Beyond The Galaxy
Terrapin Beer Company

Having CANpleted CANother brewery horizontal, now it is on to the next victim, er, brewery. Terrapin may have been sold to a corporation, but they have always been rather good to me. For insCANce, I received an erroneous E-mail from them & when I received an apology, I requested an embroidered cloth patch to salve the wound. They sent it forthwith! Onward, to the Galaxy … and Beyond! The CANQuest (tm) knows no boundaries.

From the CAN: "Space is the place."; "Beyond The Galaxy IPA Single Hopped India Pale Ale"; "Seasonal Sessions Limited Release"; "Beyond the Galaxy single hop IPA is light years ahead of its time. Brewed with a mass of Galaxy hops for stellar flavor and aroma, this intergalactic IPA will take you on a voyage where no man has gone before."; "'Hop Hop and Away'"; "What is the speed of light?"; "Blast In * Blast Out".

I Crack!ed open the vent to begin the blast-off, but then ChANged my mind & went with a slow, gentle C-Line Glug instead. I was still met with two-plus fingers of dense, foamy, rocky, tawny head with very good retention. Color was a hazy Amber (SRM = > 7, < 9). Nose was quite fruity, but not restrained to tropical fruits, either. I definitely got peach & I read that passionfruit is the common tropical fruit. Fair dinkum as it was the one that I ate the least. Mouthfeel was medium. The taste had a musky, fruity quality & I would have sworn that it was guava! 8=O Guava + peach?!? Yum! I will cop to having been a tad reserved on this one at first, but as it has slightly warmed, coming from my overly chill reefer, it has really blossomed. They did a brilliant job in choosing whichever (fairly) unobtrusive malt(s) that they chose for this one as the hops really came through brilliantly. I will CANtinue to argue in favor of SMaSH beers or at least, like this one, single hopped beers. They are a ChANce for the non-homebrewer, such as myself, to give the palate a test run. I CAN understand why this hop variety is sought after. Now, for the bad news. The bitterness was relatively low, which is what I really live for in an AIPA. Finish was dry, but without the attendant bitterness, I was left feeling slightly unfulfilled. YMMV.

 

Delicious and fruity IPA. Satisfying look and feel when poured from a can. This is absolutely a summer beer. One that I have been on the lookout for on tap, but it is more than tasty when poured from a can.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Going above and beyond with a milder bodied and a lower alcohol IPA that uses Galaxy hops to hurl the flavor of this hop bomb into the statosphere.


Terrapin Beer's Beyond the Galaxy single source IPA kicks off with a medium amber, light copper hue. As a frothy white cap begins to build, the unique tropical and citrus medley of the hops play out with enough granola scents to provide a light balance to highlight the fruit effects. As a gentle sweetness of honey, nuttiness, toasty grains and bread crust forms on the middle palate, the upstart is more malty than hoppy.

That all changes as the ale rolls across the middle palate. The malt sweetness begins to dissolve and the hops billow into a tangy orange, pink grapefruit and passionfruit flavor that seems more out of fruit punch than of ale. Nuanced flavors of mango, pineapple and lime add complexity and charm before a late palate of verbena, green tea and light hemp decorate a spicy, bitter and herbal finish.

Medium light on the palate, the beer's body and booze suggests something more of a pale ale, but its high hopping rates pull it firmly into the IPA realm. Refreshing, crisp and clean, the hops outlast all other flavors with those green tea and nearly gin-like bite in the end.

There is cool looking can artwork along with a great use of color. There is a best by date on the bottom of the can which let's me know that i'm consuming this beer within range. The pour is between dark yellow & light orange. Galaxy hops is one of my favorite hops by the way. Not much on the aroma just some slight citrus. On to the taste, i'm getting some sweet fruit mixed with some citrus fruit, along with some bready malts, man o man, the galaxy hop is magnificent in this beer as I expected it would be. It leaves a nice coaty lacing on the glass. Cheers! B

Poured from a 12 oz. can. Has a golden color with a 1/2 inch head. Smell is of mango, citrus. Taste is dominated by pine, I sure didn't see that coming based on the aroma, light citrus and malts are in the background. Feels medium bodied in the mouth and overall is a decent beer.