Crystals
Goodfire Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

A- Pours with a milky/cloudy super pale yellow body. A foam layer rises on the beer very quickly to over an inch high with a thick and creamy/frothy texture and amazing retention. Lacing is beyond plentiful with massive, thick sheets of foam coating most of the glass.

S- Pineapple really, really comes out here off the top with great strength and identity, more so than any IPA that I can recall. Peach, mango, tangerine, orange, grapefruit, melon, onion/garlic and papaya join the spiny fruit as well as floral and herbal hop notes. Feels like it will be moderately sweet and oats/whole grains come to mind.

T- Galaxy hops definitely become more of a centerpiece here as things shift a bit toward the dank, grassy, berry and even vinous spectrum of hops. Green onion, dank herbs, melon, papaya, cat, pineapple, guava, strawberry and orange hops with oats, bready and light-medium sweetness from the grains.

MF- Medium to heavy bodied with a hefty texture that is both creamy and foamy, it really puffs up a lot with any agitation. The carbonation is at a moderate level and it ends with a grassy and herbal bitterness.

Blondes, IPAs, Lagers and such, all high quality. Goodfire is proving to be one of the breweries I have to stop at in one of the hardest regions of the country to choose who to check out. Go to Portland, ME and see for yourself.

 

 

 

Poured from a 16 oz can into a tulip glass.

Pours an opaque yellow gold color with a finger of fluffy white head. The head leaves a nice crown of cobweb lacing before settling into a thin sheet of foam.

The aroma brings loads of candied peach rings, pineapples, and honeydew melon as well as some tangerines and grapefruit. There's definitely a key lime pie character, with some milder notes of apricot and pine on the back end. Kind of ridiculous.

The flavor brings notes of peach rings, pineapple and apricot, as well as some melon before a wave of citrus; namely grapefruit and tangerines. Finishes with some earthy pine. Has a nice, graham cracker malt backbone.

The feel is medium bodied, leaning on heavy with lower carbonation. Exceptionally soft and creamy. Smooth and relatively dry. The alcohol is practically non-existent.

Overall, damn. This beer kind of came out of nowhere. No hype, no lines. It's just there. And it's one of the best Galaxy hopped beers I've ever had, and that's saying something. It brings out the absolute best of the Galaxy hop while the malt kind of hangs in the passenger seat. If you like Galaxy you will absolutely enjoy this beer. If you like NEIPA's you will absolutely enjoy this beer. A hidden gem for sure.

 

 

 

On tap at Nosh

 

 

 

 

From a 16oz can, undated, purchased at the brewery two days ago. Served in a stubby IPA glass.

Pours a hazy, semi-opaque orange-gold with a scant finger of pouffy, dimpled head. Retention is OK and leaves a fizzy cap and solid curtain of lacing.

A real fruit salad of a nose, notably melon, tangerine and apricot.

Taste largely follows the nose, tons of super-ripe, sticky-juicy fruit on a shortcake base, predominately melon - overripe, composty melon - with pineapple, tangerine, peach and some kind of musky berry flavour. Rich earthy compost and weedy dankness, decent bitterness is easily overlooked under all that sticky juice.

Feel is slick, slippery and medium-heavy bodied with just barely adequate carbonation.

Overall, tasty as the dickens but a little over the top with the heavy, syrupy fruitiness. This one's pretty much at the extreme opposite end of the spectrum from 'sessionable.'

Really nice taste transition.