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I Always Felt Closer To IPAs Than I did to People – Evil Twin Brewing

I’ve always been a fan of Evil Twin. They put honest, creative, thought in to naming their beers. In most cases the beers they releases are just as creative as the names. Unfortunately “I Always Felt Closer To IPAs Than I did to People” fails to live up to the name. It has a great combination of hops that should have lead to a bright and refreshing IPA. Taking a guess, I think this was sitting around for a while. It has to have suffered from the long trip across the country.


From The can:

Yes it’s double dry hopped with tons of tasty Galaxy, Citra, Simcoe and Falconer’s Flight. Better be ready for this close to perfect India Pale Ale.

ABV: 7.5% IBU: N/A SRM: N/A

Malts: N/A
Hops: Galaxy, Citra, Simcoe, Falconer’s Flight
Yeast: NA
Other Ingredients: None

Tasting Notes

  • Color and Appearance
    • Straw
    • Slight haze
    • Long head retention
    • Medium carbonation
  • Aroma
    • Pine, Citrus
    • No malt aroma
    • Tropical fruit esters
  • Flavor
    • Low alcohol
    • Pine, Citrus
    • Low hop bitterness
    • Light malt
  • Mouth Feel
    • No astringency
    • Light body
    • Medium carbonation
    • Light finish.

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Bensound
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9th Cloud Hazy IPA – Matchless Brewing

At this point I’m over the hazy tropical IPA trend. I don’t want my IPA to taste like pineapple or mango. It should taste and smell like a pine tree. There’s nothing special going on here with 9th Cloud. It’s your standard soft IPA designed for people that don’t like beer.


9th Cloud was brewed to celebrate the 9th anniversary of The Beer Authority in Seattle, Washington. The Facebook event page is here.

From The Beer Authority event page:

The master brewers of Matchless Brewing were commissioned to make the Beer Authority’s 9th Anniversary beer, working with Hop Nymphs along the Western slope of the Cowiche Canyon. The head brewers after praying to the hops gods finally had selected the magical hops to be harvested during the rise of the Harvest Moon last Burctober to brew this cloudy deliciousness for the Beer Authority’s 9th Anniversary.

ABV: 7.2% IBU: N/A SRM: N/A

Malts: Pale, Oats, Wheat
Hops: Waimea, El Dorado
Yeast: Juice
Other Ingredients: None

Tasting Notes

  • Color and Appearance
    • Straw
    • Hay
    • Moderate head retention
    • Medium carbonation
  • Aroma
    • tropical fruit
    • No malt aroma
    • Tropical fruit esters
  • Flavor
    • Low alcohol
    • Tropical fruit
    • No hop bitterness
    • Light malt
  • Mouth Feel
    • No astringency
    • Light body
    • Medium carbonation
    • Light finish.

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Music:
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Bensound
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2018 Experimental IPA – Upslope Brewing Company

Experimentation is good. I speak from experience.. I wouldn’t have learned half as much as I have since I stated brewing. In the case of the 2018 Experimental IPA from Upslope Brewing Company it doesn’t feel like it worked. The body is too light for my taste. I like something with a little more backbone. The hop profile feels like it wants to be more than it could be. It’s not a horrible IPA. It’s just not for me.


From the Upslope Brewing Company website:

This annual Experimental IPA series showcases our brewing team’s commitment to innovation and the exploration of hops. Our 2018 Experimental IPA features Denali, Azacca, Galaxy, and Vic Secret hops imparting ripe passionfruit, pineapple and orange zest notes with a soft malt finish.

ABV: 8% IBU: 53 SRM: N/A

Malts: N/A
Hops: Denali, Azacca, Galaxy, and Vic Secret
Yeast: Unknown
Other Ingredients: None

Tasting Notes

  • Color and Appearance
    • Straw
    • Clear
    • Moderate head retention
    • Medium carbonation
  • Aroma
    • Citrus, tropical fruit
    • No malt aroma
    • Low to no esters
  • Flavor
    • Low alcohol
    • Citrus tropical fruit
    • Medium hop bitterness
    • Light malt
  • Mouth Feel
    • Low astringency
    • Light body
    • Medium carbonation
    • Light finish.

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Music:
Hey
Bensound
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Clencher DIPA – BuckleDown Brewing

BuckleDown has come up with am interesting combination of hops for their Clencher DIPA. I’ve used Centennial quite a bit in my last few brews. Having not yet brewed with Simcoe, it’s something I’ll be looking to use in the future. The floral and citrus undertones that make up the majority of the flavor in this beer are generated by the centennial hops. It makes for a pleasant compliment and an all around good beer.


From the BuckleDown Brewing website:

Hops are the hero in this powerhouse. Hopped throughout with Simcoe and Centennial, Clencher is loaded with pine and citrus aromas and the body and alcohol to compliment it’s assertive flavors.

ABV: 8.1% IBU: 75 SRM: N/A

Malts: N/A
Hops: Simcoe, and centennial
Yeast: Unknown
Other Ingredients: None

Tasting Notes

  • Color and Appearance
    • Straw
    • Clear
    • Moderate head retention
    • Medium carbonation
  • Aroma
    • Pine, citrus, tropical rruit
    • No malt aroma
    • Tropical fruit esters
  • Flavor
    • Low alcohol
    • Citrus tropical fruit
    • Mild hop bitterness
    • Light malt
  • Mouth Feel
    • Low astringency
    • Light body
    • Medium carbonation
    • Medium finish.

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Music:
Jazz Frenchy
Bensound
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Bottomcutter Imperial IPA – Bale Breaker Brewing Company

A bottomcutter is a tractor like vehicle used to cut hop vines at a given height. If you would like to see one in action you can find clips here and here. With Bottomcutter IIPA Bale Breaker has come up with an IIPA that is aggressive and fresh. Heavy with pine notes in both aroma and flavor. You can’t get much better than this.


This is the second time I’ve encountered Ekuanot hops in as many reviews. They were also in The Sister. Look for a brew day featuring Ekuanot in the near future.

From the Bale Breaker website:

Double dry-hopped with homegrown Yakima hops, Bottomcutter IIPA may be light in color but is packed with citrus and pine hop character. This Imperial IPA is brewed to finish dry, perfect for the combination of Citra®, Simcoe®, and Ekuanot™ hops. As the bottomcutter is a tractor that leads the topcutter through the fields during harvest, this beer will lead to a new appreciation for our valley’s hops.

ABV: 8.2% IBU: 100 SRM: N/A

Malts: N/A
Hops: Citra, Simcoe, and Ekuanot
Yeast: Unknown
Other Ingredients: None

Tasting Notes

  • Color and Appearance
    • Straw
    • Clear
    • Moderate head retention
    • Medium carbonation
  • Aroma
    • Pine, citrus
    • No malt aroma
    • Tropical fruit esters
  • Flavor
    • Medium alcohol
    • Pine, citrus
    • Aggressive hop bitterness
    • Light malt
  • Mouth Feel
    • Medium astringency
    • Drying body
    • Medium carbonation
    • Medium finish.

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Music:
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Nicolai Heidlas
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