DDH F-Stop
Phase Three Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

 

Review 1610
DDH F-Stop
Phase Three Brewing
Date: 08 Feb 2021
The date is close to the no-go point. It has been kept in ideal conditions, awaiting its fate. The beer is 46 degrees and served in a tulip glass. The pour created a massive two-fingered creamy and airy white head. The slow dissipation left lacing on the glass. The color charts around SRM 6, pale straw with golden hues. The beer is hazy and opaque.

The aromas are oranges, pineapple, peaches, a hint of grapefruit, slight floral esters, a touch of orange peels, toasted crackers, dank, bready, and some earthiness. I do not perceive any characteristics of aging or oxidation.

I taste pineapple, mangos, peaches, pears, a touch of pine resins, floral, a skosh of herbal, orange peels, earthiness, toasted crackers, biscuits, fruit candy, and a hint of dank.

The mouthfeel is astringent and dry.

The body is medium, has medium carbonation, and has a lasting finish.

The unique combinations of hops work in this IPA. The tropical flavors coupled with the traditional NEIPA flavors and the sprinkling of WCIPA makes for a solid beer. I am not usually a fan of hybrid or bastardizing beer with hops, but I am impressed. I do not get any aging or oxidation flavors. I do not think I could have pushed the date much further for this beer.

 

Tasted in a Spiegelau IPA glass from a one pint can on February 13, 2021.

 

A: The beer is very hazy pale whitish yellow in color. It poured with a short white head that left lots of lacy rings of bubbles down the sides and a narrow collar around the edge of the glass.
S: Moderate aromas of lychee, pear and stone fruit are present in the nose.
T: The taste follows the smell and primarly has flavors of lychee and stone fruit along with hints of pear.
M: It feels medium-bodied and juicy on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This IPA seems to be a little softer in the taste and body compared to other beers in the style.

Serving type: can

 

Served from the can in a Gale Sayers shaker pint glass.

Didn't I used to skip re-runs of F-Stop back in the day on Nick at Nite? Anyway, this stuff pours a soupy honey-gold topped by over a finger of lightly off-white foam. The nose comprises orange zest, grapefruit peel, light lime zest, light passion fruit pulp, and a touch of biscuit for good measure. The taste brings in more of the same, the fruits now brighter and juicier, and there's even a bit of mild yeast phenols in there to wrangle the salad and add some delightful estery bits. The body is a lithe medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a slightly drying finish. Overall, a very tasty, highly drinkable IPA.

16oz can, dated 02.08.2021, poured into a stemless wine glass.

The beer pours a very hazy and turbid orange color, amber hues with a firm finger of white head that has good retention and excellent lacing. The aroma is pleasant, earthy, lots of pine, resinous and sticky, herbal tea, grassy and dank hops, grapefruit peel, citrus juice, hearty grain, a bit of booze, and sweet yeast. The flavors are nice, big sticky pine, grassy and dank hop, raw green leaf and light spice, a bit herbal and floral with an assertively sweet yeast and pale dough finish. The mouthfeel is good, coating, lively medium body that is fairly chewy with a warm and dry finish.

Verdict: A nice IPA from Phase Three. The earthiness and bitterness is a welcomed shift from the usual overly sweet and "juicy" hazy IPAs that are so common.