Bend, Don't Break
Wandering Soul Beer
- From:
- Wandering Soul Beer
- Massachusetts, United States
- Style:
- Hazy Pale Ale
Ranked #85 - ABV:
- 4.9%
- Score:
- 90
Ranked #11,784 - Avg:
- 4.18 | pDev: 6.94%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 4
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Jan 25, 2026
- Added:
- Jun 12, 2020
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 1
SCORE
90
Outstanding
90
Outstanding
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by Rapscullion from Massachusetts
4.06/5 rDev -2.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
4.06/5 rDev -2.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
My first beer frkm this brewery.
Pale and hazy with a light, lacy head that quickly fades. Nose is very attractive with a mixture of tropical and citrus notes.
The taste is a pure hit of grapefruit followed by a lingering finish of hop bitterness.
Overall it was a little too one dimensional with the citrus overpowering any of the tropical notes.
Nov 29, 2020Pale and hazy with a light, lacy head that quickly fades. Nose is very attractive with a mixture of tropical and citrus notes.
The taste is a pure hit of grapefruit followed by a lingering finish of hop bitterness.
Overall it was a little too one dimensional with the citrus overpowering any of the tropical notes.
Reviewed by Holderness from Massachusetts
4.25/5 rDev +1.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.25/5 rDev +1.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
No canning date!
L -- Super turbid orange with a finger of white head that retains and laces quite nicely
S -- Soft citrus, creamsicle, bit of zestiness and grassiness.
T -- Very expressive for the ABV. Trending dry, with a pithy citrus character and a moderate, but not overbearing, earthen bitterness
F -- Light mouthfeel, medium+ carb. Mild astringency on the tail end
O -- Another solid offering from this cool microbrewery -- in fact, this is my favorite to date. Always fun to see a new offering of their's on the shelves around Boston
85/100
Jun 25, 2020L -- Super turbid orange with a finger of white head that retains and laces quite nicely
S -- Soft citrus, creamsicle, bit of zestiness and grassiness.
T -- Very expressive for the ABV. Trending dry, with a pithy citrus character and a moderate, but not overbearing, earthen bitterness
F -- Light mouthfeel, medium+ carb. Mild astringency on the tail end
O -- Another solid offering from this cool microbrewery -- in fact, this is my favorite to date. Always fun to see a new offering of their's on the shelves around Boston
85/100
Reviewed by Neorebel from New Jersey
4.88/5 rDev +16.7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
4.88/5 rDev +16.7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
Bend, Don't Break, is the new sister beer to Melody Maker, which I consider the very finest sessionable NEIPA around. I've been highly anticipating this since I had first learned it was coming out. It features the same grains, but a completely different hop bill and a slightly higher ABV. I love the label imagery and the inspirational message. In times like these we all need to take a moment and enjoy the little things in life and find a way to stay strong and keep on going.
Getting on to the pour - the appearance is an almost opaque straw color with lots of snow white froth. I do love IPAs that have a smooth mouthfeel and by the looks of it I'm in for a treat! Taking in the aroma I am picking up a pleasantly complex floral bouquet, honeysuckle, nectarines, kiwi, and more! Lots going on here, it seems like there are various things that I love happening with base malts, the aroma hops and the dry hopping.
The flavor is sensational - I am in awe of how absolutely packed with delicious hop goodness this is! I am a huge fan of the more 'resinous' or dank, bitter herbal types of hop flavors and this one's got it for sure, along with apricot and some esoteric tropical fruits & citrusy notes. This is not your everyday average IPA and I mean that in the best way possible. What's even more incredible is the price point and ABV you get all of this for. These flavors typically are only seen in Imperial IPAs and there is seldom such a graceful balance involved. Everything meshes well and the malts/grains hold it all together beautifully. I'm a particular fan of oats in craft beer - for not only the taste but for the way it aids in a silky mouth coating experience. What's more is that the brew is still incredibly refreshing and not drying in any way. Run out and get this one right away!
Jun 23, 2020Getting on to the pour - the appearance is an almost opaque straw color with lots of snow white froth. I do love IPAs that have a smooth mouthfeel and by the looks of it I'm in for a treat! Taking in the aroma I am picking up a pleasantly complex floral bouquet, honeysuckle, nectarines, kiwi, and more! Lots going on here, it seems like there are various things that I love happening with base malts, the aroma hops and the dry hopping.
The flavor is sensational - I am in awe of how absolutely packed with delicious hop goodness this is! I am a huge fan of the more 'resinous' or dank, bitter herbal types of hop flavors and this one's got it for sure, along with apricot and some esoteric tropical fruits & citrusy notes. This is not your everyday average IPA and I mean that in the best way possible. What's even more incredible is the price point and ABV you get all of this for. These flavors typically are only seen in Imperial IPAs and there is seldom such a graceful balance involved. Everything meshes well and the malts/grains hold it all together beautifully. I'm a particular fan of oats in craft beer - for not only the taste but for the way it aids in a silky mouth coating experience. What's more is that the brew is still incredibly refreshing and not drying in any way. Run out and get this one right away!
Reviewed by ichorNet from Massachusetts
4.34/5 rDev +3.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
4.34/5 rDev +3.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
In 2018, Wandering Soul debuted in the New England beer scene with a hazy IPA called Melody Maker, brewed at Bent Water Brewing Co. in Lynn, MA. This brewery, founded by a husband and wife with the initial purpose of creating beer to work through the heartbreaking loss of their daughter, has been on my radar since the very first batch of MM, and I've enjoyed trying all of their beer so far. Sure, some have been better than others, though I do have to say that the last batch of Things We Don't Say... was fantastic and a big improvement over the original (and I'm not just saying that because Matt, the brewer, responded personally, on this website, to my criticisms of the recipe!). Bend, Don't Break is based on the Melody Maker recipe, but it features different hops. I cannot wait to give this a shot!
BDB features Strata, Moutere, and Citra hops and, like the beer it's based off, clocks in at 4.9% ABV. It pours a hazy and pale yellow color that builds up a strong, retentive, bone-white head. The foam lasts for minutes, eventually receding to a finger or so but leaving behind some spotty but decent lacing in its wake. Surface cohesion is awesome here, though, and the legs are superb as well. Some drinkers may not love the pallid color, but I at least think it has a certain attractive luminosity to it.
Moutere hops give this a big tropical character, filled to the brim with mango, papaya, and passion fruit character, while the well-rounded oils of Citra bring out tangelo, nectarine, and guava. A light hit of oats and some crackery backing malt aspects further convince me that this is a superb effort, all while Strata sneaks in and shows off its own herbaceous and tropical character with much aplomb. Lightly floral and honeyed with some definite undertones of dank/grassiness and garden-fresh herbs.
Soft and fluffy on the palate with expressive flavors of terpene-like citrus/grassiness, mango, papaya, and passion fruit, BDB is definitely an impressively-solid addition to the repertoire of this underrated new brewery. I pick up some funky grassiness, light notes of melon and apricot, and a firm but supportive bitterness that doesn't last too long and reminds me of grapefruit rind but a touch more delicate. I wish I had gotten a four-pack of this one, because it is truly well-done and extremely sessionable. Great job, WSBC!
Jun 12, 2020BDB features Strata, Moutere, and Citra hops and, like the beer it's based off, clocks in at 4.9% ABV. It pours a hazy and pale yellow color that builds up a strong, retentive, bone-white head. The foam lasts for minutes, eventually receding to a finger or so but leaving behind some spotty but decent lacing in its wake. Surface cohesion is awesome here, though, and the legs are superb as well. Some drinkers may not love the pallid color, but I at least think it has a certain attractive luminosity to it.
Moutere hops give this a big tropical character, filled to the brim with mango, papaya, and passion fruit character, while the well-rounded oils of Citra bring out tangelo, nectarine, and guava. A light hit of oats and some crackery backing malt aspects further convince me that this is a superb effort, all while Strata sneaks in and shows off its own herbaceous and tropical character with much aplomb. Lightly floral and honeyed with some definite undertones of dank/grassiness and garden-fresh herbs.
Soft and fluffy on the palate with expressive flavors of terpene-like citrus/grassiness, mango, papaya, and passion fruit, BDB is definitely an impressively-solid addition to the repertoire of this underrated new brewery. I pick up some funky grassiness, light notes of melon and apricot, and a firm but supportive bitterness that doesn't last too long and reminds me of grapefruit rind but a touch more delicate. I wish I had gotten a four-pack of this one, because it is truly well-done and extremely sessionable. Great job, WSBC!
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