Shadows and Dust
Barrier Brewing Company

Love Barrier, love the NYC ocean bight region. Our rock-perked, sea-side water.
a) Rockiest, slushy head over apricot hazed body.
s) blossoms, lots of flowers, mango, stone fruit - from Idaho7 and Rakau.
t) Follows aroma, settles down for some pine, earthy additions, some berries, some bubble gum. Great food beer.
f) Richly textured and flavored. becoming a favorite. bring more kind of beer. especially good with a ripe cheese.
o) As good as it gets.

 

-opaquely cloudy can pour with a deep cap of fine, white foam and a sweet aroma of pineapple, mango and orange blossoms.
The flavor follows the nose. There is moderate hop bitterness and a bit of hop burn ( despite a bit of age on this can).
The mouthfeel is soft.
This is a tasty brew.

 

Poured from a 16 oz. can into an IPA glass.

Look: Pours a nice, hazy, yellow/orange. Lots of lacy foam.

Smell: Citrus.

Taste: Grapefruit.

Feel: Good IPA mouthfeel. Not too heavy or light.

Overall:

 

 

 

Another IPA, but this one strays from the hazy grain and corn cereal taste and has more sweetness and grip. A good stickiness coats the tongue with each sip, and makes for a memorable experience, even as this is being enjoyed as an accessory to weekend video games.

 

I had to take a break from my previously scheduled deep-dive into Barrier's collabs due to yet CANother beer with NO approved pic in place! 8={} One of the main tenets of The CANQuest (tm) is NO Crack!ing open a beer until a pic exists for posterity. I have SO many photos to my credit that I do not mind doing so, but I would really prefer others to join me in taking, resizing & submitting pics. At least it gives me an opportunity to delve deeper into the mysterious Barrier BC.

From the CAN: "India Pale Ale"; "DDH with Mosaic/ Idaho7/Nugget, Rakau"; "Label Design by Jack Laughner".

I Crack!ed open the vent & beCAN a slow, gentle C-Line Glug into the awaiting glass, CANtinuing until clarity was revealed to be an impossibility. At that point, I allowed it to free-flow until the formation of two-plus fingers of dense, foamy, rocky, eggshell-white head forced me to back down & stop. I was amazed as it suddenly seemed to exhale & fell like a soufflé when the oven door is banged shut! Poof. Gone! 8=O Color was a hazy Yellow-Gold (SRM = 4 - 5). Nose was an odd mélange of tropical fruit, citrus fruit, pine & a yeasty mustiness. Here was an insCANce where I wish that they would give us all of the deets, NOT just the hops used. I'm very curious as to the yeast strain utilized. Mouthfeel was big & full, like a creamy dollop had been scooped into my mouth & onto my tongue! I was not ready for this & I almost did a spit take as a result. Wow. The tropical fruit nature of the Mosaic was front & center initially, but the citrusiness quickly took over, followed by a cool mintiness. This was CANother example of what I like about the current NEIPAs - they are not all tropical fruit smoothies. The blend of hops was really nice in this case, giving it a pleasantly dry finish. I would really like to visit these guys on my next trip to NYC, whenever that may be. I am CANsidering CHISOX@Yankees if life ever resumes … YMMV.

 

 

Slightly hazy, bright straw yellow with a one finger, off white head.

Aroma is of gentle stone fruit, mostly papaya and apricot amongst very bitter, tangy tropical fruit rind like lemons and limes with spicy tree sap. Notes of white pepper here and there.

Flavor is punchy and tangy - immediately you get bitter grapefruit skins and waxy lemon balm - followed sweet tropical lychee and savory mango. The malt and hop bill marry together towards the middle, as notes of biscuity malt and graham cracker emerge, before finally ending on more dry, bitter flavors of lime zest.

Mouthfeel is full bodied with a hearty texture. Moderate carbonation.

 

 

 

 

Light haze in the golden body with white soapy head. Grassy aroma, hop spice, pine and wood. Bitter grass gives way to tropical fruit juice (overdue papaya, melon, citrus, lemon skin). Fairly heavy in body.