Month: June 2024

Anchorage Brewing Company Dead? – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.4% ABV (C$11.65 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 14-Feb-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 8-Jun-2024)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with one fat finger of pillowy pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: stone fruit, citrus, cereal grains, tropical fruit, light dank. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: smooth medium-full body, moderate carbonation, medium duration mildly warming finish. (4/5)

Brewed with Phantasm Powder, Cashmere and Mosaic hops. I waffled a little on the scoring here, because although I found the flavours reasonably pleasant, I was left a little short of impressed – but I wasn’t not entirely convinced that wasn’t simply because I was simply getting a little bored. So, although I initially marked it a little lower, I ended up here. (16/20)

This will be my 5,849th unique Untappd check-in.

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Field House Brewing Co. Super Tall Hazy – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.5% ABV (C$7.95 at Collective, 568 ml, packaged on 18-Apr-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 3-Jun-2024)

Appearance: hazy straw with one finger of fine white head diminishing gradually to a thick persistent cap, well-defined soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, citrus, cereal grains, light herbal. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-soft carbonation, medium duration mildly warming finish. (4/5)

Brewer notes say this “features Mosaic, Citra and a heavy dose of HBC 586”. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like their super literal naming on this one. And, y’know, this is a brewery that I feel like I tend to consistently underrate – or, at least, consistently be surprised when they actually perform well. And I’m not sure why, because in my admittedly somewhat limited experience, they’ve done quite well: excluding this one, for n=10, μ=7.5 & σ=0.67 – and the first three out of four I had by them were pretty much world-class. (To be fair, this one should pull the average up a little. Or, at least, offset one bottom outlier and tighten up the deviation.) I might be a touch enthusiastic on my scoring here, but not by much. (16/20)

This will be my 5,841st unique Untappd check-in.

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Garrison Brewing Company Georgia Peach – American Pale Wheat Ale at 4.5% ABV (C$4.50 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 26-Mar-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 3-Jun-2024)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with two fingers of fine white head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: peach, grass, wheat, pale malt. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter, moderate tart. (6/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lightly tart finish. (4/5)

Peach adjunct utterly dominates, with just a little grassy hop peeking out from underneath. There’s also a wheaty tartness that plays well with the fruit adjunct, but ultimately nothing really pops. Which is to say, it’s OK, but that’s about as far as I’d go. (13/20)

This will be my 5,840th unique Untappd check-in.

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Sierra Nevada Cosmic Little Thing IPA – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8% ABV | 35 IBU (C$6.55 at Collective, 568 ml, packaged on 23-Feb-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 2-Jun-2024)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with two fingers of fine white head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, berry, melon, pale crackery malt, slight dank, hint of pissiness. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, sweetish mildly warming finish. (4/5)

Comet, Strata, and Helios hops. I understand that it’s part of the “Little Things” family, but should it be? I mean, in what sense – packaging, flavour, or ABV – is this “Little”? I don’t think it’s actually too long in the can, but it probably wasn’t helped by that. More importantly, I’m getting a hint of Simcoe-ish cat pissiness as it warms, which can arguably have its place in e.g. a WCIPA, but probably not in a supposedly NE-style / hazy IPA. On the other hand, it carries the high ABV very well, with almost no hint of that coming through. All in all, it’s good, sure – but not great. (15/20)

This will be my 5,839th unique Untappd check-in.

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

RavenWolf Brewing Co. Ltd. Lil’ Hazy Experiment – American Pale Ale at 5% ABV (C$4.63 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 2-Jun-2024)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with one fat finger of loose white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: grass, citrus, pale crackery malt. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry finish. (4/5)

Meh. Better than the first one of theirs I had, but still a bit a middle-of-the-road offering of a middle-of-the-road style. (14/20)

This will be my 5,838th unique Untappd check-in.

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

The Establishment Brewing Company Paradise Circus – American IPA at 6.2% ABV (C$6.00 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 15-May-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 2-Jun-2024)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fat fingers of fluffy white head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: juicy tropical fruit, citrus, melon/berry, lactose, cereal grains, hint of dank cannabis. (9/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter. (9/10) Palate: smooth medium body, moderate-soft carbonation, medium duration finish. (4/5)

A locally-made world-class hazy IPA canned two weeks ago? I’m SO spoiled… The brewer describes the hopping as “a Mosaic-heavy hop bill that includes a juicy experimental from Yakima Chief (Mosaic 701) and some supporting Nelson Sauvin”.  I’ve called the sweetness level moderate here, though it might edge just slightly higher than that – but it’s definitely not as high as one might expect give the super juicy and sweet aromas. Helluva nice beer. (17/20)

This will be my 5,837th unique Untappd check-in.

8.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

RavenWolf Brewing Co. Ltd. Groovy Session Ale – Session IPA at 4.5% ABV | 36 IBU (C$5.00 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 1-Jun-2024)

Appearance: clear deep gold with two fat fingers of loose pale ivory head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: grass, citrus, caramel. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, medium duration finish. (4/5)

Not bad, I suppose, but very much a throwback style where noble-style grassy hops dominate. (13/20)

This will be my 5,836th unique Untappd check-in.

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Born Brewing Co. (Born Colorado Brewing) Airglow Anniversary Hazy IPA – American IPA at 6.5% ABV | 28 IBU (C$4.90 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 16-Apr-2024, acquired 7-May-2024, reviewed 31-May-2024)

Appearance: hazy particulate-laden pale gold with two fingers of fluffy white head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: juicy berry, citrus, cereal grains. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, medium duration finish. (4/5)

The brewer refers to “the use of Strata hops” but doesn’t say it’s a single-hop. Juicy and pleasant, if not particularly noteworthy – unless you count the “chunky style” appearance. (Which, unless I actually have to chew the floaties, I don’t particularly mind all that much.) (15/20)

This will be my 5,835th unique Untappd check-in.

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Irrational Brewing Company Exp. Opacity 11 – American IPA at 6% ABV (C$5.31 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 7-May-2024, reviewed 30-May-2024)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of rocky white head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: juicy tropical fruit, orange juice, cereal grains, floral. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, medium duration clean finish. (4/5)

“New Zelda Hazy IPA w/ Riwaka”, malted with Pilsner, Malted Oats, Flaked Oats, Chit Malt, and Malted Wheat. I think this might be the first Riwaka single-hop I’ve had, and I have to say, it’s really working for me. Juicy tropical fruit and orange juice, without being sickly sweet, and a short finish that verges on dry. I haven’t had many by this brewery, but this ties with their Turbidity as the best thing of theirs I’ve had. (16/20)

This will be my 5,834th unique Untappd check-in.

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Rebellion Brewing Co. Astro Comet – American Pale Ale at 4.5% ABV (C$4.81 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 20-Mar-2024, acquired 7-May-2024, reviewed 22-May-2024)

Appearance: clear straw with one fat finger of rocky pale ivory head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, spotty soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: melon, citrus, grass. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate-lively carbonation, short clean finish. (4/5)

Single-hopped with SK-grown Comet hops, making it very much your grandfather’s hop profile. To be fair, though, this is reasonably well done, with a clean flavour profile and crisp finish. (14/20)

This will be my 5,833rd unique Untappd check-in.

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com