Vintage Memories
Fidens Brewing Company

 

The ability to masterfully bend hop varieties for unique taste, balance and texture has set Fidens apart from many other IPA makers. Starting with Citra is always a great idea, but the incorporation of Strata and Motueka hops will give them quite a challenge.

Pouring with a dirty taupe appearance, the milky golden look soon floats a sepia-stained froth while swooning the nose with peppery citrus, dank herb, soothing tropical fruit, berry and floral scents. A creamy richness greets the palate with a high cereal character along with hints of honey, poundcake and bubblegum.

With the starchy sweetness relaxing on the middle palate, the rise of hops start to overwhelm the tastebuds with the racy citrus flavors of lime, pink grapefruit and tangerine. A followup of tropical flavors reveal mango, passionfruit, papaya and pawpaw. All wrapped in a cocoon of honeydew juiciness, the session soon trends balancing with a spicy bitterness of lemongrass, verbena, tea leaf, peppery grasses, damp sod and bay leaf.

Full bodied, dank and sharing hops more "dirty" side, the green fruit flavors add a youthful spice to accompany the bitterness that strikes the senses with a hop-derived astringency that plagues both the taste and mouthfeel just a bit too much.

 

Deep coppery haze. Nose is candy lemon lime and thick mango pulp. Taste is chewy mango fruit leather, lemon lime sweet tarts, and pine resin. Mild lingering pithy bitterness. Creamy mouthfeel.