New Belgium new line up and changes

I personally enjoyed Slowride immensely as a sessionable drinker this past summer...

Other than that, I don't have much of an opinion...

 

This seems to be the times we live in. Feels like every other month a brewery is revamping their core lineup and cutting mainstays.

 

Slow Ride is no more eh? Maybe that's why they didn't fight the TM issue very much?

 

I don't mind these changes. In fact, I kinda like them.
Another version of Citradellic could be fun (I like the Tangerine one) and I'm genuinely excited for Dayblazer. That sounds exactly like what I like to keep on hand.
Snapshot and Slow Ride are pretty recent additions and I never cared much for Shift.
As long as they don't futz with Fat Tire, Dubbel, Tripel, or 1554 I'm cool.

While rebranding just for the sake of doing it might seem pointless, I get where they're going. The name for Blue Paddle never really told the story of what was in that bottle. Even if Ranger and Rampant might not be changing, the new names make them sound more exciting. A place like NB is smart enough to do focus testing to find out if people don't like the beers or if they're being ignored/disliked for other reasons. Plus, the "Voodoo" moniker grants them some additional room for experimental IPA's to maintain a familiar name.

 

The times they are a changin...

 

Ranger IPA is definitely changing. If you don't' believe me, go to NB's website and click on Ranger IPA, and then click on voodoo Ranger. VDR has Mosaic and Amarillo hops, Ranger has different ones.

A lot of people I knew liked Snapshot wheat. I hope they bring it back later. But perhaps the sales numbers were off.

 

Haven't bought a New Belgium beer in years now, even ones I enjoy by them.

Don't expect this revamp will change anything. I am always a sucker for any beer when I see that Amarillo hops are connected to it, but I wouldn't be surprised if this one becomes an exception to the rule. NB has a history of brewing beers that use my favorite hops that I just cannot get into (like the now retired Shift and its usage of nelson sauvin hops).

 

Ditto this, to the tee. I was quite excited for the Sidetrip, which was billed as a farmhouse style ale with Nelson Sauvin but ended up being a bleh belgo-pale ale.

 

Or you could go here: http://beerstreetjournal.com/new-belgium-voodoo-ranger-imperial-ipa/ and see Voodoo Ranger is a new addition to their line-up and not going to replace traditional Ranger, or Rampant.

 

What about that link do you think says Ranger & Rampant are staying on independently as the Voodoo series comes on board?

 

I don't really understand the Voodoo Ranger from a marketing aspect. What is it supposed to mean? What does New Belgium have to do with New Orleans or Haiti?
I'm looking forward to trying the pils, though. The rep said they lowered the hops in it to make it even more crushable.

 

I guess I don't really know. The Coloradoan article, listed at the beginning, is saying that Ranger & Rampant are going to be housed under the Voodoo Series, but the Beer Street Journal article seemed less straightforward? It almost read, at least to me, that Voodoo Ranger is going to be a different series all together. I did notice that Voodoo Ranger is .5% higher in alcohol, than Ranger?

 

I'm a little confused about the whole 'voodoo' thing too... not from a question of cultural significance standpoint, but more like the names. Just a little wonky to me...

That being said, I tried what I think was 'voodoo ranger' the other night and found it MUCH more enjoyable than OG ranger. Nice, crisp example of a west coast IPA with zero onion detected- i think @Domingo would approve

 

I've gotten to try samples of pretty much the whole new lineup (except Voodoo Ranger 8-hop, and the Imperial which isn't finalized yet). They're all really tasty, especially the Voodoo Ranger IPA. The Dayblazer is a great entry into the session ale category and Tartastic is a nice radler. The new Citradelic blew me away, lime flavor for DAYS. Cheers to the sales team for letting me try early samples.

 

Anybody know if they will be using the merlin to make the hoppy beers? Is that still the only kettle there?