Pulpatine by Great Notion Brewing (Portland, OR) and Equilibrium Brewery (Middletown, NY) / Hazy IPA
Both collaboration breweries are known for good IPAs and this one doesn’t disappoint - tons of hazy fruitiness with orange, tangerine, grapefruit, grapes, berries and mango before some moderate piney, even slightly floral flavors come in. Dry, low-to-medium bitter finish.
Made my first proper spaghett. Take a 1 oz swig from a Miller High Life then top off the bottle with a lemon wedge and Aperol. A nice refreshing summer treat and good company for the mezcal.
Served with leftover Ibercio Secreto on a pita and the obligatory caprese from my tomato plant that found its way to groundwater and is threatening to produce enough fruit to upend the entire commodity market.
Dank Drive by Alvarado Street Brewery (Monterey, CA) and Yakima Chief Hops (Yakima, WA) - IPA
Not surprising with that name but resinous, piney and dank flavors dominate this IPA. Some citrus notes upfront and some spiciness help balancing this beer. Dry, strong bitterness finish makes this a rather bold IPA
Juiced like Heaven by Fieldwork Brewing Company (Berkeley, CA) - Hazy DIPA
Not surprisingly with such a name, quite a juice bomb with tons of orange and grapefruit juice combined with notes of peach and quite prominently pineapple. The juiciness fades a bit away and some malt flavors come through before a very low bitterness finish. Very soft, slightly sticky mouthfeel - prime example of a juice bomb.
Blueberry Upside Down by Untitled Art (Waunakee, WI) and Juicy Brewing Company (Herndon, VA) - Fruited Sour)
Untitled Art continues to hit the right balance with their fruited sours - great combination of blueberry and cinnamon meets tartness. Not very sweet, berry-forward but also clearly a sour.
Nectaron Dreamscape by Cellarmaker Brewing Company (Oakland, CA) - Hazy DIPA
Very peach and grape forward with additional flavors of grapefruit. Some malts in the background but otherwise quite fruity hazy IPA with a very smooth, soft mouthfeel and hardly any bitterness in the finish. Interesting NEIPA which is getting close to be too fruity and sweet but still manages to stay on the “right” side
Terpene Station by Cellarmaker Brewing Company (Oakland, CA) - DIPA
Feels a bit like some old style WCIPA - upfront some citrus notes (grapefruit, lime) before a lot of dankness with herb, piney and floral flavors take over. Some interesting tropical notes linger in the background with some slight malt flavors. Dry, with lots of bitterness in the finish. Very well dine WCIPA with a broad spectrum of flavors
Pillow Fight by Narrative Fermentation (San Jose) - Hazy IPA
Might be one of the softest mouthfeel IPAs ever - strong tropical flavors ranging from berries, mango, pineapple to orange citrus notes with some slight grassy tastes coming in late. Dry, low bitterness finish - this IPA is really about the (not overly sweet) tropical flavors with an extreme soft mouthfeel
Molten Magic by Barebottle Brewing Company (SannFrancisco, CA) and Inu Island Ales (Kaneohe, HI) - Fruited Sour
A play on the lava flow cocktail which combines strawberry, banana, pineapple and coconut. It starts with some mild strawberry flavors and there is a hint of banana in the finish but otherwise there is mainly tartness from the sour with some hard to define fruit flavors around it and some astringency. Often fruited sours tend to miss the tartness and have too much fruit flavors and sweetness but here it us one of the cases where it is the opposite and a but more assertive fruit flavors would help
Black Butte by Deschutes Brewery (Bend, OR) - Porter
Classical lower ABV porter with quite intense roasted malt flavors, notes of dark chocolate, dark caramel and cold brew coffee. In the background very faint hints of maple like sweetness and some dark cherry/raisin flavors. Dry, medium bitter finish which last for a long time. Smooth, nearly creamy mouthfeel with nice carbonation. Not surprisingly, one of the best selling porter in the US
Master of Disaster by Original Pattern Brewing Company (Oakland, CA) - DIPA
Crisp WCIPA with citrus and lots of piney flavors. Some floral and dank notes more in the background. Very dry and medium bitter finish with long lasting piney and citrus notes. Good IPA with very little sweetness compared to many others
Bistro Ambrosia by Energy City Brewing (Batavia, IL) - Fruited Berliner Weisse
Really well made fruited Berliner Weisse - coconut, cheery and pineapple are the dominant fruit flavors which are well balanced with plenty of tartness from the kettle sour, so that you don’t think you are just drinking fruit juice. Soft mouthfeel with high carbonation
ResinXS by Alvarado Street Brewery (Monterey, CA) - DIPA
Really nice combination of fruity sweetness and floral, herbal resins - peach, orange and grapefruit start but long lasting resinous, herbal, floral flavors take over and dominate the second half of the sip. Dry, low bitterness finish which continues to have some of the resin notes.
