15%? Wow. I think barleywine used to top out at 12%. Thomas Hardy Ale was 11.7% and it was served in small snifters straight out of the 6 ounce bottle. That was one of the exotic strong ales of the day back then. Straight out of Dorset.
As with many trends/flavors (not only in beers) - companies are always trying to make a “better” version - besides IPA, stouts (especially barrel-aged) are very popular and often the highest rated beers of many breweries. And barrel-aged stouts get pretty high ABVs
1 Like
I question my own taste in beers sometimes. I tell myself I like IPA’s because they are hoppy, but I tend to order the Hazy IPA’s which tend to be a bit maltier, or so it seems to me. And when I am in the UK I order Bitter or ESB, which seem to be a bit maltier than they are hoppy. I guess I should just face the fact that I like them all, hoppy or not.
LOL!
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Nose Cone by Alvarado Street Brewery (Monterey, CA) - DIPA
Bold, yet elegant and smooth WCIPA with tons of dank, piney and floral notes throughout. Hoppy flavors (mainly citrus and some melon in the background) balance things out with dry, high bitterness finish. Classic, well made IPA
2 Likes
Wharf Rat by Alvarado Street Brewery (Monterey, CA) - Hazy DIPA
Classical example of a NEIPA - pineapple and lime forward at the beginning before piney notes with some herbal flavors taking over and a dry, medium bitter finish. Nothing too extreme or too restrained but just very balanced and what one would call “crushable”
1 Like
Thick Fruit Medley Goo by Knotted Root Brewing Company (Nederland, CO) - Smoothie Sour
Much less thick and gooey than expected from the name - more a reasonable well balanced fruited berliner weisse but despite the different fruit additions relative weak on the fruit with mainly mango and lime and also with some tartness but again not really on the forefront. Overall a bit too restrained to really standout.
1 Like
The Beast of both Worlds by Lagunitas Brewing Company (Petaluma, CA) - DIPA
Described as a “bi-coastal” DIPA this beer has strong fruit notes with orange, honeydew and mango quite prominent. There is a malt backbone but somehow there is very little piney bitterness and the finish also lacks nearly all bitterness and shows more orange notes. Very unusual IPA which mainly lacks bitterness and so makes it quite one-dimensional fruity
1 Like
Hallertau Pils by Human Robot (Philadelphia, PA) - German Pilsner
Excellent version of a German-style pilsner with a great malty, bready backbone and plenty of hallertau hops flavors ranging from floral, spicy to slightly herbal with a dry, medium bitter finish. Human Robots continue to produce outstanding pilsner
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Virtual Planetoid by Fieldwork Brewing Company (Berkeley, CA) - Hazy IPA
Orange bomb - very orange-forward hazy IPA (with some additional flavors if tangerine, lemon and some mild peach) which is dominant throughout the sip. The second half of the sip has some mild floral notes but they stay quite in the background. Dry, low bitterness finish - refreshing but also too fruit-forward IPA which would benefit from some more bitterness
3 Likes
Coming in late to recommend Ledgers’s on University at Acton in Berkeley. Huge selection, lots of single bottles.
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One Star Review by Fieldwork Brewing Company (Berkeley, CA) - Hazy DIPA
Smells like orange with weed and some malt sweetness - tastes like tons of orange juice, followed by piney, herbal weed with a dry, medium bitter finish. Big, bold DIPA.
1 Like
Hotel Pasteque by Alvarado Street Brewery (Monterey, CA) - Fruited Sour
Refreshing combination of mainly watermelon with some supporting cherry flavors. Relatively sweet which gets balanced by the tartness of the sour. Could have been a little bit more sour and less sweet in the beginning for a better balance but still a good summer sour
1 Like
Vacation Far Away by Fieldwork Brewing Company (Berkeley, CA) - Hazy IPA
First time drinking a beer focused on Superdelic hops from New Zealand - very tropical flavors upfront with mango, orange and peach before it turns quite herbal with significant dank notes and a dry, medium bitter finish. This hops seems to be predestined for a very good hazy IPA
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Brother Murray by Laughing Monk Brewery (San Francisco, CA) - Hazy IPA
Good hazy IPA which focuses less on complete fruit bombs but has a more moderate approach which some orange and peach flavors upfront, followed by some moderate piney tastes and a medium bitter finish. Nothing spectacular but a very solid IPA
1 Like
