Magic Rock BrewingIf you have any kind of passing interest in craft beer on Instagram, then you will probably be fed up of seeing these beers by now - everyone has been drinking them! I've been keeping mine aside for a special occasion - in celebration of finishing the BrewDog Summer Run, however staying in BrewDog afterwards made sure that never happened as planned... The Cannonball Run is a yearly event by Magic Rock Brewing that celebrates one of it's core beers - Cannonball by releasing bigger, meaner variants of it. The past couple of years has seen Human Cannonball, and Un-Human Cannonball take centre stage, but this year sees Neo-Human Cannonball enter the picture. So the beers we have this year are:
As a side note, I didn't bother picking up the core Cannonball as part of this year - I know it's a good beer, and I'd already spent a small fortune on these three beers as it was. These beers have been picking up so much hype - they have been all over Instagram. It was so hard to not drink them and keep them aside for as long as I did. So, without further ado... Human Cannonball 2018First up we have Human Cannonball, the 9.2% ABV DIPA. I have crazily never tried tried Human, or Un-Human Cannonball, however last year I spoke very fondly of another DIPA - Half Cut, which was brewed with Other Half, so I was unsurprisingly looking forward to getting stuck in to this one. Here's the official description from Magic Rock: "Meet Cannonball’s big brother; we used more malt, more hops and more magical conjuring to crank up the flavour of our explosive IPA ‘Cannonball’. Get your taste buds ready for massive pine and candied orange aromas combined with bitter/sweet grapefruit and mango flavours all complemented by a deeply composed, satisfyingly malty base. Ever wondered what it feels like to be shot out of a cannon? Here’s what it tastes like." Human Cannonball pours from the can a murky golden orange colour, leaving a big foamy beige head. Initial aromas are incredible - huge amounts of mango & pineapple combine with a massive dollop of piney resin to leave you gagging for more. And the taste certainly does not disappoint either...from the off it's massive fruit flavours; juicy mango, sweet bitter grapefruit and a hint of orange are followed up with a massive piney bitterness - this beer makes no attempt to hide it's alcohol, that's for sure. It was great to drink, and everything a proper DIPA should be. This beer was awesome, and hopefully a sign of things to come for the rest. Human Cannonball is up there with the best of the DIPA's that I have had. 4.75 out of 5 Un-Human Cannonball 2018Next up we have Un-Human Cannonball, the monstrous 11% ABV triple IPA. Now, I have only had a few triple IPA's in my time, and they are usually quite a mind-blowing experience, so I'm not expecting anything less from this beer. Here's the official description from Magic Rock: "Once a year we receive the latest crop of hops from the US, intensely aromatic and bursting with potential they’re begging to be put to work. With three times the quantity of hops of our explosive IPA ‘Cannonball’ and even more than our flagship Double IPA ‘Human Cannonball’ we’ve created a fitting tribute to the new hop release with this our annual homage to the hop. ‘Un-Human Cannonball ‘takes IPA to another dimension-balancing massive citric aroma, deep tropical fruit flavour and gravity defying drinkability to deliver a hop experience that is out of this world. We’ve done our best for the hops, don’t let them down by ageing this beer: please drink as soon as Un-Humanly possible!" Un-Human Cannonball pours a murky golden orange colour, similar to Human Cannonball, but with much less of a head. Initial aromas are LOADS of hoppy resin, with a slight splash of tropical fruits. Taste wise, this beer is unforgiving from the off - huge hoppy, bitter flavours are laced with some slight tropical fruit bombs; orange, pineapple & mango. It is slick smooth, with loads of alcohol burn to go with it...serious heavy hitting stuff! This beer is great...it blows your head off, but it is great. As much as I enjoyed it, I did find the levels of alcohol a bit overpowering - however I just took my time, and savoured it. 4.5 out of 5 Neo-Human Cannonball 2018And finally we have the beer I was perhaps most excited about - Neo-Human Cannonball, the 9.2% ABV NE DIPA. NE IPA's are usually my favourite beer style (when done right), so a DIPA version using loads of oats sounds absolutely out of this world. Here's the official description from Magic Rock: "A New England update on our Double IPA Human Cannonball, this DIPA uses a high percentage of oats and wheat in the grist for a creamy smooth mouthfeel. We eliminated the bittering and moved the majority of whirlpool hops over to the dry hopping to maximise aroma. Fermented with London Fog yeast for an estery aroma and sweet finish the beer is served way more hazy than the original to maximise the flavour expression." Neo-Human Cannonball pours a hazy golden yellow, leaving a thin bubbly white head on top. Aromas are quite similar to those of Human Cannonball - mango, pineapple and grapefruit alongside a splash of pine, however there is a creamy backbone to it all from the oats. After the first sip, I knew this beer was phenomenal - you instantly get the creaminess from the oats just as juicy mango & pineapple take hold of your taste buds. There's then a slight bitterness - not too much, just a bit, that rounds everything off. It all works wonderfully, and the mouthfeel especially is excellent - wow. This beer was incredible, and quite easily in my top 5 for the year so far. Everything about it is perfect, right down to the shiny, glittery can. Do yourselves a favour and grab it while you still can. 5 out of 5 Overall, these were three absolutely incredible beers from Magic Rock. All three of them are probably up with the best beers that I've had this year. It's not too late to give them a go, and I highly recommend that you do. I'm looking forward to next years Cannonball Run already 🍻
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Three More Beers Put To The TestHere we are with Fanzine Week 4. Following Week 3's roaring success, I had high hopes for this one. Week 3 set the bar pretty high with Pulp Patriot, and I am dubious if they will reach that heights again any time soon. Again, if you are reading this then you are probably familiar with how it all works, but if not - refresh yourself here the BeersThis week we have the following beers:
Definitely an interesting selection of beers there. Obviously the DIPA immediately catches my eye, because I am a sucker for a good DIPA! I'm also interested to check out the lager, especially how it compares to Kingpin, and Indie Pale Ale to a lesser extent. Hop ShopFirst up we have Hop Shop, the 9% ABV DIPA. A good DIPA is usually a go to style of beer for me, and while is was slightly underwhelmed by Native Son by BrewDog earlier this year I had high hopes for this one, especially off the back of Fanzine Week 3. Here's the official description from BrewDog: "This hop-forward big IPA is intense, dank and resinous, with bursts of stonefruit and citrus. Grapefruit and apricot sit on top of a building bitterness, with a honeycomb malt base followed by a dry yet bittersweet finish." Hop Shop pours a deep amber colour, leaving a foamy off white head. Initial aromas are stone fruits, caramel malts & resin. Flavours are grapefruit and some slight peach from the off, strong caramel malts are rounded off by a hoppy resin flavour. There's nothing too overwhelming in there for me, it's tasty enough, but it's certainly no Elvis Juice. Overall, I found this an enjoyable enjoyable enough, yet unspectacular beer. It certainly did more for me than Native Son did earlier in the year, but it doesn't immediately make me want another can of it like Pulp Patriot in Week 3. 3.75 out of 5 English IPAFirst up we have English IPA (Small Batch) which is a 5.2% ABV Retro IPA. I can't say I'm too familiar when it comes to English style IPA's so this was an interesting one for me. "An old school English IPA brewed with the addition of traditional English hops which bring lavender and bergamot to the front of the beer. Supporting the hops is a light biscuit malt flavour, followed by a dry, bitter finish with a touch of warmth." English IPA pours a clear amber colour, leaving a foamy white head. Aromas are zesty citrus, caramel biscuit & floral hops. Flavours are pretty much in line with the aromas; citrus up font, backed with some slight biscuit & an overriding grassy earthy taste. Overall, this was OK. I didn't particularly find it to be anything special. It's not necessarily a bad beer, just not too my taste. 2.75 out of 5 InterstateAnd lastly we have Interstate, a 4.6% ABV Vienna lager. Lager isn't my go to style of beer, and I can't say that I drink BrewDog's flagship lager Kingpin much either. But I was certainly interested to see their take on a European style lager, that's for sure. "A perfectly balanced Vienna-style lager brewed with subtle spicy German hops over toasty-base malts which bring out bread crust and biscuit in the beer, followed by a bittersweet finish." Interstate pours a pale golden colour, leaving a big foamy white head. Aromas are slight citrus, malts & biscuit with a hint of toffee/caramel. Flavour wise, it's pretty similar to the aromas; big malty, biscuity flavours are at the forefront before being rounded off with a crisp, clean, citrus flavour. This is a refreshing take on a proper European lager, and certainly enjoyable to drink. Overall, I found this to be a pretty tasty lager - maybe even more so than Kingpin. If lager is your thing, then this should be right up your street. 3.5 out of 5 So overall, another round of decent enough beers from BrewDog, however, this is going to be my last Fanzine for a while. There is unfortunately just too much good beer to be drinking right now, and I want to be in control of what I drink. Drinking craft beer is an expensive hobby, and I don't want to take the risk that I end up paying for three beers where I don't enjoy two of them.
Whilst I'm not trying to discourage anyone from Fanzine - quite the opposite. I think it's a great service. I just don't think it's quite right for me - someone who wants to handpick the best beer out there, enjoy them, and then review them on here for everyone 🍻 31/3/2018 0 Comments Beer Review - Hop CityNorthern Monk x Deya x Verdant x YCH HopsNorthern Monk, Deya, Verdant...all in one beer?! Yeah, that's what I thought. Well they have come together along with YCH Hops to produce this years Hop City DIPA. Brewed in honour of Northern Monk's annual celebration of the same name that takes place this weekend (29th-31st March), Hop City is a 8.4% ABV DIPA. Here's the official line on this one: "A special Double IPA brewed in collaboration with Northern Monk, Verdant and Deya plus Hop City 2018 sponsor YCH Hops, a 100% grower-owned supplier of the finest hops from the US and beyond. This DIPA combines Citra, Amarillo and Mosaic Cryo pellets in a 20g/hl dry hop. The grist features malted wheat and oats plus flaked wheat to bulk up the body further. The result is a chunky, round DIPA loaded with mandarin notes and tropical fruit character." With these names behind it, my excitement for this beer was too much. Let's talk about the 440ml can first of all. The design is awesome, and it has a label that you can peel back to reveal all sorts of info regarding the beer itself - a nice touch.
Hop City pours a nice thick golden orange colour leaving a thin white head & very little carbonation. The aromas from this beer are insane! Juicy pineapple, orange, lemon, peach & melon fill your nose as you pour from the can into the glass - there's some nice earthy pine in there too. Taste wise, this beer is out of this word - huge pineapple & melon flavours are back at the forefront, combining with a thick full bodied mouthfeel making this one absolute juice bomb of a beer. These fruit flavours are then rounded off with a nice piney bitterness that compliments them perfectly. Wow. It's a shame this beer is 8.4% ABV, because I could honestly drink it all day! This beer is awesome. Without doubt one of the best DIPAs I've ever had. I'm not sure what else I expected to be honest with the level of talent involved. If you see this beer...buy it, drink it, enjoy it & be happy that it exists. Hop City (2018) gets 5 out of 5 hops from me 🍻 Beavertown x CloudwaterRecently, to celebrate their 6th birthday. Beavertown invited a bunch of awesome breweries to brew up some collaborations. One of those breweries was the highly decorated Cloudwater, who collaborated on not one, but three beers! Those three beers were: Do Not Open Until 1985 - 9% ABV DIPA Big, hazy DIPA with lots of wheat and oats in the grist, fermented with a mixture of White Labs London Fog and Lallemand New England yeasts. Whirlpool-ed with plenty of Ekuanot and Citra, and will be very heavily dry hopped with Mosaic, Vic Secret and Simcoe. Good Night, Future Boy! - 6% ABV IPL 6% abv, Huell Melon in the whirlpool and fermented with WLP833. Heavily dry hopped with Citra BBC. As we’re doing bigger brews of the DIPA and IPL these will also be available in small pack, not just keg. Rejoice! Finally Invented Something That Works! - 3& ABV Gose Classic Gose Recipe, with 50% Wheat with salt and coriander Seed added at the end of the boil. Naturally soured in tank with Lactobacillus Plantarum and fermented with Lallemand New England Yeast to give a 3% beer with plenty of body. We then added Lemon, Grapefruit, Lime and Blood Orange Juice at the end of fermentation before infusing with Grapefruit, Lemon and Blood Orange Zest. Lightly tart, very refreshing, with big citrus notes. Thanks to Hop Shop Aberdeen, I managed to get my hands on two of these beers; Do Not Open Until 1985 & Good Night, Future Boy! I had heard good things about these beers online, so I was looking forward to getting stuck into them! Do Not Open Until 1985First up is Do Not Open Until 1985, the 9% ABV DIPA. This was perhaps the one that I was most looking forward to, because as I've said on this blog many times before - DIPA's are one of my favourite styles of beer, and one made by Beavertown & Cloudwater is one worth getting excited about! The can art is awesome as always - unmistakably Beavertown, with the two brewery logos merged in to one adding a cool touch. Do Not Open Until 1985 pours a hazy, thick, golden orange leaving a foamy white head. It gives off awesome aromas of orange, peach, melon & loads of pine to entice you straight in to having a gulp. These aromas follow straight through into the flavours too with a huge amount of orange up front followed by more peach & melon, before being rounded off with a hit of piney bitterness - fantastic stuff! This is an awesome tasting beer. What else would you expect from these two beer gods?! Warning though - it is a boozy one, and drinking a couple of these would go some way towards knocking you out! Overall, Do Not Open Until 1985 gets 4.5 out of 5 from me 🍻 Good night, Future Boy!Next up we have Good Night, Future Boy! - the 6% ABV IPL. I don't have too much experience when it comes to IPL's, with my only other venture being West Side Beavo, Beavertown's collaboration with Firestone Walker (which was great). I'd read good things about this beer online so I was looking forward to it. Starting off with the can art - it is outrageously minimalist; combining Cloudwater's trademark can layout with a psychedelic colour scheme & the two brewery logos. Good Night, Future Boy! pours a golden orange, leaving a foamy beige head. Aromas are full of citrus; orange, lemon & grapefruit are followed up with a drop of pine. The citrus is heavy again on taste with loads of lemon & orange with some floral notes followed by some grassy hop bitterness. This is a really easy drinking beer with a nice creamy mouthfeel & a smooth crisp finish. This was another great example of an IPL for me & I certainly look forward to trying more. As far as "lager" goes - you might struggle to find a better tasting one than this. Overall, Good Night, Future Boy! gets 4 out of 5 from me 🍻 Overall, these have been two pretty awesome beers from two breweries at the top of their game. I look forward to seeing these guys colab more in the future. Do yourself a favour & pick them up if you still can & raise a glass to Beavertown 🍻
14/3/2018 0 Comments Beer Review - Pulp!VerdantNext up for review is Pulp - a 8% ABV DIPA by Verdant, who are undoubtedly one of the hottest names in UK craft beer right now. Whilst I wasn't too hot on two of their pale ale's Headband & Lightbulb, I had high expectations for this beer after seeing some of the buzz for it online. As always, Hop Shop Aberdeen delivered the goods & I secured my can as soon as it was available. Here's what Verdant have to say about this one: "This double IPA is bigger in every way but still retains a dry finish that hides its strength. Massive fruit aromas and flavours combined with hazy golden looks and chewy body really do make this beer a stone fruit pulp fest!" It sounds like an absolute winner, and I have a feeling I may just be right... Pulp! pours a hazy tangerine colour from its bright purple can, leaving a foamy white head. The aromas are quite typical of this style of DIPA; big juicy tropical fruits of mango & pineapple along with some peach and a helping of piney hops. Wonderful stuff!
The flavours are just as exciting as the aromas themselves; huge juicy flavours up front - orange, pineapple, mango & peach are then balanced out with a crisp, bitter finish. This beer is quite similar to a NEIPA style, however not quite as thick & pulpy. It really is great to drink This has been an awesome beer that has got me even more excited about Verdant. Between this & their excellent collaboration with Beavertown, I can't wait to see what comes next & hopefully sooner rather than later, I can get my hands on the elusive DIPA called Putty. Overall Pulp! gets 4.25 out of 5 from me 🍻 |
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