Mosaic Archives
Elder Pine Brewing & Blending Co.

Mosaic Archives from Elder Pine. Purchased at Franklin Beer (Franklin, PA) 11/03/25. 16 fl oz can, $ 5.00 (Including tax)/ $ 0.313 fl oz. Reviewed 16/04/25 (Review 3505). Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Undated can. In reefer at distributor. Stored in at 39 degrees F at home: served at 44.2 degrees F in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. The final temperature is 48.3 degrees F.
Appearance – 4
First pour – Pale Straw (SRM 2), clear.
Body – Straw (SRM 3), clear. Under direct light, same. When rear-lite, same.
Head – Average (Maximum height four cm, aggressive center pour), high density, white, average retention. It eventually recedes to a 0.7 – 1.5 cm scalloped head with thin rocky cap.
Lacing – Initially a single arch with windows and stalactites appears. This undergoes metamorphosis into a continuous ragged band as the remaining beer level drops
Aroma – 4 - Begins with mulled tropical fruit, a bit bitter. No yeast, no malt, no alcohol.
Flavor – 4 – Begins slightly bitter, follows the tropical fruit nose – no distinct flavors, just sort of a blended drink. No yeast, no malted grains. No alcohol (6 % ABV, according to the label). No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl. Faint gastric warming occurs.
Palate – 4 – Medium: watery: lively but soft carbonation.
Style: Follows the style guidelines as condensed by BA.

Final impression and summation: 3.75 (After deducting 0.25 point for an undated can) Good, solid IPA – nothing special.

Pours a clear golden color with a nice head and lacing
Aroma has pine and hop hints
Taste has a pine and hop flavor
A medium bodied well carbonated beer
A good IPA

16oz can purchased from the fridge as a single. I don't recall where I purchased this, how much it cost, and how long ago it was. I'm also not sure when it was packaged. I would guess that it is at least six months old.

Look: Nice medium copper color with very fine carbonation rising up the glass. There was a nice two fingers of khaki head upon pouring that has since dissipated to leave behind a rocky trail and some nice lacing along the glass. Very nice clarity.

Smell: It has really nice aromas of dankness and berry candy. It's piney and resinous also along with a healthy portion of orange and grapefruit zest. A bit peppery on the finish. Smells very nice.

Taste: Mmmm, very nice. It has the right kind of balance that I'm looking for in a West Coast-style IPA. Up front, it has a touch of sweetness with berry and tropical fruit flavors and caramel maltiness. A bit of citrus juiciness up front too. Then the piney-ness and bitterness quickly take over. The beer finishes very clean with a lingering piney and pithy bitterness along with peppery and spicy herbal notes (hard to describe - kind of like a combination between peppercorns and cinnamon). Eventually, as that bitterness slowly fades from the palate, the caramel maltiness returns full circle and you rinse and repeat. It's a very well done beer and it really showcases the Mosaic hop nicely. More brewers should use Mosaic hops in making non-hazy pale ales and IPAs. I remember Founder's Mosaic Promise beer that was a really solid endeavor showcasing Golden Promise malt and Mosaic hops in a delicious American Pale Ale and this beer reminds me a bit of that but in a WCIPA style and the grist bill has more variation.

Feel: A bit sticky/resinous/oily with an overall medium plus bodied beer. The carbonation is nicely done - it's soft and pleasant.

Overall: It's another solid offering from Elder Pine Brewing & Blending Co. I was surprised that I liked this one so much more than the Citra Archives, but I just think that this one came out much better. Well done!

From the can:

A LIMITED OFFERING

GRIST
Golden Promise, Pilsen, Caramel Vienna

HOPS
Mosaic