Wizards Wand
McIlhenney Brewing

Poured on tap at Julian Beer Co; assumed very fresh. Golden color with one finger of head that rapidly recedes w/good lacing. Slight taste of citrus and dankness; great hop flavor. Very good.

Stamped 1/20/25 WIZARDS
Nearly clear, gold colored, with a finger high head that tapers off to a thin film. Moderate retention, lithe lacing.
Nose presents some weed, melon, a hint of grapefruit rind, berry and mild pepper.
Flavor starts off with a pepper-tinged weedy note, then some grapefruit pith, then berry. After a spell I get some onion and mild resin.
Mouthfeel is medium heft, low carb, and smoothly dry in its mildly bitter finish.

Type: 16-oz. can
Reviewed as: American IPA
Glass: Melvin 14-oz. Spiegelau IPA glass
Price: $19.00 for a 4-pack
From: Mcilhenney Brewing Company in Alpine, Calif.
Purchased: June 5, 2022
Consumed: June 5, 2022
Misc.: No canned on date

Grabbed a 4-pack of this and Higher Times after spending a few hours at Mcilhenney Brewing Company. Nice to seem them canning. Had this twice before on my first trip there on June 3, 2021, giving a taster and a full pour a 4.25. Wrote “Dank! Calls for Strata and Mosaic, and it delivers” for the taster and “Probably seeing this in court before any other beer here” for the full pour. Hops mentioned on the can were Strata and Mosaic, with “grains” of 2 Row, Golden Promise, White Wheat, Goldpils Vienna and Carafoam.

Poured a light amber clear color with 2-to-3 fingers of frothy off-white head. Could see just a few bubbles coming up along the sides of the glass. Outstanding spotty lacing. Excellent foamy lacing. (Sight - 4.25)

Smelled Strata, dank weed, pine, green pepper, black pepper, grapefruit, Mosaic, floral, grass and rose blossom. A little better out of the can. (Smell - 4.25)

Tasted about as good as the nose, maybe a little below. In order got Strata, dank weed, bitter pine, grass, green pepper, black pepper, grapefruit, berry, Mosaic, floral, rose blossom and chewy caramel. (Taste - 4.00)

Medium body. Creamy-to-oily texture. Average carbonation. Long, bitter finish. (Feel - 4.50)

As expected, a solid West Coast IPA from Mcilhenney. (Overall - 4.25)

4.18 | 93 | A-

 

Very clean golden color and a somewhat fizzy head, short and great smelling hoppy aroma. Sharp, crisp and delicious the taste has some fizzy on the tongue with a hint of lingering bitterness. Good beer. Thanks @RaulMondesi for sharing.

Grabbed a can from Geoi at Bine and Vine. He shared with me that this was Sean’s version of Pat’s Duet. In this case Strata and Mosaic vs Duet’s Amarillo and Simcoe.
Beautiful burnt orange, clear and inviting.
Super drinkable brew with medium light body and softly bright carbonation.
Overall a tasty malty old school WCIPA. Enjoyed with pizza.

16oz. can into a Fuzzy pint.

Pours a crystal clear pale goldenrod. 0.5 finger coarse white head. Stringy lace. Nose is pine, grass, grapefruit, and citrus, and melon. Moderately aromatic. Beer opens citrus, pineapple, and papaya. Grass and pine in the middle with overtones of more tropical fruit. Bark and a very mellow bitterness towards the finish and in the aftertaste. Great balance. Body is light with ample carbonation. Prickly and lively on the palate and crisp, clean, and refreshing going down. Soft, lingering aftertaste.

Super drinkable and very well balanced. This one's excellent!

Wizards wand makes the magic happen!

WCIPA goodness, enjoyed on tap and tasting great! Warming golden color. Low aroma, touch of malty sweetness on the sip.

 

Packaged on 2/10/23 - consumed on 3/12/2023. Poured from a pint can into my Dogfish Head shaped pint glass.

Clear gold body with a high ivory cap. Rich soapy lacing; superior retention.

Low blueberry/tropical notes in the nose - light complex maltiness as well - all fairly subdued.

Smooth, even bitterness with an excellent blend of strawberry/pine on the palate entry. Crisp, not-quite-biscuity, malt presence. Well balanced/integrated. Fairly dry, faintly earthy finish with some residual fruit notes. Hints of bubble-gum perhaps.

Snappy, medium-light bodied, with very good carbonation and low heat.

Very good IPA, though perhaps better paired with food (e.g. fish tacos).

Crystal clear. Nose is red berries, sweet citrus, and malt. Taste is juicy and fruit forward. Finishes w/ a little pine resin and water cracker. New school west coast IPA. Mildly bitter finish. Clean, easy drinking, delicious.

June 24, 2023 update: Tastes better to me this time. Not so bitter with a pleasant sweet malty note to start. And the fruit is really quite interesting.

Pours a clear yellow amber with plenty of foam in the Piraat tulip. Thin body and sharp mouthfeel. Aroma of grapes and citrus. Fruity mix of hop flavors running from blueberry to tangerine. A little on the acidic side with a grapefruit finish but not overly bitter. From the 16 oz can purchased at Bine & Vine. Not dated.

Clear golden orange pour with finger and a half of creamy, tight bubbly just slightly off white head.
Aroma is piney, citrus - resinous and a pungent sweaty dankness, touch of diesel and tropical fruit.
Palate is an explosion of hops - dank and leafy, resinous, pine, citrus - earthy bitterness - grapefruit peel, and backend hint of tropical fruit.
Solid medium full mouthfeel with bright carbonation - sticky lingering resinous bitterness.
Fantastic.

12/16/2022 Batch! Sweet and piney tropical hoppy, slightly malty, and hint of Mosaic-dank nose on this one! Taste follows with a super clean and balanced, piney and hoppy bitter finish...this lingers for a good while on the roof of the mouth and the back of the throat. It's got that classic, old-school, piney West Coast IPA bitter bite that is delicious. This is very good!

 

Thanks, Shane.

A clear orange with a dense, white head with excellent retention and lacing. The nose is clean, modern WCIPA with pine bitterness and moderate tropical fruit. Citrus, mandarin, peach a little mango and lychee are present. A touch of soap as well. The palate opens clean and mildly bitter, with pine and citrus bitterness, clean and mildly pungent. Fruit forward hop flavors follow with clean, easy drinking citrus and tropical fruit. Clean, bitter finish, dry and fruity. Delicious.

Crowler from the brewery. Classic WC IPA from a classic brewery. Properly bitter, hoppy, and clean. Who better to crush this style than these folks? Way too drinkable.

 

On tap at Mchilhenney Brewing in Alpine, CA.

Dank like a sperm bank - I mean this one is potent! Hella earthy like Hewey, Dewey, and Lewie taking a rip of kush. Nice and mellow like the color yellow (but the beer is an orangey brown - don’t get confused).

See ya!

*edit 4/23/23

Almost a two year update on this one. Mchilhenney was still a young pup when I tried it. And it was fine. But now? Wow. They have this one more dialed in than Hitchock with “M” for Murder.”