Bottles
BlackStack Brewing

Type: 16-oz. can
Reviewed as: New England IPA
Glass: North Park 16.5-oz. Munique glass
Price: n/a
From: My cousin Sam
Purchased: n/a; Received March 22, 2021
Consumed: March 28, 2021
Misc.: No canned on date

Thanks, Sam!

Got another great haul from Sam. Online description was “A modern take on IPA as an homage to simpler times. 'Member going to the store and grabbing a sixer of clear & bitter IPA in twist off, short, squat, brown bottles and life was grand? Those were the days. This is 16oz of less than see-thru juice, courtesy of our hand-selected Mosaic, El Dorado & Simcoe Cryo in beer tubes for times like these.”

Poured a medium yellow-to-light golden semi-hazy color with two fingers of frothy off-white head. Calm setting underneath with no noticeable bubbles. Excellent layered lacing. Outstanding retention. (Sight - 4.25)

Smelled pineapple, tangerine, melon, orange creamsicle, passion fruit, mango, grapefruit, Juicy Fruit, floral, Tang and pear. For hops got all three mentioned, in order Mosaic, Simcoe and El Dorado. Even better out of the can. (Smell - 4.25)

Tasted about as good as the nose. Got Mosaic, pineapple, tangerine, mango, melon, orange creamsicle, passion fruit, grapefruit, Juicy Fruit, floral, Tang, El Dorado, papaya, stone fruit, Simcoe, pine and hints of black pepper. Felt bigger than 7 pct. ABV. (Taste - 4.25)

Medium body. Creamy texture. Average carbonation. Long, juicy finish. (Feel - 4.75)

Just a tremendous beer, which is what I’d expect from BlackStack. World-class. (Overall - 4.50)

4.35 | 97 | A

 

I've never given straight numbers like this before, but perhaps that's just reflective of how SOLID this beer is. I mean that figuratively of course - the "feel" is not too thin and not too thick. Just right. The beer strikes that goldilocks zone in every respect that I can think of.

The taste completely satisfies a craving for that soapy element that the palest hazies have to offer. Okay, perhaps not "soapy"... but that is the adjective that comes to mind when these floral and hoppy notes coalesce in such a bright-yet-rich manner. It's an uber-pale kind of taste, but only with moderate bitterness - bright floral notes take the place of what would be that extra bitterness. I almost want to say lavender. It's surprising how many hazies strike this kind of note, it's really a certain kind of lavender-citrus-hop kind of note. And I adore it.

While there is this brightness up front, there is what I can only describe as a strong muskiness on the finish. A good, solid, conservative dose of STANK, which absolutely hits the spot. This comes with a solid backbone of malt that is just heavy enough.
But this is overall a refreshing beer. A refreshing, pale, and bright beer that is far from "light". Very rich and deep, without coming close to that realm of saccharinity towards which SOME hazies drift.
Definitely an olive branch that you could offer to your tortured anti-hop friends who have winced every time that you offer them some of your IPA for free. This one might finally do it for em. I don't know how anybody could dislike this one. A very very good beer. It is something that in my humble opinion should be a year-round offering. I can't imagine a time of year where it wouldn't be appropriate, and I myself prefer it to their Local 755.

Pours a slight hazed golden color with a nice head. Smell is floral with pear and berries. Taste has pear,citru,stone fruit and watermelon. Mouth feel is soft and juicy with hops some WC vibe here, with good drinkable flavor.

On tap. White head. Hazy sunset golden orange color.

Very juicy and tropical. Flavor packed for 7%. Could be one of BS best singles. Orange, melon, papaya, citrus, and tangerine. Very soft. Some hops in the finish.

This was a crusher. So much flavor for 7%.