BTV
Triptych Brewing

I got a can of this beer from my good friend and old neighbor from the 'Wego. It poured a hazy yellow with white head and floaties which is leaving some lace. The scent had tart grapefruit citrus notes with subtle pine accents. The taste was nicely balanced and easy to drink with lemon and grapefruit citrus with sprig and pine highlights. The mouthfeel was medium in body and had good carbonation. Overall it is a great beer.

BTV, A Vermont-Inspired Double India Pale Ale.
62% Citra, 12% Galaxy, 12% Vic Secret, & 12% Sabro hops.

Born on 9/16/21, best by 12/16/21, 9.4% ABV, into Ellipsis Trophy glass.

Sickly pale juicy color with a creamy head of 2 fingers that sticks around and recedes gradually but leaves lots of lacing behind.

It took me 3 minutes to decipher what I smelled (the nose/memory is a funny thing). It is precisely this : "Halls Defense Assorted Citrus Cough Drops". It's a minty menthol grapefruit. If you've had this product, you'll know what this beer smells like, verbatim. Nice and fresh. Herbal. Minty. Citrusy.

Flavor is soft in its approach, bringing honey, mint, and washed out white grapefruit to the table. It's literally a beer version of the aforementioned cough drops without any of the medicinal characteristics. Some white wine is here, maybe of the cheap, carbonated variety. Some hop stink is also present, indicating some spoilage but nothing too far gone yet. The finish is lemon drop and zesty peppery red grapefruit. Belches are the Halls Defense cough drops without medicinal qualities.

Feel is soft, softer than anything I've had outside of actual New England, and I feel this is important to give recognition to. They really nailed the style here, which I'm sure is nearly impossible given the Illinois water table. Super soft, just the right amount of carbonation, even if it's a bit gravelly, and once again, expertly hidden ABV. High marks.

Overall, a super soft yet slightly underwhelming tasting double IPA that captures at least some essence of New England (such a dirty word now) in its execution. Triptych remains an impressive brewery to me, even if this was my least favorite effort from them. Still a pretty great beer. I don't think you'd go wrong by buying a 4 pack, it's still very enjoyable.

P.S. This HAS To be more than 9.3%. It's got me nearly horizontal after 3/4 of the can. This is huge stuff.

$15.99 / 4 pack / Friar Tuck / Bloomington, IL

Canned on 9/16/21; consumed on 10/20/21

Pours a heavily hazed lemon-gold body capped with multiple fingers of dense, fluffy, white foam; good head retention leaves a half-finger of rocky, soapy cap, a frothy, moderate collar, and a generous array of webby lacing caked to the walls of the glass.

Aroma opens with orange zest toward a concentrated lime cream and dank pineapple nectar; green papaya evens the quasi-sweetness over the middle, inviting lemon sorbet and light coconut shreds to accent a cumulative sweet tart overlay.

Taste offers underripe mango accented with key lime sorbet upfront, ripening to green papaya and intermittent tinges of coconut over the mid-palate before culminating with a blue raspberry twang.

Mouthfeel holds a medium body with a lightly fluffy, moderate carbonation, leveraging a taut zing into the mid-palate as it alternates between hoppy twang and underlying malt crispness; a gritty semi-bitterness gives way to a brief, creamy fluff into the back end, softening the minor resinousness on the finish.

The precise hop bill is outlined for a reason, as the profile produced is resoundingly adventurous and entirely eccentric; a little too busy and a little too sweet, this one is simultaneously propelled and held back by its uniqueness.