Space Vibes
Rhinegeist Brewery

 

Collaboration with Masthead Brewing. Surprisingly smooth for an IIPA. No alcohol burn. Tastes like a NEIPA. Looks a little like one too but not as hazy. Dangerously drinkable for 8.5%.

Pours a clean pale yellow. The smell is sweet and leans more New England than you would expect from a West Coast. I suspect some of the sweetness in the scent comes from the malt of this Imperial. Nothing discernible ..just general sweetness, slightly floral. Initially crisp and bubbly on the tongue. Malts cut through a touch, expected of the style, but not in a major way. Lots of citrus here amongst the dank. Finish is heavy, sharp, but tad underwhelming. This is a solid beer, but a bit one note. For an imperial it does do a decent job of holding the malts at bay ...but others have done it better.

 

The color is a pale yellow, it smells pretty bad actually, like dirty laundry or a damp basement. Taste is better than the smell thankfully. It's not bad but it's also not very good in comparison to all the IPA's out there. Let the cool can and name sell me on this one. Wouldn't buy it again.

 

 

 

Bringing two different worlds of IPA together, Rhinegeist brewers team up with those from Masthead for a drier West-Coast IPA but with a balance of more Midwestern varieties. Throw in a trick or two from the hazy IPA and we have an imperial statured hop bomb that's out of this world.

Pouring with a reasonably hazy honey gold, Space Vibes soon crowns with a long and lush ivory froth. As the hops of Strata, Simcoe, Columbus and Citra lay down a citrusy scent, the rounded complexity of herb, hay, grassy, spicy scent in a general hemp layered funk. But its the malts that make their first mark in taste as the light caramelization, mild honey sweetness is rounded with the creaminess of cereal, shortbread and a faint toasted nuttiness.

As the ale washes the middle palate, its the hops that rise to soon overtake the influence of malt sweetness with orange and grapefruit brightness. As hints of a greener taste emerges, the fruits dip into lime, passionfruit and cantaloup before adjusting to a bitter late palate fueled with fresh cut grass, botanical spices and herbs, peppery lemongrass and cannabis with a sharper and more resinous finish of fruit peels.

Medium full in body, the collaboration IPA finishes full in flavor but with a lighter sense of drinkability and dryness. Finishing resinous and semi-dry, a long and bitter linger of peppery, grassy, and piney hops linger deep on the throat for an overall taste that interesting enough for new IPA lovers, bitter enough for the traditional hop-heads, and strong enough to not fret too much about the mix-match.

 

Look - Mostly clear yellow color with a slight white head and good rimming and sticky lacing
Smell - definitely west cost DIPA smell. Has that citrus tropical fruit slight pine dank smell
Taste - yellow grapefruit citrus, pineapple, slight melon like cantaloupe and a grassy pine taste. Definitely boozy as well
Feel - Medium full body along with having that dry feel but juicy taste, kind of odd
Overall - Overall, I think it smells better than it taste. Nothing special

Pours a clear golden color with a 2 finger, white head that quickly recedes leaving small traces of lacing.

Smells of tropical fruit, melon and faint pine.

Taste is sweet pineapple, melon and pine.Finishes dry and slightly bitter.

Simple, clean and just plain good. Drinks like a single IPA. Recommended.

Collaboration with Masthead Brewing Company. Canned on 7/2/20. 12oz can poured into a tulip. Pours golden with nice clarity and lots of bubbles racing upwards; big fluffy white head that sticks around leaving great thick retention and sticky frothy lacing. The aromas are on the mild and subtle side, but they open up the more you get into it as it slightly warms. Faint tropical and citrus notes. Lots of crackers and fresh bread. Malts are there. The flavors are much bolder than the nose indicates. Great hop flavors. Some pineapple along with some hints of grapefruit and orange. Some fresh grass in the mix. Solid moderate bitterness. Malts do their thing without dominating. Finishes juicy and dry at the same time. Mild alcohol flavors in the finish, but in a good way. It's dangerously drinkable. Mouthfeel is on the lighter side of full-bodied with moderate carbonation. It's fluffy, smooth, slightly sharp and easy to drink.

This is a pretty good DIPA. Great flavors. Nice collaboration. It's enjoyable and fun to drink. I really like it.