All Roads Lead To Centennial
DuClaw Brewing Co.

I was not kidding, during New DelMarVa (+ DC) DuClaw Sunday ( Week 778), when I said that my diving into my DuClaw backlog would be like diving into the depths of the Marianas Trench! I am going to be with them for a while to come, all in support of The CANQuest (tm). This is simply CANother in this ongoing madness.

From the CAN: "Brewed and CANned by DuClaw Brewing Co. Baltimore, Maryland"; "Double IPA"; "Many of our recent recipes, pilot batches, and brainstorming sessions have had one thing in common, Centennial. This transcendent hop has made its way into so many of our brews, it was time to show it the appreciation it deserved with its own single-hop DIPA. We've highlighted Centennial's citrus and stone fruit like flavor characteristics through a 180 degree whirlpool steep, extensive dry hopping of nearly a pound per barrel, and a simple grain bill of 2-Row and Crystal 60."; "Craft Be Cherished. Rules Be Damned."

I beCAN by Crack!ing open the vent in order to start a slow, gentle C-Line Glug into the awaiting glass. It was nicely carbonated, quickly rising up to form just under two fingers of dense, foamy, rocky, tawny head with very good retention, leaving loads of sticky lacing in its wake. Color was a faintly-hazy Deep-Amber/Light-Copper to Copper (SRM = > 13, < 17). Nose was more piney than citrusy, but it was unquestionably Centennial. It was quite reminiscent of Bell's Two-Hearted as others have mentioned. Mmm. Mouthfeel was medium-to-full, not quite creamy, but on the approach. The taste was very close to Bell's Two-Hearted, but the malt bill in this one did not include anything to give it a caramel sweetness. Instead, the bitterness that I have been missing in other beers of the past couple of days was front & center in this one. Fine by me! Of course, this led to a dry finish with a lingering pine-like woodiness. Mmm. I am giving up for the night following this one, but it was a good nightcap.

 

 

I would love to try this on fresh tap but only found it in 3 months old cans. It surely has a dark rich color and body. I seem to taste Two Hearted type taste as mentioned below.

 

Pours hazy, tan in color with 1/2 inch head. Taste is orange, rye, and pale malt. Medium bodied and carbonation, bitter. Makes for an average imperial IPA. Would have liked to try this fresher, but this is just ok.

Sampling a cellar temp 16 oz can poured into a snifter. the beer pours a clear mahogany color with a minimal bleached white head that fades to a thin edge layer soon after the pour. This looks like the IPAs I cut my teeth on with craft beer.
This may be where the similarities with olde school IPA in the past.
The aroma is fairly sweet with caramel and some light fruitiness..... Wasnt expecting this nose.
First sip reveals an average body with gentle rolling carbonation and smooth texture. Very easy drinking beer.
The flavor is similar with malt forward characteristics. Caramel and some fruit notes, which I think may be the hop bill, but this isnt what I was expecting. The beer drinks fine and the 8% is hidden very well.
Overall I think this beer is a bit of a miss, but dont hate it. I wouldnt chase this one if you are a hop head but if you end up with one, its worth drinking.

 

Hopped (and dry hopped) with Centennial, 'natch; malt bill consists of 2-Row and Crystal 60; 8% abv with a canning date of 2/21/18... Dark amber body with a faint haze and a tall head of off-white foam... Unsurprisingly shares some similarities with Two Hearted, having a woody pine character, undertones of dark, dry citrus pith; runs clean but with some shellac... This has some chew to it, a fairly big body, and some resinous sweetness; has a similar bitterness profile to Two Hearted... This isn't as fresh as I'd like, and I found this to be merely decent - not particularly what I'm looking for in D/IPAs these days, but not bad...