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I ain't no millionaire's son, but I can drink like one... |
The New England IPA... What is it? Where did it really come from? Is it a fad? Is it a bona fide beer style? Is it a mistake? I'm not really sure, but these cloudy brews certainly are popular and show no sign of going away anytime soon--and that's a good thing. Beer Advocate has proclaimed the Hazy, juicy, NEIPA a legitimate beer style, so I suppose I better get on board.
Truthfully, I'm just kidding around. My neighborhood brewery, Great Notion Brewing, has been turning me on to the delights of the NEIPA style ever since they opened their doors. Their amazing offerings like Ripe, Juice Box and Juice Jr. are murky masterpieces. Thus, I think you can imagine my delight when I discovered a collaboration between Great Notion and San Diego's Modern Times in the cold case of my local bottleshop. OH, YEAH! Life is full of awesome surprises!
Fortunate Sun IPA comes in a pint-sized can. The description on Untappd goes as follows:
"The second collaborative brew of the year with our friends at Great Notion Brewing, this 7% hazy IPA was massively dosed with Citra and Amarillo before receiving an exotic twist with the addition of Australian Galaxy hops."
The beer poured into my glass a hazy, opaque, golden yellow color with a foamy, bright white head. The head rose up to a 1/2 inch tall and dissipated at a moderate rate. Light, spotty lacing was left behind. This beer looked thick pouring into the glass, I must say. It appeared to have the same viscosity as orange juice.
Aroma was an immediate juicy blast of citrus, pine, and tropical fruit. Orange, Tangerine, pineapple, mango, stone fruit. Biscuity malt in the background.
Taste followed the nose. This IPA has all the flavors. Dank pine. Tropical fruit. Citrus. All very well balanced against mild hops bitterness and malt that didn't get lost in the mix.
Medium mouthfeel with a smooth, creamy finish. Just a bit of a chew to it at the end, but not a tonsil coater by any stretch.
Overall, this is the epitome of the NEIPA style. Hazy, murky, cloudy. Juicy, juicy, juicy. I highly recommend and will probably head down the street to see if they have it on tap at Great Notion in a few minutes. Excellent beer and I'm giving it a BeerGuyPDX rating of 4 crushed cans out of 4 AND a Droolie. The Wonder Beagle drooling up a puddle the second I cracked Fortunate Sun open.