Finback IPA
Finback Brewery

 

 

16oz can. 6.8% ABV.
L: Hazy, golden orange with a thin head that reduces to a smear and leaves spotty lacing.
S: Citrusy, pithy.
T: Resin and pine and citrus. Fresh but a bit lightweight.
F: Light and clean with a hint of carbonation.
O: Underpowered for 6.8% ABV, frankly. Almost a west coast IPA, almost a New England IPA. Would prefer more of the former and less of the latter. Lacks bitterness, lacks bite. Pleasant but underwhelming.

a: hazy burnt orange color with some creamy yellow notes. 2 finger frothy white head

s: mango, orange sorbet, tangerines, clementines, crackers, and some generic sweet citrus

t: orange sorbet, and some bitter pine notes. passionfruit and clementines with a hint of mango. some creamy sweetness and a touch more earthy bitterness on the sides of the tongue. a touch of strawberry kiwi as well

m: fluffy, medium mouthfeel with low-medium carbonation. spot on for the style

o: good not great. nice mix of tropical and earthy. the piney earthy notes are really nice, and a nice mix

16oz can received as a gift; part of a 4-pack purchased from the fridge. No bottled on date as far as I can tell. "FIPSET" printed on the bottom of the can.

Look: Pours a golden / very light orange color with a slight haze and some very tiny floaties. There was an off-white head that quickly dissipated. Looks like a nice-looking American IPA. After pouring the bottom of the can, it's cloudy and translucent.

Smell: Dank, piney aromas with fruity, tropical notes (mango, orange zest, grapefruit, pineapple). I also get a coconut note, which is interesting for a beer hopped with Chinook and Columbus. Green notes abound on the finish with lots of green bell pepper and a bit of bubblegum.

Taste: Nice. This is a solid American IPA. Up front, it's gentle and innocuous, with a bit of sweetness and spritzy yet soft carbonation. Then the finish packs a punch. It's very bitter with tons of grapefruit pith and the woody, piney notes. The finish is long and bitter. At 6.8% ABV, this beer has enough hoppy, resinous qualities to pass for an Imperial IPA even though its ABV is too low to be considered an Imperial IPA. Even though it's so bitter, it's very tasty and to me it's very drinkable.

Feel: Medium body with a slick, oily, and slightly chewy mouthfeel.

Overall: This beer is a bit of a throwback to me. I appreciate that a relatively young brewery like Finback makes a beer like this. Also nice to see old-school hops like Chinook and Columbus being showcased in a modern beer recipe. If you like hoppy, West Coast style IPAs then I think that this beer would appeal to you. The main difference between a classic West Coast IPA and this beer is that the malt bill on this beer is much more minimal, and does not have the common caramel/crystal malt that WCIPAs often have. I like to consider this beer as a "Little Heady Topper"; this beer is 6.8% ABV compared to Heady Topper at 8%. Both have minimal grain bills and are very hop-forward and bitter.

 

 

Found this to be very mediocre. Not much of anything coming through particularly on the nose or the palette. Surprised by my blind test here. Not bad, but would not seek out.

 

 

 

 

2021-11-20
16oz can served in a big snifter. Dated 09/02/21. Bought it in NYC and shipped it home.

Pours moderately hazy, pale yellow-amber with a smallish head. Smell is citrus pith, lemon zest.

Taste is similar -- citrus pith and lemon zest, fairly mild, slight wateriness.

Mouthfeel is light, dry. Overall, it's good, though not terribly exciting.

 

Notes of stonefruit, guava, black pepper

 

 

 

**
03/31/21

can to snifter.

LOOK:
light yellow, very mild haze (5%). big frothy eggshell head. very good retention.

AROMA:
light citrus, grass.
TASTE:
very clean, some nice light citrus and grain notes. slightly earthy finish.
FEEL:
Sudsy, light body, very good carbonation.

a little boring, but high quality and simple and tasty.

**

 

Just finished my 2nd 4pack. No bitterness but I wanna say it leaves a little something to be desired on the back end. But this is certainly drinkable and won't offend. A safe buy and I'd probably buy again.

 

 

 

Look: Light orange in color, hazy and translucent with white foamy head.
Smell: Not too strong, somewhat sweet with botanical and citrus scent.
Taste: Somewhat sweet, a little bitterness. Not much malt, hops not overpowering.
Feel: Typical for an IPA, good carbonation.
Overall: A good IPA, I would drink again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rich golden haze, smilar to fresh mangoes, with a one inch dense foam that slowly settles. Dense spots of sticky lace cling to the Spieglau IIPA glass. Highlights are bright and glowing amidst a moderate haze.

The aroma is a bit muddy, with papaya, light lime, caramel and pine resin. None of these are particularly pronounced. Warmth reveals some herbs.

The flavor is quite bitter with a brief burst of sweetness. It is moderately juicy, more tuned towards pine and pine resin. Papaya is slightly more than a suggestion. A long, resinous finish lodges in the back of the throat. Warmth helps the sweetness, but only faintly, and draws out mango.

Finback has a full body with fine carbonation and texture similar to combed wool. Alcohol is about as expected. A light astringency causes this to become drying.

This seems to be a hazy, West Coast IPA, a West Coast response to NEIPA. It is enjoyable, but a let-down, as I had expected something else. The flavor and aroma lack brightness. Perhaps it aged more rapidly than the one month date on the can.

 

Pours a dark orange, somewhat cloudy with a 3 finger bone white soapy head.

Aroma has some bright grapefruit notes and a little papaya.

The taste has more of the papaya notes - a little sweet and mellow tropical. The citrus goes away with the taste for the most part. Low malt leaves it up to the hops.

The feel is soft but a little thin bodied. Bitterness is low.

Not my favorite taste so I will not be looking for this one again. However there are other great beers from them to choose from.