NE IPAs in Michigan?

Where's the love for Stormy??
It's right up there with M-43 for flavor, not as hazy or colorful, but has that little back end bite I keep looking for in M-43. North Peak announced through an Instagram post, they have decided to do a Stormy Series, and when someone suggested a Double Stormy, Ron Jeffries responded "Great Idea!" Well Ron, MAKE IT HAPPEN!!

 

Stormy was good and at $10 for a 6 is a good value, But nowhere close to m43 to me. Quite as bit less juicy and tropical.

 

I'm somewhat glad to hear this, as I've got my hopes up to try M43 sometime (maybe try to find some next week). If it was going to be similar to Stormy, I was going to have to temper my expectations...not that Stormy is bad, just that M43 seems to be much more well thought of.

 

Yeah, as far as I'm concerned, Stormy and M-43 aren't close. And I liked Stormy.

But if you're looking for a NE hops surrogate, M-43 is going to be the most likely to fool someone into thinking they are drinking one of those "T" breweries*

*disclaimer: I am not saying M-43 is on par with those beers--just that it is a far closer approximation than Storym

 

I've had quite a few Trillium, most multiple times and I like M43 better. There is no need for me to to find any other IPA's unless I want something a little more sessionable or am in the mood for a bigger hop bite on the finish. If I had it regularly would I change it up a little for change sake, yeah but it would/will definitely be a staple in my fridge.

 

Heading up to our cabin for my oldest son's Bday tomorrow... so of course I had to grab another 2 growler fills of M-43 to bring along. Can't wait for this to become realively available in cans, they really dialed this last batch in! Perfect amount of hop bite the other batches seemed to be missing, yet super juicy at the same time. Hoping to find some next time it drops.

 

DDH Greenstone should fit that when it finally starts coming out more.

 

AKA Boxer

Old nation is doing it all right now.

 

Just gotta say, I finally did a side-by-side with Juice is Loose and M43 and I'm now convinced that people who're calling JiL a "NE IPA" have not actually had any NE IPAs before. Not even close to the hazy juicy bombs from NE. I still enjoyed JiL for what it is, but it's not in the same ballpark as M43 or anything from Trillium/Treehouse.

 

The earlier batches of JiL were definitely hazy/murky and NE style (soft mouthfeel, low bitterness, etc).

I've had enough Trillium and Treehouse to be able to tell the difference.

 

To shed some light on all this...

Last batch of juice is loose was unchanged for both grain and hopping rate/schedule. The only difference was that we used yeast harvested for its 3rd generation (something we haven't done before).

The result was that the yeast we used was more flocculent (it dropped out of solution easily, hence the change in clarity) and didn't provide the same biotransformative properties of our usual yeast blend. Yes, this does effect the mouthfeel and softness of the beer, and that is why we will no longer be using yeast after its first harvest. The aroma and flavor should have not changed much at all, and when fresh it still had some haze, but because the beer cleared up it does feel different. The batch we are releasing tomorrow (Thursday) is the best we've done (from my personal preference).

Cheers!

 

Thanks for the clarification, I had cans from the latest batch so that probably explains my confusion. Like I said, still enjoyed it!

 

This does explain it! Question: have you ever given thought to opening a little earlier on weekdays just for bottle/can sales to go? Selfishly, I sometimes pass there but before 4:00 (like tomorrow). I'm sure there may be many others as well that pass during the day but don't want to camp out until 4:00 and then make the drive home to Chicago or GR or wherever and get home late. Central Waters in Wisconsin does this, they do not open the tap room but have to go bottle sales while they are there working, starting at about 8:00am I think. Not saying 8:00am would have to happen but maybe noon or at least a couple hours before open, maybe 2:00? Have you ever considered this or is it off the table?

 

We will expand our hours as we approach summer (both adding days and earlier/later hours). If you are passing through on a day/time we aren't open, Sawyer Garden Center right down the road from us usually has a good supply. They are open 8-8 every day, so they cover many hours that we don't.

 

Good to know. Appreciate the reply!

 

Even old nation had this issue with batch 6 of M-43. They said they used second generation but were switching back. Same taste, but clearer and different mouth feel.

 

New batch of JIL is how I remember it being. Night and day compared to the last batch IMO. Still tons of cases of flightless and cromulent available.

 

Yeah, looks and tastes great. Also way more Flightless left than I expected, which may be my new favorite from them

 

Is this because they aren't that great or because the prices are ridiculous? Heard quite a few folks have been balking at $20/4 pack for JiL.

 

Those two are $14 per four pack. I think they're worth it but some people may not