Alpha Maiden
Renegade Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

new bottle from renegade, a very cool hoppy wheat. its a wheat beer first, which i think is uncommon for the style, usually overrun with hops, but this one i can smell and taste wheat malt of a few different shades before i even get the hops, and its unfamiliar in a good way. hazy honey colored beer, a little deeper in color than i expected it to be. frothy white head an inch high is permanent on top. the nose is a little understated on the hops, a pineapple complexion remotely, but otherwise a little generic. the wheat malt is pretty big, pushing red in richness, very cool. the flavor is a little more expressive, the hops run all the way through it, which i guess is a better integration than just in the finish, although the finish seems to take forever in the absence of a snappy hop bitterness. the wheat malt really shines in this, and i appreciate that. its juicy and bready, good breakfast brew really. nice carbonation and a very full frothy body, i like how it feels with all its weight on the palate, but so bubbly as to be lightened, a nice dichotomy there. renegade continues to make interesting beer and stay relevant in the crowded denver beer market, you have to admire beers like this.

Light amber coppery color in the New Belgium snifter with ample carbonation. They describe this as an India Wheat Ale. Very aromatic with flowery and piney hops. Crisp and flavorful.

Flavorful and hoppy it seems like the ideal lighter weight IPA. Citra and Cascade hops according to the brewer. It tastes and feels like a "session" IPA though with six percent alcohol it's not exactly in that category. The hops are more on the aromatic side with a moderate bitterness.

Another really well made and interesting brew from Renegade. From the 22 oz bottle purchased at Grapevine Liquor on south Monaco.