Slushy XXL - Icy Mellow Meltz
450 North Brewing Company

1 PINT can
Served in a stemless wine glass

This beer pours a murky, red/orange color and is topped with a fleeting head that leaves particles of the adjuncts as it recedes.

Raspberry and papaya stand out with hints of vanilla.

I get a sweet, Smarties candy flavor upfront. Then tart raspberries. Tart berries dominate my palate. I get some apricot in the aftertaste.

Full bodied with a creamy mouthfeel

Fruity and tart

That sugar rush that you experienced as a mall rat now manifests itself in craft beer form, ...sort of. Borrowing half of their creativity from slushy and half from beer, 450 North turns a hodge podge of mango, apricot, raspberry, marshmallow, papaya and vanilla ice cream in to an alcohol fruit punch.

Icy Mellow Meltz plops into the glass with a thick and cream dark ruby, impossibly opaque and swirling with the viscosity of semi-set jello. As its pinkish froth struggles to pull from the heavy ale underneath, the nose is caught by a candied dark fruit and tropical fruit character, sweetened with cream and evoking memories of candy shops. Sweet once on the tongue, its rich fruitiness is propped up with poundcake, cake batter, heavy cream and cobbler.

As the middle palate becomes awash with cakey sweetness, the fruits build upon in jammy form. Red berries swirl around the creamy sweetness with a juicy and tantalizing tanginess that extends into fruit punch flavor. As the ale lays sour tracks toward finish, the acidity helps to take an edge off of the unwavering sweetness for a sweet and sour interplay to close.

Full, plush, near-cloying and chewy, Icy Mellow Meltz swirls on the palate with unapologetic sweetness that extends into a slightly cidery and wine-like aftertaste.