Up the Creek
New Trail Brewing Company

 

I have been relegated to drinking just one (1) beer a day due to my current USPS job, which requires that I work 6 days/week, 10.5 hours/day. I CAN do it & have adjusted nicely (sort of), but I find that it is usually one upon returning home & then off to bed to reChArNge for the next night. Yes, I am working the night shift, but I actually enjoy it! I CAN run a couple/few errands during the day, if I am so motivated & inclined + I really like many of my fellow night shifters where the day people are less so.

I was recently staring into the abysss, I mean, watching a little TV, when I happened to realize that I had a subsCANtial amount of New Trail CANs in abeyance & decided to revisit them for yet CANother brewery horizontal. This shall be the seventeenth of this newest set.

From the CAN: "Up The Creek Hazy IPA India Pale Ale"; "Keep Cold[,] Drink Fresh".

I keep reading reviews that say that they find the New Trail Hazy IPAs (NEIPAs) to be difficult to distinguish from one CANother. 8=O I am not finding that to be my exbeerience. Yes, they may be variations on a theme, but they are discernible variations, IMHO.

I was curious to see what this one would bring, given its Notes. I beCAN as I always do, with a Crack! of the vent. I was surprised by a small fingertip spritz due to its being a brimful craft CAN! I then CANtinued with a steady C-Line Glug into the awaiting glass. It responded with the formation of two-plus fingers of dense, foamy, rocky, eggshell-white head with very good retention. Color was a deeply-hazy/lightly-cloudy Golden-Amber (SRM = > 5, < 7). Nose was full-on grapefruit with just a hint of pine! OMFG! Talk about a late-'90s throwback! Mmm. Mouthfeel was medium with a softness on the tongue from the oats. The taste had an unexpectedly high bitterness, very much of grapefruit, followed by a wash of sweet(er) tropical fruits and finished with a cool pine mintiness. I did not perceive the caramel malt, but that was actually a good thing, IMHO since it might have marred the overall flavor. Finish was dry with a lingering coolness that left my mouth feeling minty fresh. Mmm. This was the sweet spot, as far as I am CANcerned! They really did well with this one. YMMV.

 

Gift from son, purchased at Franklin Beer, Franklin, PA. Reviewed 8/16/20.
Undated can. In reefer at store. Stored at home at 42 degrees and rolled and served at 45 degrees in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter.
Appearance – 3.5.
First pour – Straw (SRM 3), opaque.
Body – Straw (SRM 3), opaque. When held to direct light, same.
Head – Large (Maximum five cm, aggressive center pour), off white, high density with many embedded small rocks, average retention, diminishing to a five to sixteen mm jagged crown and a complete thin cap. A few small pieces of lacing remain as the head retracts.
Lacing – Excellent! Three-dimensional bands with tiny to medium bubbles, a few short stalactites, connected by columns of varying width.
Aroma – 4 – Begins with a generic citrus, no malt, no yeast.
Flavor – 3.75 – Begins moderately bitter with less citrus than the nose suggests. Tastes like simcoe hops. No malt, no yeast. No alcohol (7.2% ABV, as marked on container) taste or aroma. No diacetyl or dimethylsulfide.
Palate – 3.5 – Medium, approaching syrupy, soft but lively carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 3.75. A decent NEIPA but possibly a bit long in the tooth. It’s very irritating when the can admonishes you to “Drink Fresh” but the brewery can’t be bothered dating the can.

A well balanced, tasty New England IPA.

 

Two fingers worth of uniform bone white froth with a bit of a rocky top... Hazy pale yellow with some peachy highlights... Decent retention... Nose is sweet citrus highlighted by tangerine... Pronounced sharp hop bite in the palate with notes of strong boozey notes... Medium bodied with a sharp bite... Decent beer but perhaps a bit less than the sum of its parts...

Poured into a narrow pint glass: color is murky/hazy straw gold, head is off white with fine bubbles and presents 1.5 fingers thick, head laces the glass sides well and leaves a solid top.

Smell is mild grapefruit, pineapple, stone fruit, limited malt.

Taste is similar with grapefruit, pineapple, stone fruits, light candied sugar, touch of pine and sprucy notes, maybe some herbal characteristics.

Mouthfeel is low carbonation, moderate sweetness, rising bitterness on tongue.

Overall a solid hazy with moderate sweetness and a pleasant hop balance with solid backing bitterness.

Poured from a 16 oz can into a Dogfish Head tulip

L: Bright golden peach pour. Completely hazed with 3 fingers of fluffy white head. Excellent lacing.

S: Fruit and citrus. Mango juice.

T.F: Strong grapefruit juice. Rind and tropicals. Mango, pineapple, and a bit of evergreen. Modest bitterness. Creamy mouthfeel. More citrus juice to finish.

O: A very solid NEIPA. Easy drinking... on-par with New Trail's recent hazy IPA's.

From a 16 oz can. From the NT Instagram post: “ Up the Creek is a Hazy IPA brewed with Oats, and light caramel malts. Hopped assertively with Centennial, Idaho 7, & Amarillo. Expect high notes of grapefruit complimented by rich apricot, tropicals and pine. Did you forget your paddle?” Delicious!