Himalaya
Black Bellows Brewing Company

 

473 ml can served cold into a pint glass. LCBO purchase for about $3.65 CDN.

Appearance - Pours a yellowy gold color, with a fair amount of haze and some visible sediment. A nice two finger cap of white head with good staying power, minimal lacing left behind.

Smell - Hits the white IPA theme with some grapefruit but orange and lemon and even maybe a hint of coriander.

Taste - Keeps up with the theme flavors of orange peel and pith, lemon zest, white pepper to close and grapefruit intermingled. A subtle sweetness in behind all the fruity bitterness. Very much some crossover elements with a witbier.

Mouthfeel - Fairly smooth, medium bodied, peppery finish.

Overall - I think the brewer executed their vision to a T. A fairly juicy and fruity IPA, with good bitterness, crossed with some of the best elements of the witbier. For whatever reason, I don't love it, but will probably pick up another can to sample again, the execution here seems spot on.

473 mL can from the LCBO; dated Mar 8 2019 and served barely chilled. I do recall encountering (and enjoying) their White a few years back, but this is the first Black Bellows presence I've since seen in these parts.

Pours golden-blonde, with a relatively clear, (very fine-)sediment flecked complexion. Situated atop is more than a finger of pillowy, sparkling white head that sticks around seemingly indefinitely. Lovely, messy swaths of lace are eventually generated over the course of the glass; a gorgeous beer. Very witbier-esque on the nose, with orange peel and coriander figuring in strongly; I'm also getting quite a lot of lemon zest, with spicy, floral hop accents, grainy pale malts and peppery, clove-like yeast notes.

Just a solid brew all around - these witbier/IPA hybrids don't always work out this well, at least in my experience. A grainy, wheaty pale malt backbone is discernible, but it's far from the center of attention here - that role is largely assumed by the hops, and to a lesser extent the adjuncts and yeast. Orange peel, lemon and grapefruit come through clearly, as well as hints of pine resin, pineapple, orchard fruit and passion fruit. Towards the finish is where hints of coriander and spicy, yeasty notes begin to crowd the hops, lingering into the aftertaste. Medium in body, with moderate carbonation levels that soften considerably over the course of the glass; smooth in texture, with outstanding drinkability.

Final Grade: 4.07, an A-. Black Bellows' Himalaya is a rock solid Belgian white IPA, though in all honesty, I cannot profess to have tried all that many of those - certainly less than a dozen, I'd guess. Still, this is one of the few that I can honestly say I really enjoyed, and would be willing to purchase again on a semi-regular basis. All the refreshing aspects of a witbier have been successfully combined with the hoppy goodness of an IPA, and the end result is supremely satisfying to sip.