Bowl Cut Gone Wrong
Refined Fool Brewing Co.

473 mL can from the brewery; no packaging date. Reviewed from notes jotted down last summer.

Pours a bright, clear sunny yellow colour, producing more than an inch of fluffy, foamy white head that dissipates over the next five minutes or so. A wide collar of soapy suds and a patchy cap live on, with plenty of beautiful lace clinging to the glass - it's a fantastic-looking lager. Floral aroma with notes of pink grapefruit, melon, pine needles and apricot.

Interesting flavour profile, but rather strange as far as pilsners go. Light grainy, crackery malt flavours serve as a backdrop, with fruity, citrusy hop flavours filling in the gaps; I'm getting grapefruit and lemon, as well as melon and stone fruit; more floral and spicy on the back end, with a moderately bitter conclusion that lingers into the aftertaste. Light in body, with low-ish carbonation that gently agitates the surface of the palate; smooth mouthfeel with good drinkability.

Final Grade: 3.56, a B grade. If you're in the mood for a hoppy lager, a Bowl Cut Gone Wrong might be worth looking into. The floral, spicy hops aren't exactly inappropriate for a pils, but the varietals used are considerably more bitter than, say, the noble varieties that you'd find in a more traditional pils. I found that this made for a less refreshing lager, but to each their own. I preferred their Beamers & Botox, but frankly I'd take a regular pilsner over a 'West Coast' pilsner nine times out of ten.