Yippee Pie Yay
New Glory Craft Brewery

 

Appearance - Pours opaque and red-violet in color, with a vibrant pink, near finger width head that hangs around fairly before breaking down into a thin, consistent layer of suds, thickening up around the edge of the glass. Good lacing, with thin, broken sheets, lines and small spotting.

Smell - Tangerine hits the nose first, then vanilla, cranberry and lesser black currant. Not really finding any cinnamon.

Taste - The cranberry and black currant really shine here, with lesser tangerine emerging mid-taste. A hint of vanilla in the finish, but the cinnamon really gets lost in the shuffle, adding only vague traces on the back end.

Mouthfeel - Medium in body with fair, tingly carbonation. Smooth, easy drinker before a bone-dry finish, probably due in large part to the cranberry puree.

Overall - Tasty brew, and solid for a fruited kettle sour, but a bit off from some of the better 'pie' inspired sours I've had from other local breweries. The cinnamon needed more play here, as did the vanilla to an extent. Maybe a tad less cranberry to let the tangerine shine a bit more. I'm nitpicking, but sometimes that balance is what's needed to turn a great beer into a truly special one.

I grabbed this based on the artwork on the can, the silly reference to Die hard in the name, and the fact that it was made by New Glory. I was not disappointed. In fact this exceeded my expectations on every level. The color is like a deep cranberry. And wouldn't ya know it? So is the flavor. Cranberry, black currant, and tangerine play nicely together. No sweet treat here, this is dry, and sour with the essence of the fruit coming through like a punch from Mike Tyson. Very nice. Then you immediately notice the vanilla and the drink goes to the next level. Just a touch of cinnamon off the end. Full bodied, medium high carbonation. I loved this beer and would love to have another. I drank this as my first beer of the new year. If this beer is any indication of how good this year will be, we can be sure it will be great.