Two Evil (Two Roads Brewing / Evil Twin Brewing) 13 Months of Sun – American IPA at 7% ABV (C$6.61 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 16-Oct-2020, acquired 15-Jan-2021, reviewed 30-Jan-2021)
Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of rocky pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: coffee, stone fruit, citrus, pale crackery malt, resiny pine, earth. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry medium duration earthy spicy finish. (4/5)
In the doldrums of surviving a pandemic in the depths of a Canadian winter, any months of sun is starting to sound pretty good. This one claims to be uniquely Ethiopian, brewed as it is with coffee and teff (a ancient grain). Not only is is a collaboration between Two Roads and Evil Twin, they also involved Omnipollo, so heavyweight names indeed! All that aside, is it any good? Well, yeah, actually, it is. It’s a little different, for sure, and you need to get past that, but once you do, it’s actually solid. In particular, I found the coffee to be omnipresent, but neither aggressive nor overwhelming. I kept waiting for it to turn astringent, but it never did. Layers of complexity continue to develop as it warms, and the coffee and earthy rye-like grain work well with the mild resiny pine, particularly in the finish, turning reminiscent of a Black IPA or CDA. Ultimately, it’s sufficiently different to be worth a try, but also actually pretty good. (15/20)
7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
