The Yard Strawberry Milkshake IPA
Hell's Basement

 

355ml can - mmmmmm...strawberry milkshakes. Could really go for a visit to Peters' Drive-In down in Cowtown right now!

This beer pours a hazy, medium golden yellow colour, with three fingers of puffy, finely foamy, and somewhat bubbly off-white head, which leaves some decent Mercator Projection lace around the glass as it lazily recedes.

It smells of sweetened strawberries, bready and doughy caramel malt, cold cream, real vanilla, and some ethereal earthy, leafy, and floral green hop bitters. The taste is gritty and grainy caramel malt, sort of tart strawberries, sugary vanilla cream, and a more pronounced earthy, weedy, and piney hoppiness.

The carbonation is quite cool in its lackadaisical frothiness, the body a solid middleweight, and generally smooth, with just a touch of fruity tartness assuming the role of the proverbial pea here. It finishes off-dry, the strawberry ice cream essence alive and kicking.

Overall - this is certainly one heck of an enjoyable brew to put back, with the IPA part of the equation present, sure, but letting the guest ingredients strut their stuff. No sign of the extra point and change of ABV, which just adds to the appeal. Most definitely worthy of checking out!

 

A- Poured this into a tulip style glass....the color of the brew is pale golden with pinkish hues throughout and super cloudy....semi opaque would best describe it. The head is super frothy, eggshell white in color and has an excellent retention rate, starting about 2.5 fingers in thickness and gradually settling down into a cloud like formation upon the liquid. Carbonation is for the most part difficult to see but around the outside of the glass, it appears that there is many tiny columns of bubbly goodness rising upwards in aggressive fashion, and as for the lacing, well it is superb, leaving behind plenty of thick foamy patches on the inside of the glass. Very nice overall!

S- While there is a distinct Earthy dry leafy hopped quality, it is much smoother than your typical IPA, and there is a distinct strawberry fruit quality about it. Alongside this, there are underlying aromas of cream, vanilla, perhaps some orchard fruit, carameled barley malts, and a finish that is mildly bitter, clean, yet rich.

T- The flavors follow suit to the aromas rather well, with fresh strawberry puree noted, and I'll even go as far as saying that it borders the frozen strawberry flavor that would be used with angel food cake after a little sugar is added....very nice. Bittering hops, albeit mild, are found right from start, through to the body and carry onwards to the finish, and they linger gently on the palate. Piney hints, alongside grapefruit zest add tartness, and to be talked about as well, vanilla creme helps round everything out....basically dumbs down the bitterness of the oily, leafy hops used here. I really enjoy the overall taste.

M/O- The body is creamy and medium-full, and the carbonation, while not super zesty, is somewhere in the middle of the spectrum.....it does provide a 'pop' on the palate. Flavors are distinct and burst at different intervals....ranging from sweeter at the start, to becoming more IPA-ish in sublte robust fashion at the end, and the alcohol is well hidden! I have no problem enjoying a couple of these in a sitting and this is a really nice summertime quencher, as I first discovered during our hot 2017.....on tap is amazing! Will most definitely continue to enjoy as long as HB wants to produce this one!