Hazy Alpha Domina Mellis
DC Brau Brewing Co.

I got a late start on yesterday's NBS (Week 774) & I did not finish up my DelMarVa (+ DC) adventure as planned. 8=( Further, I have promised that next week's NBS (Week 775) will be dedicated to the wonderful beers sent to me by @jkblr who seems to have a real handle on my drinking habits. CANsparency is key in these things! As a result, I am going to CANcentrate over the next few days on eradicating everything that would have CANbined to form the finale of the DelMarVa (+ DC) adventure. Sit down, strap in & hang on. It's gonna be a wild ride! DC is becoming CANother of my Hydras in that every time I think that I am done with their brewery, seven more CANs Pop! up to take its place! 8=O

From the CAN: "Imperial India Pale Ale brewed with Honey"; "Proximity Malt"; "Unfiltered Beverage. Natural Sedimentation may occur."; "Do NOT age or cellar this product. Consume fresh."

Hmm. Give orders much, bro? As a Navy retiree, I CAN do without your unsolicited input!

I beCAN by Crack!ing open the vent & in further defiance of orders, I CANtinued with a slow, gentle C-Line Glug into the awaiting glass. I was striving for clarity in the face of its proclaimed haziness. I was rewarded with the formation of just over a finger of dense, foamy, rocky, tawny head with great retention. Color was an oh-so-faintly-hazy Amber (SRM = > 7, < 9). Take that, DC Brau! Nose smelled like honey-drizzled biscuits fresh from the oven! Mmm. Mouthfeel was medium, a bit thin for the style. The taste was full-on honey with quite a bit of alcohol heat as an acCANpaniment. Phew! I was reminded of drinking young mead with my ex-Old Lady, then an apiarist & home meaderist who has since graduated to become a commercial meaderist. This was raw in a very good way! I had inadvertently aged it, but if this is what it became with age, then what was it like when young? Frankly, the honey was so strong & prevalent in this that I would have simply guessed honey malt with perhaps some Pilsner malt for the biscuitiness. Mmm. Mymymy, this was goooooooddd! In the mead world, this would be CANsidered a Braggot & perhaps this might even be better served if in that style. Braggot is the intersection between beer & mead & this was a good example. Finish was, perhaps unbelievably, not at all sweet & more towards semi-dry to dry. Man, I was really digging this one to the point that I wanted to cry as I got towards the bottom of the glass. I would totes have this again, if it were available. YMMV.

 

 

Can poured into a teku glass

Translucent amber crowned by a soapy two finger white foam cap, decent rentention , sticky lacings

Pungent aroma with Grapefruit, Mango, Guava, Pineapple, accompanied with deep citrus and heavy tropical fruit.

Taste is tropical fruits, mango, guava over malt

Hop nibble that linger sin the middle of the tongue, medium sudsing

Nice beer

Poured from the can into a Spiegelau IPA glass. Spice of life October 14th 2018.

Large frothy to creamy styled head appearance, tall at easily three fingers with a khaki light color. Fine bubbles in the head, sitting atop an opaque orange amber body color touching slightly brown.

Aroma is a bit jarring. This really has a large beeswax like smell to it. There are some nicer elements in here, a particularly real good gumdrop like quality and fruity hop angle. But that first whiff is kind of rough.

Kind of a neat palate. Real nice bold silky honey smooth quality coming off in the mouthfeel, and the beer is far from sweet. Quite a noticeable pine and gum drop like flavor, with some leaf and green grass like bitterness. Quite a juiced up a palate, a bit rough in flavor on the bitterness, but it is a good contrast to the light touches of cream honey and dank earthy gum drop flavor.

Neat take on a honey flavored IPA. Very well hidden ABV as well, but that first whiff is a bit jarring.

A tolerable IPA, but where's the honey and what seperates it from the sea of other IPAs? A decent ABV to be sure but that's about it.

From the bottom of the can: "SPICE OF LIFE 10/24/18 12:02 2749"

Appearance: The body of the beer is a hazy brown-orange that is too hazy or opaque to see through. The head is a large tobacco stained yellow-white color with a frothy and creamy texture.

Aroma: It has a nice floral scent with a light and slightly peppery finish.

Taste: Up front there is a light caramel flavor that fades nicely into a floral character, then sharply into a bitterness that tapers off quickly leaving nothing but the scantest bit of hop flavor at the end. After drinking the beer for a bit it picks up a bit of pine which is nice.

Mouthfeel: It has average bitterness and good carbonation.

Overall: The can says that this is an "IMPERIAL INDIA PALE ALE BREWED WITH HONEY." The beer tastes like a good, average Imperial IPA, but the honey doesn't seem to add any character. It could add to the ABV of the beer (listed at "9.7% ALC BY VOL" on the can) but it doesn't add any additional sweetness or acidity. I would recommend drinking this beer because it has a nice overall balance. It is an enjoyable beer to drink. I would drink it again but I would remind myself not to expect anything additional from the honey.

 

 

Poured this kne from the can into a hotel supplied glass while visiting the Alexandria area. Bottom line on this one is someone made A NEIPA version of Bell's Hopslam or Greenbush's Brother Benjamin. Was it good? Yes. Was it worth the price when I get both the others cheaper back home? No. But I'm glad I had it.

 

Had on draft. Zero bitterness. Slightly too sweet. My friend said it tasted like mildew and while I didn't quite get mildew (thankfully) it was still pretty bland. Maaaaybe some wet cardboard but not mildew. Slight floral hoppiness and maybe a touch of tropical fruit.

 

 

 

 

16oz can to stemmed, tall pint glass

Hazy orange color with about 1F of creamy head. Strong sticky lacing.

Aromas were a turn off... quite astringent. Old flowers. But bready finish.

Flavor was full of floral bitterness, with some grass in the middle, and grapefruit finish. Didn’t notice much of any honey sweetness that could’ve balanced this.

Overall, a bit disappointed at the imbalance in this one.

A: The beer is very hazy amber yellow in color. It poured with a white head covering most of the surface with a large collar around the edge of the glass.
S: Light aromas of grapefruit are present in the nose along with hints of honey.
T: The taste has strong flavors of honey along with notes of grapefruit and mangos. No bitterness is perceptible.
M: It feels medium-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer tastes a lot more like a Honey Ale than it does an an IPA. It hides its alcohol very well.

Serving type: can