The Sun Rises In The East
Modestman Brewing

Got this when it was only a couple weeks old according to FB, but since they don't date their cans this may have been from a previous batch, I'm starting to suspect since it tastes like it's really fallen off. I actually had this on my "Wants" list for about a year while I've had now a couple dozen Gems from this brewer, but this one is lacking in ways that don't make sense. I'm being generous with ratings and will need to revisit.

Modestman - Date your cans please!!!

Having on draft at the brewery. On the very dense yellow side of this NEIPA. That nose blasts the inhaler with roasted tropical fruits especially burnt pineapple. It’s followed by some sweet citrus aromas. The palate follows through by and large just losing a little that was anticipated by the nose. It’s a sharply dry and bitter ale for what should be more juicy one. The feel is a little too effervescently chewy but overall a VG draft.

 

 

 

Draft pour at the brewery.

I love this brewery's beer, especially their IPAs. This one manages to be citrusy and dank at the same time. Nice and bright up front, with a bitter stickiness that lingers on the back of the tongue.

From a 32oz growler, filled at the brewery about this time yesterday. Served in an IPA glass.

Pours a pale, milky orange with a finger-and-a-half of soft, fluffy head. Retention is pretty good, leaving a sudsy cap and a thick, tattered blanket of foamy lacing.

Aroma is sweet and fruity. Orange slices and marijuana.

Taste is juicy and dank. Orange, grapefruit, tangerine, guava, macerated tree leaves and bhang water. Bitterness dial is set relatively high with plenty of citrus rind and leafy bitterness, and a dry, somewhat boozy finish.

Feel is clean and juicy, medium bodied and brightly carbonated. There’s enough green bitterness to make your mouth clench.

Overall, another terrific NEIPA that drinks above its abv. Dank and juicy with lots of (welcome) harsh citra-type bitterness, totally in a good way.

Many thanks to SawDog505 for this beer!

A - Opaque medium orange gold color with lacing.

S - Spicy pineapple and tropical fruit rind.

T - Pineapple, peppery fruit rind, tangerine.

M - Big medium body.

O - This is a fantastic IPA and recommended!

 

Poured from a 16 oz can purchased directly from the brewery; was told it was 2 days old. Pours hazy yellow with low foam but decent lacing. Subtle tropical fruit taste with low ABV burn. Very good.

 

 

Modestman is a small, new brewery from Keene, NH, and the quality of their IPAs has been attested to on multiple platforms and even pointed out by a BA whose taste I trust in a WBAYDN? thread, so I figured I should probably pick up one can each of both currently-available hoppy offerings by this young brewing outfit to test their mettle. Previously, I've had one beer from MMB, a boysenberry Berliner weisse, which was really well-crafted, so I'm pretty excited to see how they do with a Citra/Vic Secret hazy IPA. High hopes for this one!

The pour is an ugly NEIPA-ish pour with an opaque liquid the color of hay or straw tumbling into my glass rather unassumingly, building up a thin but slightly-retentive head of eggshell-white foam and leaving behind some light wisps of lace as it recedes to a quarter-finger ring. I'm not impressed by the way this looks, but I was immediately into it once I brought my nose to the glass...

...jeez, this is aromatic. Citra and VS is, of course, a great combo, and it's good to see all of their individual nuances firing on all cylinders in this beer. I get a lot of pineapple, mango, passion fruit, and hints of guava and tangerine, along with some very light sniffs of lychee and orange as well. VS can sometimes bring out a soft "spice" note with hints of earthy and herbal character, and even those elements are on-point here. There is a light cattiness here, but that probably has to do with Citra, so it's within reason for sure.

Flavor profile is bonkers, honestly. This has significantly higher bitterness than many similarly-hopped NEIPAs I've had, and that is something I can very much appreciate. Up front I get some peach, passion fruit, nectarine, tangelo, and pineapple with some lighter guava and herbal spice notes rushing to meet the fruitiness from the opening as the transition to the mid-palate occurs. Not much malt here, other than perhaps a hint of oats/wheat for grounding, and then the finish is right back to aggressive dankness with loads of complex citrus and some tropical suggestions. This hop combo is unbelievably potent in this recipe, that's for sure. The feel is pretty much as expected but that is in no way a bad thing; it has some starchiness/heft to it but drinks mostly appropriately for the style at hand and has supportive, sprightly carbonation. I very much enjoy this beer and am about to drink and review the other IPA of theirs that I mentioned above... if it's as good (or better!), these guys will definitely be on my radar in a big way. At that point, they deserve to be less modest, honestly.

Poured into a 16 oz Nordic pint glass canned on 12/16/2020. Pours a hazy yellow with a 2 finger sticky white head that leaves thick rings of lace with excellent retention. 4.75

Aroma pineapple, tangerine, papaya, peach, apricot, and some grapefruit rind. 4.5

Taste follows pineapple, papaya, tangerine, peach, apricot, mango, and a little pink grapefruit bitterness in the finish really well balanced. 4.5

Mouthfeel is about medium, not sticky or dry, soft gentle almost creamy carbonation, and at 7% ABV it seems bigger on flavor and body, but goes down very easy. 4.75

Overall another excellent NEIPA from this very young brewery. Top shelf stuff for me. 4.5

16oz can dated 12/16/20.

Pours murky yellow with a half inch head of white. Moderate retention and lacing. Pithy, juicy citrus in the nose. Peach, tangerine, mango, and grapefruit. Medium bodied with a soft mouthfeel. Yeasty and chalky. A blast of hops on the palate heavy with unripe peach, grapefruit, and orange. Finishes fairly dry and dank with plenty of juice, minimal malt, and a firm bitterness.

 

 

4 pack from the brewery

Canned on: 1/17/20
Opened and reviewed on: 1/27/20

A milky and murky straw Golden color. Thick white foam cap receded soon but has plenty of frothy cover and then levels out to a minimal ring of white foam.

A classicly robust fruit-forward aroma dominates the senses. Mango, tangy peaches and creamy citrus is in a big way. Golden wheat and straw grasses in the light but effective malted grains side. Creamy mango puree and golden grains is equally as pungent.

A very earthy, grainy and wild fruit flavor is almost overwhelming upon the first rip. Bitter grains of the field, much like the nose has dried golden wheat mixed with fresh lupilin powder, earthy dried leaves with peppery mango, metallic citrus and creamy malted barley all adds up to a seriously deep and complex sipping experience.

The feel and texture of the liquid is quintessential NEIPA. Crisp and tart, bitter then dry tones blend with a soft, round and full texture that demands your full attention. Finishing dry and crisp again.

I'm very happy to report Keene NH's newest little brewery is pumping out some quality suds. Keep it up MMB.