YP:MP
Aslin Beer Company

 

Pint can - no date - poured into a hybrid ale glass at 40°F.

Pours a ruddy burnish apricot colour, with a galaxy of tiny suspended particles like pouring cream into something with lemon, and topped with a finger of quick-to-fade off-white head. It looks thick.

Nose: Really great aroma here. Definitely the embodiment of juicy new age IPA. Tons of tropical fruit notes with ripe pineapple, mango, lychee, papaya, and guava, with a big sweet apricot note, a massive dose of strawberry jam, blueberry pancakes, tangerine, orange creamsicle, and some strawberry-banana. There's some wholesome toastiness and a touch of caramel to the malt. The jammy blueberry and strawberry note is a really nice touch. Seriously saturated, and even a bit complex.

Palate: It looks and smells sweet, and that translates to the palate as well. First sip greets you with a hearty sweetness that reminds me a lot of big Tired Hands IPAs. Even the yeast is similar to theirs. The hops start out with overripe apricot, mango, papaya, and nectarine. There's a very unusual perfumey flavour that I cannot pinpoint. There's also this vegetal hoppy earthiness that I couldn't place. In looking at Vox's review below, he nailed it with arugala. That peppery, vegetal, earthy leafy note. There's a note that tastes like what banana skin smells like as well, and it's very faint. There's a little bit of musty Simcoe earthiness as well playing towards the back end. Some pithy citrus comes in, along with a slight boozy note. The citrus pith leads to a fairly pronounced bitterness, and the sticky sweet malt begins to dry out. The fruity notes vanish, and tjw finish is purely earthy, musty, pithy, and bitter, with a chalky dryness.

Mouthfeel/Body: Just as the appearance would hint at, this beer is thick and heavy. Full-bodied, slightly viscous, slightly chewy, soft, a bit fluffy, and a bit sticky. I'm almost thinking there's lactose in here, which would explain the suspended particulate/curdled look, as well as the unusually creamy body. Effervescence is on the lighter side, and could possibly benefit from a bit more. It drinks like a big triple IPA.

Overall: I've tried several Aslin offerings lately, and they've all been really quite impressive - except this one. This one is disappointing. There's definitely a particular niche where this would be considered a homerun, but I just think it's a little unbalanced, a little too big, and the pungent earthiness really detracts from an otherwise nicely fragrant, fruity flavour profile. The bitterness is nice, but it's a bit boozy. There's some complexity, but it doesn't necessarily all go together. It's a bit cloying and not terribly easy to drink. It isn't a bad beer, but nothing about it is particularly memorable or special.

Decanted from a 16 oz (473 ml) bottle into a Sam Adams Perfect Pint; no production information.
A: Pours a murky, golden toward amber color with a one finger, off-white head, rim retention, but complex sticky lacing all the way down the glass.
S: Yeasty with what I would characterized as an under ripened banana and cardamom bouquet. Becomes more vegetal with caramel coming through early.
T: Semisweet. Palate follows nose with unripe banana, caramel, asparagus, and arugula all coming through. Relatively light bitterness provides real balance to the flavor elements.
M: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Chewy and thick.
O: YP:MP is really an interesting take on the style. Overall, this is a very drinkable, simple in its complexity, a bit oddball, but a thoroughly enjoyable DIPA.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

L: Poured from a growler to a snifter glass. Had a yellow / orange color and an extremely cloudy consistency. There was a quarter inch of creamy, somewhat long-lasting head. Fantastic lacing.

S: A very nice aroma of hops, citrus fruit, malt, and tropical fruit.

T: Tasted of a hint of malt (mostly in the finish), a good shot of citrus fruit (grapefruit, in particular), a fair amount of hops (just enough to make things interesting), and some tropical fruit (guava). This is a light, fruity, and likable flavor. It's remarkably well-balanced, especially given the hops content. Focused and easy to drink.

F: An average amount of carbonation with a smooth, yet dry finish. Medium-bodied.

O: Another well made IPA from Aslin. Drinkable.