Mango Antlers
Wander Brewing

 

Slight haze on the amber brew with long-lasting foam in the tall IPA glass. Some taste of unripe fruit, but not a flavor I could identify. More lemony than sweet, with a little astringency. Seems more like a fruity Blonde Ale than an IPA, but there is some slight bitterness in the aftertaste. Very quaffable though of not much interest. From the 16 oz can, not dated.

Aggressive center pour into a tulip resulted in an inch of fairly dense white foam with good retention and lacing. On the pour appearance was very light and clear, settling into a semi-translucent medium orange in the glass. Aroma is mostly muted grapefruit with surprisingly little in the way of mango notes. Taste largely follows the nose with the mango noticeable, but not in your face. Surprisingly clean drinking and easy going down.

16oz tallboy can received as part of a box from beertunes. No freshness date, just "The Three Amangoes" stamped on the bottom of the can.

Poured into my once lost, now found official 21oz Jones Radiator Mug Club glass, this was an apricot colored, opaque shade of amber. Decent sized off-white head. No lace to speak of.

The nose is a co-mingling of grapefruity hops and what I assume is mango puree. I like that the mango is low enough in the mix to let the hops be noted. Both flavors seem of about equal magnitude.

The taste starts off with the bitter, citrusy hoppiness noted in the nose, but it's quickly elbowed out of the way by the mango, which utterly dominates the middle taste of this beer. The finish is an amalgamation of the two flavors, managing to end sweetly, but with a minor dry note.

Medium bodied, with a very slightly oily mouthfeel.

Better than I expected. I assumed the mango would totally overwhelm the hops. That doesn't happen, but it's not as well-balanced as it initially seemed, once things warmed up a little. Still, as a fruit IPA, it's pretty successful, just not something I'd want to drink more than one of at a sitting.

I'm not a fan of mango beers, but this beer is an exception to that stereotype. The color is a slightly murky golden color, light tan head, and citrusy hop aromas cut by the mango sweetness.

The mango hangs back on the taste, though, letting the hops captain the ship, with the mango adding some tart sweetness. THIS is the way to do a mango beer, IMHO. Let the hops shine and take the lead, with the mango playing a solid rhythm section.