it is. And I love it. Mmmm, mmm, mmm...

Saison Dupont Cuvee Dry-hopped 2013

Vieille Provision Saison Dupont Belgian Farmhouse Ale Cuvee Dry Hopping 2013. Brewed by Brasserie Dupont, Tourpes, Belgium. 6.5% ABV.

Beautiful beer, poured into a Moinette chalice. Hazed, golden appearance, lush, booming bone white head, slowly drifting down.

Aroma: Ah! Mmm. Spicy yeast, lively hops, with a side does of funk. Just a drop of sour to match a dry, citric nose.

Taste: Clean and lean and especially zesty. Very vibrant, and highly hoppy. (Enough with the alliteration, already!) I'm loving the dry-hop effect. Who could guess that the great Saison Dupont could get even better?

Hey, there's a story on the label! "Every year Dupont's Master Brewer, Olivier Dedeycker, makes a special dry-hopped versions of the brewery's world famous S.D. This enables him to take advantage of the new hop varieties appearing each season. This year's dry hop is TRISKEL, from Alsace, bred from the French Strisselspalt and English Yeoman hops. Olivier describes it as "combining the aromatic notes, mainly floral, of Strisselspalt, with the fruity character of Yeoman. Quite unusual and interesting." Also unusual is the name TRiskel, apparently inspired by triskelion, the symbol of the Gauls, and representing the three elements, Earth, Air, and Water."

It's as smooth and easy-drinking as the regular S.D., with the complex and delicious yeast character, and the dry-hopping only makes for total satisfaction.

Tallgrass Ethos IPA

Tallgrass Ethos IPA, Tallgrass Brewing Company, Manhattan, Kansas. 110 IBU, 6.8% ABV.

Highly hazed and unfiltered, a glorious bright golden hue, with a heavily dotted, creamy, off-white head. Looks great. Leaves lace.

Aroma: Bittersweet blast in the nose, loaded with citric notes, grapefruit, orange, tangerine, some mango and pineapple, too. Beautiful balance of sweet and bitter continuing to tango in the aroma.

Taste: At the start, smooth and creamy, goes down the throat exceptionally effortlessly. Not long after, the bitter, aspirin-like attack occurs on the palate, and it hits right at the back, makes itself at home, and rises in power and flavor. Feels bigger and plumper in the mouth as time goes on, expands and fills the senses. This is an utterly unfettered, untamed IPA, pulling no punches. Here's one I can drink and drink and drink. Not shy in the least, an amazing ale. Plenty, plenty of hopping makes me plenty, plenty happy.

I have a feeling through their imagery and marketing that this was originally intended to be called Mythos (which is taken), or something similar, because "Ethos" doesn't quite fit with this "legendary", "mythical" story they seem to be telling. A video tells a tale of a race of creatures called the Ethos. Okay, whatever.

Founders Dry-Hopped Pale Ale

Founders Dry-hopped Pale Ale. Drinking this from a bottle, looking back at my initial notes from August, 2004:

whoops, another gusher! I think my Founders shipment got jostled a bit too much en route...ah, well, must excercise patience and understanding...
Appearance: peachy, golden color, slight haze, enormous, creamy white head, softly shifting down. Scads of floaties dart about, or are they errant hop pieces? 
Aroma: peach, apricot, apple and pine resin, pineapple, banana, vanilla bean, not too outspoken, more on the subtle side, but still, very appealing. 
Taste: high, brash hops jump on the palate at first, then slide back, having done their work. Citric bitterness continues sip after sip, with sweet fruit matching bitter hop bite. 
Light/mediumish in body, bitter, medium finish, non-stop flavor. 
Copuld stand to be a lot hoppier, then I'd be happier with it, but as it is, this is a very nice pale ale, one I would accept in any situation.
-----------------------

That was from a bottle received in trade, almost 5 years (or six) before it was available in Minnesota. This bottle had no floaties and was no gusher. Makes me wonder if may have suffered from transit, and perhaps it was a little old. Maybe. But, we can guess the answer.

New Belgium Lips of Faith: La Terroir

"La Terroir, Dry Hopped Sour Ale, alc. 7.5% by Vol. La Terroir is a French term meaning "of the earth". Used to reference the environmental conditions that affect the brew, we like to think about the terroir of our folders. These wooden barrels age our sour ale in varying temperatures, humidity and vibrations. The terroir of New Belgium, so to speak. Add in another variable by dry-hopping with peachy, mango-like Amarillo hops, and we created an ale that changes every time we brew it."

Hazy, dusky peach appearance, solid, off-white head. starts big, slims down.

Aromatics cry out from the start, pungent and tart. Wild, funky flavors are matched with under-tones and tropical and citrus fruit. Sour, with traces of cat urine. But, you like that sort of thing, don't you? I love sniffing letterboxes, personally.

Tasting it: Booom-shaka-lacka! A serious thwack on the palate. Twisted, sour, and weird, but also light and refreshing! How about that? Bracingly tart on the tongue, meshed with a further fruit flavor, a more varied hoppy roundness, that caresses and calms the ravaging sourness. A crazy roller coaster ride. Merest malt, just the kiss of the hops, a flavor sensation led by the wicked yeast and the oak of the barrel. The Amarillo dry-hopping is the key, though, with that tropic fruit flavor meshing so well against the sourness of the ale. Lemon, apricot, grapefruit, mango, pineapple.

This is tasty stuff. Light bodied, but with persistent, sour, yeasty flavor, ends on a light note. Starts strong, ends soft, stays pleasantly weird and wonderful.