Third Reef
Kane Brewing Company

 

 

Traded for this at the same time that I obtained the Party Wave and although their hop profiles were quite similar to each other, this beer was quite different because of the Amarillo in place of the Citra. The end result was a beer that was stickier, heavier, and much stronger with a much more recessed citrus profile and overt dankness to the taste!

This had quite a turbid and murky look to it as I poured it out, as the offsetting apricot hue let in quite a bit of light around the edges. Plenty of bubbles topped this off and plenty of lacing could be seen around the back of my pint glass as I worked my way through this. Booze, honey sweetness, pineapple rind, pine dankness, and 420 filled the nose as the aroma reminded me of something from Humboldt Brewing in California. Stone fruit stickiness, more weed, white chocolate sweetness, and dankness in the form of stone fruit emerged in the taste once this warmed up. Heavy, lightly carbonated, and potent, this felt like it had biscuit and caramel malt in it that gave it body, stickiness, and an underlying sweetness that was able to offset the heavy forces at play!

No doubt that this had a ton of booze in it and it could be felt well before I finished this off. The citrus and tropical rind really kicked in as this fully warmed up as this was not a smooth sipper by any means. With that being said, I was impressed with how nicely this went down and complex it was underneath the surface. Easily one of Kane's best, it's beers like this that put Jersey on the proverbial map. Seek this out and enjoy it for all it's worth, but just not on an empty stomach!

 

 

**
12/10/17

On tap , unos.

LOOK:  bright yellow, creamy, big foamy white head.  4.5
AROMA:  Orange, pulpy citrus...super fragrant.  4.75.
TASTE:  lemon, citrus,  touch of hairspray, 4.0
FEEL:  a little pasty, a touch thinner than medium body...some pulpiness. 3.5.

Oa,4.0
On the verge of greatness, but not quite there.

**

Having on tap in the facility right now. Pour looks like orange juice with a great head. Smell is tropical citrus. Taste is a hop and fruit bomb that is as good as most. Feel is smoothe and you’d never guess the high ABV. Well done!

 

A: Hazy orange with a rich foamy head and very nice lacing.
N: Hops, pine, citrus, and some light floral.
T: Very nice bite up front with a pine slap in the face, lots of great hops and some cool citrus/floral notes.
M: Full
O: What a great triple, flavors are amazing, love the bite and hops flavors. Overall a very fine beer.

 

Pours a beautiful hazy orange/yellow, the haze is amazing. Big citrus fruit flavors of grapefruit, lemon, orange, some mango and pineapple. Full bodied and quite sweet, big orange juice flavors followed by lemon pith, grapefruit, pineapple juice, some zebra stripe bubblegum in the finish. Thick and syrupy, low carbonation. Overall this is an outstanding triple IPA, very flavorful and very sweet, definitely a sipper. 1 4-pack will last me till next batch.

5/10/18
16 oz can from brewery dated 5/4/18
4.5 rating

Purchased from the brewery. Canned 5/4/18. Poured from 16oz can into a teku glass. I'm usually not a huge fan of Triple IPAs because the booze overpowers the other flavors but we'll see how this goes.

Third Reef pours deep orange in color, completely turbid with a fluffy white head that sticks to the glass. This was hopped with Galaxy, Mosaic, Armarillo & Simcoe, some of my favorite hops on the planet and the beer certainly smells like it received the full treatment. Big nose of peach, mango & grapefruit with just a bit of pine and alcohol. The flavors reflect the nose; just a symphony of new-age hop flavors like peach, guava and mango. Pine bitterness is there near the end with just a subtle hint of alcohol but it's not unpleasant and actually balances out the sweet, honey-like malt backbone. Mouthfeel is pillowy soft with just a slight dryness. Overall this is probably one of, if not THE best Triple IPA I've ever had. Great work, Kane!

 

 

Poured from a 16 oz. can into a Snorkel glass. No visible dating on the can.

Appearance: Deep golden orange body with about a full finger's worth of bright white head. Decent amount of lacing left in the glass. Some sediment floaties in the glass.

Smell: Dank pine, orange, ripe pineapple, grapefruit.

Taste: This hits you with a ton of grapefruit and pineapple up front followed by a blast of pine bitterness on the end, but there's plenty of malt sweetness on this to round it out.

Mouthfeel: Full on assault! But finishes so clean with a slight lingering black tea bitterness on the end. Nowhere do you get that you are drinking a 10.4% beer, until you kill the whole thing and stand up.

Overall: Love it! Another winner from Kane. No clue what the canning date is on this one, but I'm pretty sure it was picked up fresh and was sent to me shortly thereafter. Nowhere near a malt bomb like a lot of TIPA's and quickly turn into, and that I'm not a fan of at all. This one is all hop deliciousness with that balanced malt on the end.

 

 

 

I had this on draught at the brewery. It was served in a goblet. It poured a hazy, murky apricot color with a thin, milk-white head and lacing with excellent retention. The smell is dank with onion, sweet tropical fruit, pineapple, grapefruit, and floral hops. It's highly aromatic; you can hold the glass away from you and still smell it. It is super dank with tastes of sweet malt, caramel, tropical fruit, and subtle, measured hops. It drinks like a barleywine but with a slightly bitter finish. The tastes blend together superbly. This ale is quite viscous - almost chewy - with low carbonation but the 10.4% ABV packs a wallop! Overall, this is a tremendous Triple IPA: well-balanced and delicious. Kane has canned Third Reef before and I hope they do so again soon!