Dom W
Warfield Distillery & Brewery

you just dont see much brut ipa anymore, seems like one of the fastest rising and fading beer trends of recent years, gone before most people ever quite got it, but this is a nice example of the style, cleaner than most, sneaky strong, nicely hopped, and texturally correct, these guys have really improved their quality over the last year or so and it shows in just about all their beers these days. this is just a little hazy, rather pale, and frothy headed from the tap, almost thick and creamy the head is so dense, tons of life to this. the aroma and flavor are hop forward but with a vinous element to the fermentation too, even a hint of a saison estery to it, french type, subtle and maybe with some pear in the mix, fits right in with these hops, which do have some finishing bitterness but also big lush notes of fresh cut citrus and fuzzy kiwi fruit, as well as wet lawn and orange candy, really pretty dynamic. the grain side of this is light, not sure where all the alcohol comes from, maybe an added sugar, but the body is only medium at most and i just get some real light wheaty earthiness beneath all the hops. importantly, this is crackling dry and highly effervescent, which the style demands. it may be a little high tone on the yeast for some, but i think it marries in the the hops pretty well, and overall i was quite pleased with this. brut done right was always hard to find even when the style was popular for a hot second, so finding one now is even harder. careful though, this one can sneak up on you...