Luponic Distortion: IPA Series No. 018
Firestone Walker Brewing Co.

(review from April 2021) Another tasty, well balanced, crisp and clean LD from FW with new hops riwaka & nectaron plus nelson and motueka. Nice palate heft, gentle hoppiness/bitterness and wonderful floral/tropical aroma & flavors. Very quaffable, disappears fast!

Copenhagen 2/4 2023. 35,5 cl can from N-Bro Kiosken, Nørrebrogade, Kbh. N. A bit over Best Before Date (October 2022). A Lion and a Bear battling over an overgrown hop flower on the can.

Pours unclear, almost hazy, golden yellow with a big white head. A bit bubbly. Settles as thin patch of foam struggling to cover the surface of the beer. Substantial lacing.

Aroma is fairly intense with a sweet, fermented odor of decaying, tropical fruit mingling with sharp citrus. Overripe mango, passion fruit and peach. Grapefruit and lemon.

Light carbonation. Slightly thick, oily, soft, almost flat texture.

Flavor is intense with a rather strong sweetness followed by a medium strong bitterness. Aftertaste is bitter with a notable sweet undertone. Lingering. Finish is sem-dry.

Pretty potent despite being a bit too old.

Very chill apple juice smelling and tasting beer. Head is epic and rocky AF so must be a lot of hops in this beer, a quality beer. Looks very clear in the glass as well.

Type: 12-oz. can
Reviewed as: American IPA
Glass: Firestone 16-oz. Spiegelau IPA glass
Price: $10.49 for a 6-pack
From: Windmill Farms in Del Cerro (San Diego), Calif.
Purchased: Aug. 19, 2021
Consumed: Aug. 19, 2021
Misc.: Canned on June 2, 2021 at 8:03 a.m. PT

Glad I saw this on a trip to Windmill Farms. Recently realized that I hadn’t had this one yet after trying each of the first 17. Not happy that it was canned on June 2 as it was more than two weeks over my 60-day rule, but I had to keep the streak going. I had each of the first 17 in the series. In the past gave No. 001 a 4.09, No. 002 a 4.34, No. 003 a 4.15, No. 004 a 4.15, No. 005 a 4.07, No. 006 a 3.78, No. 007 a 3.68, No. 008 a 3.94; No. 009 a 3.85, No. 010 a 4.17, No. 011 a 3.92, No. 012 a 3.97, No. 013 a 4.27, No. 014 a 3.82, No. 015 a 3.69, No. 016 a 3.87 and No. 017 a 4.01. Expecting this one to be in the same range (pretending No. 006, No. 007 and No. 015 never happened). Online description read “Brewed with 100% New Zealand hops, this punchy West Coast IPA delivers bold tropical fruit aromas and flavors of white grape, passionfruit, peach and pink grapefruit.” Mentioned hips were Nelson, Nectaron, Riwaka and Motueka.

Poured a medium yellow clear color with 6-to-7 fingers of rocky white head. Lots of fast-moving bubbles coming up from the bottom of the glass at fast speeds and along the sides at lesser speeds. Almost perfect foamy lacing. Almost perfect retention. (Sight - 4.75)

Smelled the hops as listed in Nelson, Nectaron, Riwaka and Motueka. In particular passion fruit, Fruity Pebbles, tangerine, nectarine, peach, white grape, grapefruit and pineapple. Pink grapefruit stood out from the can with the addition of passion fruit and even vanilla? (Smell - 4.00)

Taste was not as good as the nose, which could be more the June 2 canned on date more than anything else. Nelson and Nectaron stood out, pretty balanced, followed by passion fruit, grapefruit pulp, nectarine, peach, tangerine, white grape, pineapple and peppery spice. Also got that Riwaka as well. (Taste - 3.75)

Medium-to-light body. Oily texture. Average carbonation. Abrupt, pulpy finish. (Feel - 4.25)

Liked this one. Wish I would have had fresh but very good at least. At 3.97 it ended up being tied for ninth for me out of the 18. (Overall - 4.00)

3.97 | 89 | B+

 

Firestone Walker Brewing Co. "Luponic Distortion IPA Series No. 018"
12 fl. oz. can "CANNED ON 03/03/21 09:42"

Notes via stream of consciousness: So this one uses Nelson Sauvin, Nectaron, Riwaka, and Motueka hops. I've never even heard of Nectaron, and I'm not that familiar with Riwaka. It's hard to keep track of all these new New Zealand hops. It's poured a hazy golden body beneath a standard sized head of white foam. The aroma expresses days go by, and they just keep going by endlessly, endlessly pulling you into the future? Only kidding. Points to those who get the reference. The aroma expresses notes of passionfruit, grapefruit, and pineapple. There's some basic malt there as well. On to the flavor then... well, it follows as is usually the case. There's some of the gooseberry found in Nelson Sauvin but not a lot, just enough that you notice it. I'm getting some nectarine as well, and a touch of grassiness and spiciness. It's pretty nice. I feel like I'm on a tropical beach! Seriously, it is very tropical. A very firm bitterness balances it, and it finishes dry and fruity with the grassiness and light spiciness lingering. In the mouth it's medium-light in body and gently crisp. The head held up OK and it left some nice lacing but it's not great. All said, it's a pretty decent tropical IPA.
Review #7,814

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Taste: piney bitter hops. floral piney hopped nose. golden color hue, crystal clear, with a delicate head and lace. Medium body. This new hops would appeal to N.W hop heads. 59 IBUs

 

 

This is 3rd IPA from this brewery I've had that tastes like absolutely nothing. You have to search for those hops and similar to my experience with Union Jack and Mind Haze it's just an unflavorful bore snore of an experience. Those fancy 10 dollar bottles are cool but I really can't say in today's IPA world I like what this place makes.