Totally Open In Encinitas
Modern Times Beer

Murky and pale gold with a light, white head. Smells a bit dank and citrusy with some caramel sweetness. Sweet and fruity with a nice pithy pine bitterness. Creamy mouthfeel and good carb.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Straight pour from a 16 oz can to a teku (Highland Park’s black cat stem). This has a canning date of December 9, 2018 printed in black ink on the underside of the can (“12/09/2018 #004995”), making this can just under four weeks old at the time of consumption.

Appearance (4.25): Three fingers of custard-colored foam rise easily from the pour, capping a somewhat murky, dark yellow-tan body. The head dies away at a moderate, leaving a delicate spider web of chunky lacing tied to a cratered, slightly pock-marked cap. As the drink goes on, it leaves wide, broad swaths of thin, filmy foam around the edges of the glass. This is a real looker, if you’re cool with some serious haze.

Smell (4.5): Out of the glass, a funky, pungent bouquet of musky papaya and passionfruit cut with terp-heavy, dank ganja really rules the roost here. Notes of strawberry, mango sorbet, fresh-cut grass, and a touch of gooseberry add a bit of variety on the edges, really complimenting the passionfruit-heavy heart of the nose. Any malt/grain character here is light and relatively dry, with a bit of white flour dumpling and floury sugar cookie faintly adding some depth to the tropical, dank core of the aroma.

Taste (4.5): Ahh, okay so on the palate you get a blend of the notes mentioned above in the nose, but it’s led and in some ways tied together by a bright, lightly bitter limeade character, with just enough cleanly bitter edge on the back end. Behind that limey prow, you get overripe mango, softer passionfruit flesh, richer berry juice flavors, and a wonderful set of earthy tones suggesting stone fruit leather in a tobacco barn. Light flashes of fresh cut grass and navel orange peel lighten it up a bit, as well. The malt/grain bill here feels a bit muddled and muted, like a slice of boule dressed with a bit of light-hued honey and a bit of marzipan. No sign of booze whatsoever. Like, not even hinted at in any aspect of the flavor. It finishes so soft and somehow fairly clean, that it’s hard to convey the juiciness of this beer.

Mouthfeel (4.5): Speaking of juice … hachi machi, this has that Big Juice Energy that’s been on my mind lately. The body is extremely soft and juicy, without feeling syrupy or viscous at any point. It’s just big and pillowy and smooth. The carbonation comes in with a very subtle layer of gentle, fine-grained bubbles that dissolve easily with a modest foaming action. Again, no sign of booze, whatsoever. Fortunately, there’s enough of that bitterness to keep it light and allow it to finish dry and clean, without parching or biting.

Overall (4.25): There’s nothing about this beer that really jumps out, relative to the style. It’s just excellent, through and through, in every regard. Like, I cannot stress how juicy and easy to drink this mf’er really is. That said, it retains enough bitterness and bite and dryness to remain excessively drinkable. Again: this does not drink like a DIPA at all. This is about as bright and drinkable as New England- or Northeast-style (D)IPAs can get, even if no part of the beer stands out against the style. As usual, Modern Times has shown that they can party with this style of beer just about as well as anyone else in the game. Very highly recommended.

 

Super hazy juice like. Dark orange smaller 1 finger white head.
Kinda dank for a NE style. Probably some mosaic and Citra in there. Maybe some Nelson or something. Some juicy qualities but more dank than tropical.
Good beer overall. Have had better from modern times tho