Snow Bird
The Gahan House (Gahan Beer)

Super hazy light gold with a prominent even head and strong lacing. Lots of citrus, mostly orange on the nose. Medium malt body with a pleasant, pronounced bitterness on the finish. Smooth mouthfeel is very satisfying.

 

 

A-Left in can
S-Subtle aroma of peach and berries.
M-High carbonation and effervescent mouthfeel leaves a lot to be desired for the advertised juicy IPA that was expected
T-Non descript attempt at a NEIPA. Sweet and fruity but nothing overly pronounced
O-More of a Belgium or Saison that is over powered by too much carbonation.

Look: Pours a hazy pale orange with a fluffy two finger white head. Head has great retention still a 1/2 finger solidly across the top at 5 minutes. A lovely appetizing beer.

Smell: Tangerines, mango's and summer melons. Hints of rose buds and an earthy malt characteristic. Could be slightly more aggressive.

Taste: Far more earthy and dusty than your typical "Juicy" IPA. It has a nice creamsickle meets mango like backbone though.

Feel: Light bodied with a airy sparkly quality. Plays on the palate and sides of your mouth more so than the tongue.

If you're going by the colour scheme and word Juicy on the can you might be expecting a hazy citrus juice bomb. If so you might be disappointed. If you're going to judge this on its merits though, you will satisfied if not happy. It's not a blow your socks off beer, but definately a nice summer sipper for kicking back with after you get the lawn mowed, or better yet floating around a pool drinking. This earns a B+

473 ml can served into a tulip. LCBO purchase for $3.45 CDN.

Appearance - Hazy dark golden color with orange-ish highlights. Almost two fingers of white head, excellent staying power and a nice little curtain of lacing holding onto the edges of the glass.

Smell - Grapefruit, mango and some melon most noticeable with little bits of other citrus around. Maybe some candied mango for good measure.

Taste - middling bitterness a muddled mix of citrus with mango and melon with some backing orange and grapefruit and candied versions of the former two flavors. Not necessarily juicy, but pretty tasty.

Mouthfeel - Medium bodied, good spritzy carbonation and a semi-dry finish. Easy to drink and enjoyable.

Overall - Snowbird isn't a world beater of an IPA, but it is a great looking robust IPA that leans sweet with flavors of candied versions of various citrus fruits. Worth a try and definitely compares pretty well with many of the offerings in this style in the local market.

473 mL can from the LCBO; coded M0820 (Dec 8 2020) and served slightly chilled. It's not explicitly called out as such by the brewery, but I'll be reviewing this as a New England IPA, as it looks and tastes like one. The fact that it's actually from the east coast is merely a coincidental bonus.

Pours a turbid, translucent golden-orange colour, producing one finger of foamy, soapy white head that fades within a couple minutes' time. A generous collar of frothy suds is left encircling a thin cap, with an equally generous coat of thick lace adhering to the glass - it looks pretty darn good to me. Hints of melon, mango and passion fruit on the nose, along with some orange juice and grassy, earthy hops. It gets a little juicier as the glass warms, but either way its aroma is definitely on the 'subdued' side.

It's juicy, but more of a 'muddled' sort of juiciness vs. something more focused or concentrated. Wheaty pale malts and oat sweetness serve as a very subtle backdrop, supporting fruitier flavours of mango, pineapple, cantaloupe and passion fruit. Hints of apricot and grapefruit pithiness towards the finish, which finishes with an herbal, vaguely spicy hop bitterness - and I swear I'm sensing something similar to licorice or anise into the aftertaste. Medium in body, with moderate carbonation that provides a bit of a bite to this brew's generally smooth, soft mouthfeel. It tastes pretty strong for 6%, which limits its drinkability - one can would be plenty for me on any given evening.

Final Grade: 3.85, a B+. Snow Bird was a nice beer to experience, I'll give it that - and in a sea of hazy beers that sometimes blend together in that very same haze, standing out is not necessarily a bad thing. Its tropical/stone fruit flavours are enjoyable, and the finish is particularly unique IMO. I don't necessarily feel the urge to run out and buy more, but I'm sure I'll be back a few times while it remains in stock. Worth a spin if you spot it.

Pours thick and hazy, gold in colour. Just hops on the smell. The taste definitely has a citrusy tinge to it but not overly so. I usually don’t favour hazy tropical IPAs, but this one is actually nice. Perhaps a little smokey taste. Full bodied mouthfeel. I would seek this out again, maybe not tomorrow but once in a while
Feb 4 2021

On tap at Gahan House Charlottetown: Deep murky dark straw/yellow color. 1 finger beige head producing some good leggings. Reacts a bit with a swirl. Flavors of pineapples, passion fruits, light caramel and butter, sweet barley, and herbal hops. Oily and light smooth to medium body with an average crisp. Medium strength finish, mostly tropical and quite juicy indeed. Not much bitter and more closer to a Pale Ale profile than IPA. Nice freshness and feels ripe. Good balance and well intensified, though the texture is a bit thin and under-carbonated. Overall very good quality craft.

473 ml can purchase from P.E.I. Brewing Company.
Thick head that disappears quickly.
Tropical fruit on the nose, pineapple and some mango
Taste of grapefruit and subtle malts
Medium-lightly carbonated.

Excellent juicy, mildly dank IPA from Gahan.

 

Serving Type: 473 mL Can

L- Pale hazy yellow, 1/2 finger white head with decent retention. Light lacing.

S- Grapefruit, tropical fruit juice, light caramel maltiness.

T- Same as smell. Sweet tropical fruit up front, fading to a nice mellow caramel malt, finishing off with a slightly bitter grapefruit. Well balanced!

F- Medium body, moderate carbonation.

O- Excellent juicy IPA from a brewery that I'm becoming more fond with every time I drink their beer.