Unfiltered Opinion
Almanac Beer Co.

Bottom line.... This is a tasty IPA that is not bitter. Has enough body/feel and hopiness to satisfy. Will definitely buy again

16 ounce can into tulip glass, canned on 3/16/2020. Pours lightly hazy deep golden amber color with a 1 finger fairly dense and fluffy white head with great retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingering. Nice spotty foamy lacing clings on the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big tangerine, red grapefruit, lemon, lime, peach, pineapple, passion fruit, mango, honeydew melon, berries, citrus peel/rind, wood, peppercorn, pine, wheat, cracker, white bread dough, biscuit, light toast, and herbal/floral/grassy earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of citrus/fruity/tropical/earthy hops and bready malt notes; with big strength. Taste of big tangerine, red grapefruit, lemon, lime, peach, pineapple, passion fruit, mango, honeydew melon, berries, citrus peel/rind, wood, peppercorn, pine, wheat, cracker, white bread dough, biscuit, light toast, and herbal/floral/grassy earthiness. Light-moderate pine, citrus peel/rind, herbal, floral, woody, grassy, peppery bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of tangerine, red grapefruit, lemon, lime, peach, pineapple, passion fruit, mango, honeydew melon, berries, citrus peel/rind, wood, peppercorn, pine, wheat, cracker, white bread dough, biscuit, and herbal/floral/grassy earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Great complexity, robustness, and balance of citrus/fruity/tropical/earthy hops and bready malt flavors; with a great malt/bitterness balance, and no lingering hop astringency after the finish. Light-moderate increasing dryness from lingering bitterness. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth, moderately creamy/bready/grainy, and sticky/resinous/rindy balanced mouthfeel that is great. Minimal warming alcohol for 6.1%, or lingering hop burn after the finish. Overall this is an excellent hazy IPA. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of citrus/fruity/tropical/earthy hops and bready malt flavors; very smooth and easy to drink with the modestly bitter/resinous/drying finish; not overly aggressive. Great Simcoe/Mosaic profile. Very juicy, vibrant, dank, and earthy hops; with a nice bready malt backbone. Minimal residual sweetness with lingering resin dryness. A very enjoyable offering, and impressive style example. Loved the hop profile as expected.

 

 

 

 

Hazy orange gold pour with a white head. Juicy citrus and tropical fruit aroma. Taste is moderately bitter with flavors of mango, papaya and orange standing out.

 

 

Can:

B- / WORTHY

***
08/13/18 impression from another can:

6.1% ABV. "Hazy IPA dry-hopped with Simcoe & Mosaic." Malt: "Pilsner malt, pale malt, oats, spelt."

HEAD: Muted white in colour. Frothy. Not real creamy or robust. Pours ~6cm in height and takes a good 8-10 minutes to fully recede.

BODY: Hazy pale orange-copper colour. No yeast/lees are visible within. Nontransparent. Translucent.

Appears well-carbonated, with a healthy head that doesn't immediately die.

Looks decent for an IPA, and it is hazy if you care about the substyle they're after, but then its appearance is worse for it.

AROMA: Citrus juice, pale malt, pilsner malt, hints of starch (i.e. oats), fruity zest, subtle blueberry (showcasing Mosaic nicely), and mango. I search for oniony, garlicky, or yogurty notes from the Simcoe and don't find them (I guess the Simcoe in this is all fruity, which is to its benefit).

I don't find anything that would indicate spelt, but I bet I'd finger wheat malt if I tried this blind.

Aromatic intensity is average.

TASTE: I'd definitely guess pilsner malt, 2-row, and wheat if I tried this blind, but I guess what I'm parsing as wheat is actually the spelt. Hop profile is fruity without tasting juicy, hitting on Mosaic-derived subtle blueberry, muted mango, and vague citrus zest.

Not oniony, garlicky, piney, yogurty, juicy, resinous, or oily hopwise.

Well-balanced generally speaking, but it's lacking in terms of hop pungency and depth of flavour. The oats seem to muddle the flavour profile overall; no notes ring distinct.

TEXTURE: Slightly pulpy. Smooth, wet, textured, medium-bodied, well-carbonated, and somewhat refreshing. This mouthfeel complements the flavour profile decently, but one can imagine a lighter-bodied juicier mouthfeel would be better to coax more depth out of the fruity notes.

OVERALL: A pretty good but not great IPA from Almanac if you can tolerate beers in this Johnny-come-lately substyle. Tasty as it is, there are myriad beers that taste almost exactly the same and cost half as much...this fails to stand out amongst the herd.

Low B- (3.30) / WORTHY

***
08/17/18:

Could use more hop pungency. Depth of flavour could be improved.

B- / WORTHY

 

 

 

 

Picked up a 16 oz mason jar from the Craft Beer Hop Stop earlier today for $5.00.


Beer poured a hazy golden orange with a very nice white head that has some good hang time.

Nose is juice forward with notes of fresh tropical and citrus hops.

Taste is orange, mango, and papaya over a moderate pale malt base with a rindy, melon finish.

Mouthfeel is light bodied and very refreshing.

Overall a nice beer that i am glad to have tried!

 

Canned 05/21/18

Appearance - Pours hazy and slightly dull orange in color with an off-white, half finger width head that dissipates rather quickly, leaving behind a thin, broken layer of suds on the surface. A broken line or two and a handful of spots make up the lacing.

Smell - That simcoe stands out immediately, as an earthy dank aroma hits the nose as soon as the brew is cracked. Lesser citrus and pineapple. Mild mango/papaya.

Taste - More mellow on the tongue than you'd think based on the aroma. Balanced, nuanced flavors of citrus juiciness, pineapple, slight earth, papaya and mild mango. Finishes much the same. As the flavors recede, leaves a citrusy, acidic pineapple bite in the aftertaste.

Mouthfeel - Medium-bodied with fair carbonation. Firm texture that goes down easy with a fair amount of dryness on the finish.

Overall - Pretty solid, but not altogether spectacular. Kind of your run-of-the-mill hazy offering.