Stranger Ranger
Forked River Brewing Company
SCORE
80
Good
80
Good
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews.
Reviewed by thehyperduck from Canada (ON)
3.53/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
3.53/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
473 mL can from the brewery; dated Oct 21 2017 and served well-chilled. I bought this a few months back (early Dec last year), then promptly forgot about it in the back of my fridge. It's a blend of their DIPA (Queen's Ranger) and a kettle sour.
Pours a hazy orange-amber colour, capped off with one finger of soapy white head that lasts for only a few minutes, as it is soon reduced to a thin collar with some scant lacing. Looks ok; nothing too exciting from a visual standpoint. The aroma features a tart note of lactic acidity that integrates nicely with the underlying flavours of the DIPA - I'm getting lots of citrus, namely orange, lime and grapefruit, with minor hints of passion fruit, caramelized malts and earthy pine resin.
Not bad in terms of flavour, but it's still rather weird. The DIPA-derived elements are most noticeable on the front end, as bready malt and caramelized sweetness occupy the background, while hoppier notes of muddled orange, grapefruit and lime gain traction before being marginalized on the back end. This is where the lactic acid sourness makes its presence known, and clashes oddly with the earthy, pine resiny bitterness of the DIPA. Weird finish and aftertaste that mixes lactic acidity with muddy, earthy hop bitterness and shades of tropical fruit. Medium-light in body, with moderate carbonation levels and a somewhat prickly mouthfeel.
Final Grade: 3.53, a B grade. Forked River has put out some decent-to-solid sours over the years, but Stranger Ranger is much closer to the former vs. the latter. I'm not sure Queen's Ranger, with its piney, earthy hop profile, was the best choice for blending with a kettle sour - for me, it's just not working at all, to the point where I wanted to rush myself through the glass just so it'd be over with. To be fair, this is not a particularly fresh can, and it's also true that I've never considered QR to be an especially great IPA in the first place. Given that knowledge, I suppose I'd still give this one another go if they put out another batch in the future, but mostly just so I can see how it tastes fresh.
Apr 03, 2018Pours a hazy orange-amber colour, capped off with one finger of soapy white head that lasts for only a few minutes, as it is soon reduced to a thin collar with some scant lacing. Looks ok; nothing too exciting from a visual standpoint. The aroma features a tart note of lactic acidity that integrates nicely with the underlying flavours of the DIPA - I'm getting lots of citrus, namely orange, lime and grapefruit, with minor hints of passion fruit, caramelized malts and earthy pine resin.
Not bad in terms of flavour, but it's still rather weird. The DIPA-derived elements are most noticeable on the front end, as bready malt and caramelized sweetness occupy the background, while hoppier notes of muddled orange, grapefruit and lime gain traction before being marginalized on the back end. This is where the lactic acid sourness makes its presence known, and clashes oddly with the earthy, pine resiny bitterness of the DIPA. Weird finish and aftertaste that mixes lactic acidity with muddy, earthy hop bitterness and shades of tropical fruit. Medium-light in body, with moderate carbonation levels and a somewhat prickly mouthfeel.
Final Grade: 3.53, a B grade. Forked River has put out some decent-to-solid sours over the years, but Stranger Ranger is much closer to the former vs. the latter. I'm not sure Queen's Ranger, with its piney, earthy hop profile, was the best choice for blending with a kettle sour - for me, it's just not working at all, to the point where I wanted to rush myself through the glass just so it'd be over with. To be fair, this is not a particularly fresh can, and it's also true that I've never considered QR to be an especially great IPA in the first place. Given that knowledge, I suppose I'd still give this one another go if they put out another batch in the future, but mostly just so I can see how it tastes fresh.
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