Purple Terple
Matchless Brewing

this smells terpene forward and tastes that way too, the name suggests it, i get the trend of adding terps to beers, but im not sure i ever quite love it, even if it brings the intensity up in a cool way, and this is more tastefully done in that regard than many, but it has been kind of standardizing rather than distinguishing to me because of how early and powerful they hit most of the time, leaving less room for hop nuance, changes as beers warm up, any grain or fermentation contribution, and they dont always play well in bitter environments. this is matte and cloudy, pretty pale orange colored, no visible sediment but relatively dense with haze, a good head on it from the pint can. the nose is bold, weedy and piney early, a light onion aspect from the idaho 7, lemony and tangerine-like citrus, wet grass in the morning, resin and sap, unmalted wheat maybe, a bit of grain depth not out of place here. the flavor is similar, pungent early and sort of permeating my tongue deeply enough to be there awhile after the swallow even though this isnt sweet or anything, i wouldnt call this one juicy, but there are fruit layers for sure, green melon and gooseberry, a hint of tropical mango or something too in the middle. definitely dank and weedy, a little overly intense at the flavor climax, but good structure and malt impact here, excited carbonation keeping it from being heavy, and overall just a very assertive hop profile where the terpene element is accentuated. better than many, but not an ipa i want to drink all afternoon either, yet better than novelty level by some ways. modern and ingredient driven, long on the palate, not for the meek, and not among the best hoppy beers from matchless for my money, but that bar is a very high one...

Canned 4/10. Hazy pour, some floaters and sediment. Dank nose and a floral background. The beer is well carbonated and has a good hop flavor and a long finish. Overall, no faults. Good as any, better than some.

 

 

Moderately hazy orange-amber brew with plenty of foam in the Brigand chalice. Orange peel aroma with grape jelly nose. Interesting fruit salad taste. Then lemony and even candy-like. Moderate acidity. Insistent sweet pineapple-orange flavors with chalky bitter aftertaste. Reminds me of the recent rash of "Cold IPAs" with the odd fruity taste. From the 16 oz can purchased at Elizabeth Station. "Canned 6/27/2022."