Triplets
Banded Brewing Co.

 

 

I haven't had a new Banded IPA in a while, but this caught my eye for sure. A single IPA that has been triple dry-hopped with some truly-vaunted varietals... Citra, Mosaic, Idaho 7, and Simcoe. Of the four, only I7 is one I have been kind of "meh" about in the past (though Mosaic has its moments of oddity, I will admit), but in recent times it has impressed me with its unique depth of aroma and flavor when utilized in deftly-crafted hop blends and well-thought-out recipes. Let's hope this one satisfies.

The pour is pretty solid, consisting of a very hazy (but not 100% opaque!) beer with an odd, yellow-orange hue to it that also leans a bit "green" if you're in an overthinking type of mood. Head is well-formed at about two fingers with a hard-leaning pour, and it slowly settles to a small, retentive ring, leaving behind some fine lacing and mediocre legs. Not an amazing pour, especially given this is triple dry-hopped (which usually means better lace, etc.), but it's alright.

The nose is insanely dank and deep with huge scents of ruby-red grapefruit and cannabis combined with tangelo, pine resin, and earthy, oniony type vegetal notes. This is definitely not a "juicy" IPA, and that follows with Banded's M.O. which seems to not really care about the typical beer trends. I expect some juicy flavors here, sure, but the nose really does ride a wave of intense dankness and funky greenery without giving a quarter (or less, really) to most of the modern proclivity to make triple dry-hopped beer roughly equate to juicy IPAs.

Idaho 7 and Mosaic are shining in this beer, which makes sense as they are quite similar hops in many ways. Both dual-purpose, both able to bring out very weird and unusual overtones from the recipe they're used in... I get a lot of green onion, honeydew melon, ripe tangelo, earthiness, and florals mixing with some dankness, hints of cantaloupe, apricot, and mango. It's definitely a lot, but it comes together by mostly focusing on that stone fruit thing that I7 does well, honing in on the melon/nectarine like flavors in the mid-palate. Not much malt here, despite there being somewhat of an attempt to cow these hops into submission. The feel is a bit bloated due to this, but the hops push back, bringing out a dynamic interplay of green tea tannins, grassiness, and pomelo in the finish, which mostly seems dry and dusty. An unusual IPA, for sure, almost finishing with a matcha-like aplomb. Idaho 7, ladies and gentlemen. Lots going on, and it did defy my expectations, but I don't think it is one I would reach for multiples of.

Citra, mosaic, Idaho 7, & simcoe hops. Triple dry hopped. Really good beer! Worth the buy.