Strongest Female Lead
Night Shift Brewing

Like many modern IPAs, there's an abundance of stark white foam to be had. The pour to empty a pint can's contents into a clear glass liter mug produces two equal layers. One is the foam and the other is the beer. The foam is very unattractive, especially as it recedes unevenly, into clumpy segments, leaving sparse and irregular glass lacing. Foamy messes instead of proper beer heads have been observed before, but this is a noteworthy offender. On to the part that really matters, the beer itself. It's color is dense apricot-amber, not necessarily dank, but certainly opaque. The aroma isn't exactly inviting, as it's softly muddled with starches, undefined hops and a little yeast. A lack of alcohol hit to the nose by something of this ABV is its first significant attribute. Then, things improve. There's plenty more to taste than the nose foretold. There's some sort of decent grainy sweet backbone that contributes a good body for the mouthfeel. The generic hoppiness adds just enough bitterness to make this acceptable to any reasonable IPA lover. Probably its most praiseworthy characteristic is how nicely the 9% ABV adds to the flavor, yet remains only barely noticeable as a taste distraction. Whatever Pomelo zest is, it certainly didn't hurt things here.

 

Canned on: 03-13-22

A - Opaque grapefruit colored pour with some orange tinge and soapy, bubbly white lacing and foam resting on topo.

S - Peach, spicy citrus rind, tropical fruit, and some sweet grapefruit aroma.

T - Oranges, pithy citrus, citrus rind with some peppery spice, sweet grapefruit, and ends a little on the sweeter side with subtle bitterness.

M - Big body with a soft texture and dry on the back of the tongue while the rest of the mouth is wet.

O - This is a really fantastic beer and recommended.

Canned 2/17/22

Strong Female Lead was probably one of my favorite beers from Night Shift. I already had this one on tap at the Lovejoy Wharf location and it was also great, so when I saw a can at the store I had to pick it up for a review

Pours a hazy pale gold with 3 fingers of creamy white head that fades to a thin cap and leaves decent lacing

The nose is quite understated but still pretty good. I’m picking up on aromas of creamy peach, grapefruit rind, doughy malt, peppery hops, and light orange juice

In taste it is much better, feeling bright and lively, yet smoothly balanced. On the front end of the sip I’m tasting tangerine zest, orange juice, creamy peach, bready malt, grassy hops, grapefruit rind, and papaya. The swallow brings notes of creamy peach, grassy hops, crackery malt, mango, grapefruit zest, and light white pepper

A light medium body pairs with gentle carbonation, resulting in a smooth and thin beer for the abv. Finishes neutral in feel but balanced

Yet another killer beer from Night Shift. They’ve let me down a bit recently, but hopefully things are looking up now

 

Pours a hazy yellow with a small head and moderate lacing.

Smells of slightly dank grassy hop with citrus and sweet fruit.

Tastes of grapefruit, pineapple and mango with a slightly bitter alcohol warm finish.

Medium body with light carbonation. Lush smooth mouthfeel.

This is a very powerful, juicy and drinkable brew!

This is the triple version of the Strong Female Lead. Dirty gold and cloudy. Steady but small head. Thicker streaks for lace.

Grapefruit rind and sweet berry smells. Mildly weedy. Juicy.

Better balanced than I expected, even though the smell was similar. Lighter carbonation but the body is also weak. The hop is peppery but the malt is strong enough to keep the balance throughout the tasting. Impressively long aftertaste which retains this blend.