IPA

We’re back after nearly a month off. I have been participating in dry January. No alcohol or non-alcoholic stuff. I find NA beer to be no good. This local Charlotte, North Carolina beer from Sugar Creek Brewing Company, Path to Enlightenment West-Coast IPA. This is a new beer from Sugar Creek that is 7% ABV. It won the bronze medal for American IPA at the 2023 U.S. Open Beer Championship. This IPA has a combination of Mosaic and Simcoe hops. This IPA pours a golden color with a one-finger white head. The head does quickly fade in decent lacing. The aroma is citrusy, grassy, little malt note, and hoppy. The flavor is where the malt is more pronounced, and you’ll find grapefruit, citrus, and grassy notes. The bitter/hoppy notes are more on the back of the tongue and as it passes the tongue. The beer has a medium feel in the mouth. Then this IPA finishes with a bitter, gassy, grapefruit flavor. The aftertaste is a bit like a malty grapefruit that lingers for a bit before fading as you take the next sip. This west-coast IPA is very similar to others in this beer style. The malt notes do help this beer stand out a bit, giving this Path to Enlightenment West-Coast IPA a B. I do recommend this beer if you are an IPA fan. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

This beer from Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. is Celebration Fresh Hop IPA. This beer is 6.8% ABV and is seasonally available from October through December with its Caramel Malts. This beer uses hops that haven’t been dried. This IPA pours a red/orange color with a two-finger white stead head. The aroma is piney, malted, hoppy, and citrus-fruited. The flavor is bitter, piney, orange/grapefruit, malty and hoppy. This beer has a medium body. Then it has a pine orange/grapefruit bitter finish. The aftertaste is less piney, but the bitterness intensifies and lingers with a bit of malted flavor. I have had this on many times before. I remember the first time I thought Celebration was so good and it still is. I think Celebration Fresh Hop IPA is an A+. I always look for it around Christmas time and you should too! Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! cheers!

Slurp Surfin is a West Coast India Pale Ale produced by NoDa Brewing Co. and is part of the Slurp Series of IPAs. This IPA is 6.5% and is dry-hopped with Mosaic, Simcoe, and Centennial hops. NoDa Brewing uses the same mash hopes and Thiol (a type of yeast) as the Lil Slurp and mash hops; Experimental 177701. Mosiac Incognito is used in the whirlpool. This beer pours a yellow color with a three-and-a-quarter fluffy white head. The head is very slowly fading. The aroma is pineapple, grapefruit, tangerine, orange, bitterness, and light pine. The flavor is also tropical pineapple, tangerine, orange, and grapefruit. There is a good amount of bitter notes there. This beer has a lighter feel in the mouth. This IPA has a tropical fruity bitter finish. The aftertaste is bitter with tropical fruits. Slurp Surfin is a delicious beer and one that is an A. I enjoyed the tropical bitter flavors. So go find NoDa Brewing Co. Slurp Surfin, and the rest of the Slurp Series beers. I have previously reviewed the rest of the series. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Hardywood Craft Brewery in Richmond, Virginia produces Great Return IPA. This IPA is 7.5% and uses Apollo, Cascade, Centennial, Columbus, and Simcoe hops. This IPA pours yellow with a one-finger white head. The aroma is bright, citrus, piney, and malted. The flavor is piney, citrusy, hoppy, and smooth. This beer is lighter on the mouth. Then it has a bitter hop finish. Then you get an aftertaste of piney grapefruit. The bitterness is stronger in the aftertaste than when it initially hits the tongue. This is just average in my opinion, so I give this a C. Nothing bad and nothing really stands out. This IPA is something that you can drink a few of without having the flavor overpower your mouth. The bitter aftertaste is a little off but not terrible. Great Return is not the worst IPA I’ve had. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

This IPA hopped with Comet, Citra, and Mosaic hops is Rocky River IPA from Cabarrus Brewing Co. in Concord, North Carolina, which is thirty-five minutes outside Charlotte. I first had this IPA at the Charlotte Motor Speedway during the NASCAR Bank of American Rovel 400. I thought I should find some for a review. I did. This beer is 6.5% ABV. The brewery is named for the county in which Concord is located. This IPA pours a light yellow with a one-and-a-half-finger white head. The aroma is grass, light citrus, bitter, and lightly malted. The taste is grassy, bitter, light citrus, hoppy, and with a touch of sweetness. This beer has a medium feel on the mouth. Then this IPA has a bitty/hoppy, grassy citrus finish. The aftertaste is light grass and light grapefruit. This is a fabulous IPA that I’d say is A+. The grassy citrus is great and this beer doesn’t overpower your tastebuds. Rocky River IPA is a beer that you need to have. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

This Beer from The Vail Brewing Co. in Richmond, Virginia, is Vent3, a Triple-dry hopped West Coast style IPA. This beer is 6% ABV and is Triple-dry hopped with CTZ, Amarillo, El Dorado, and Nelson Savuin hops. You don’t see many triple-dry hop IPAs, but a few are around. This beer pours a deeper yellow with a three-finger white head. The aroma is fruity (peaches and citrus orange) and resiny, with some pine notes. The taste is fruity (more pronounced oranges) and resin/pine notes. The flavor is also soft and lightly malty. This beer has a fuller feeling in your mouth. Then comes a piney aftertaste with a bit of bitterness. The aftertaste is lightly fruity and piney. Vent3 IPA is good but I can’t really compare this to other triple-dry hopped IPAs because I haven’t had much. But as an IPA this is good, but not great. I give The Vail Brewing Company Vent3 a C+. It’s just above average. It wasn’t terrible, I enjoyed it, and it is not a beer I would tell you not to have. Please stay safe, be kind to one another, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Here is another Burial Beer with a long name. This beer is a collaboration with Charlotte’s Resident Culture Brewing Company. This is Beyond The Reimagination of The Extraterrestrial Occult. This West-Coast IPA is 7.2% ABV and is mashed with pils. Double-dry hopped with lots of Strata and time-matched with Amarillo, Superdelic, Citra, and Strata CGX, This IPA pours a deep gold with a two-and-a-quarter white head. The beer’s aroma is hoppy, bitter, piney, and a bit of fruit. The flavor of this IPA is hoppy, woody, piney, and there is some fruit. The mouthfeel is on the high side of medium. This beer finishes with a bitterness and some citrus notes. Then you get an aftertaste of bitter, hoppy wood and citrus. This is a west-coast style IPA that I give a B-. The flavors are on the lighter side, and they should be a little more pronounced. I would like to have more citrus fruit flavors. But it’s not terrible, I would have this again, and so should you. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!