Evil Twin Brewing IPA Kolata (Batch #003) American Double / Imperial IPA at 8% ABV (C$6.70 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 14-Aug-2018, reviewed 19-Aug-2018)
Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of rocky white head, good retention and spotty soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: coconut, pineapple, lactose, faint caramel malt and citrus. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, lingering and building bitter warming finish. (4/5)
I have great respect for both Mikkel and Jeppe, but it’s right there in the name: “Evil” Twin. There are some breweries whose products I can safely assume will be predictably good. There are others who generally do very good (indeed, spectacular) things, but occasionally fumble the ball fairly badly – Perfect Matcha, need I say more? Not, I hasten to add, is Mikkel immune to such issues, but if you’re gonna call yourself the evil twin, you’ve gotta expect a certain amount of blowback. (Even more interesting is when collaborations between two such breweries can have both results – I’m looking at you, Rainbownade ?? and Coffeenade ??!) So, fair to say, I had no idea what facet of the evil twin was going to be on display here. And yet, I had reason to hope based on the name alone, being somewhat of a fan of Piña Coladas… And of making love at midnight – or really, any time, while we’re at it – though not so much of getting caught in the rain, but that’s been less of a concern once I started shaving my head.
And yes, all of that nonsense was written before the first sip. We can safely move on to the beer, I guess. Sooo… yeah. Lots of coconut, pineapple, and lactose, precisely as promised by the label. I’m kind of vaguely disappointed, but hell if I could tell you why. Maybe because this so strongly resembles a Piña Colada, without much beer character at all? Though, now that I think about it, it’s about the same strength as a Piña Colada, if not more, for about half the price per volume. Yeah, OK, fine, I approve. (16/20)
8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
