Pirate Life Unfazed by the Haze New Holland IPA

Total Score: 8.7/10

I recently had 2 new beers… no that’s a lie – I went over to NZ and had a plethora of new beers, but that’s another story… back to these 2 beers: the newly owned by AB-InBev Pirate Life Unfazed by the Haze New Holland IPA, and one from the independent craft brewer Green Beacon (the latest batch of Scrimshaw IPA). Interesting thing is: this batch of Scrimshaw is shit. It’s just terrible, GB must have lost their head brewer or something because this summers Scrimshaw (which I rated previously at 7.9/10) is abysmal. Good news is: Pirate Life have not skipped a beat since their buyout – this “New Holland IPA” (a cheeky nod to Australia once being named New Holland) is a sensational brew, I’m pleasantly surprised, cheers PL!

Poured from a 355ml can into a nonic pint.

A: Unfazed by the haze – purely because there is no haze, this is as clear as clear can be, with a nice golden body and a fluffy white head that sticks around rather impressively leaving sticky lace as it goes down. Yep, I might have been hasty calling this a New England IPA, still looks good though. 7/10.

S: Tropical papaya upfront, bit of mango, must be Mosaic hops, green/leafy hop character throughout. They didn’t spare the hops with this one – good to know that Pirate Life haven’t completely kowtowed to their evil corporate overlords [half joking/half not there]. Touch of pepper and a light piney/earthy tone round out this “New Holland IPA”. 8/10.

T: Pirate Life are back to their old tricks again – this brew comes across with a marriage of flavours from their IPA and IIPA – it’s got that syrupy hop character from the IIPA along with a less-intense backbone of their regular IPA. It’s well-balanced and moreish with notes of: papaya, mango, touch of pepper, and leafy/piney/earthy hops leading to a medium-to-mild herbal hop bitterness. As far as NEIPAs go this is pretty spot on, and the fact that they’ve squeezed in plenty of flavour at only 6.2% ABV is icing on the cake [unless you’re trying to get drunk really fast]. 9/10.

M: Decent medium bodied thanks to wheat and oats in the grain bill. Carbonation also has a nice heft to it, a luxurious mouth-feel all round here. 9/10.

D: TBH I wasn’t expecting this to be any good, I know when a craft brewer sells out the quality of the beer is the first thing to go, but this is right up there with in the best of the Pirate Life oeuvre… I’m going to nip down to the bottle-o for another 6-pack of this. PS: FOR SHAME GREEN BEACON. 9/10.

Food match: Green papaya sal… no we’ve done that many times before: Pad Thai.

Amundsen Bryggeri Luponic Plague 2.0

Total Score: 6.65/10

A new NEIPA, yay! It’s from a brewer I haven’t reviewed before, yay! In Norway, yay! All of these things get me excited. It’s been a long while since I’ve been able to get my hands on a Norwegian brew, and fond memories of HaandBryggeriet and Nøgne Ø linger on like old friends inviting me in for a cuppa. First up: Wow! What a label on this 440ml can – all crazy with colours and graphics of a UFO beaming a hop plant up around earth… least that’s what it looks like to me. Also making a welcome appearance: that whole can-lid lift-off ring-pull thing like with Colonial and Bentspoke cans (yes, the technique is no doubt American in origin but I only remember the Aussie brewers who use it). Anyhow bring on the Luponic Plague 2.0!

Poured from a 440ml can with the entire-top-pulls-off thing into a Duvel tulip.

A: Crazy AF murky mustard-yellow body with a white sea foam head that disintegrates quickly leaving nary a sign of any head. This is one odd-looking brew, I’ve not seen a NEIPA of this colour before – mustard-yellow, very odd beer from Amundsen. 6/10.

S: Fruity and funky is on today’s menu! Pineapple juice, mango, orange and grapefruit mingle with a grassy/green/cannabis overtone – all-hops/all-day is the take-home with Luponic Plague 2.0, if it keeps this full hop onslaught into the flavour profile I reckon it’s game on Donkey Kong. Bit of a funky note is the only detraction and hopefully not a foreboding warning for a soured NEIPA [I’m so sick of those guys – Dr. Nick Riviera]. 8/10.

T: Not all that bad, quite grassy/cannabis-like all over the profile, this NEIPA is most certainly unfiltered and that grassy note can be a bit too much for some [I don’t mind it too much]. Those grassy hops give way to a more tropical punch note mid-palate: pineapple, mango, green mango, and orange/grapefruit citric character towards the finish, which is a touch more bitter than a NEIPA should be but otherwise OK. Overall flavour is of an unfiltered New England meets West-Coast IPA brew. Quite rough around the edges but alright nonetheless (i.e. had worse). 7/10.

M: Mouthfeel is a mess though – thin, prickly carbonation, too much hop resin, it’s an unmitigated disaster here. 2/10.

D: This is one rough, in-yer-grill NEIPA from Norway. Surprisingly for a beer that was canned 21/06/18 it’s managed to keep a strong hop presence, although I can’t imagine how crazy this would have been fresher [yikes!]. 7/10.

Food match: Thai beef salad with fresh chilli, boo-yah.

Noisy Minor Echo Chamber NEIPA

Total Score: 7.15/10

Noisy Minor (aka Fortitude Brewing Company, aka Mt Tamborine Brewing… well it was anyway) have really landed on a winner here with this Echo Chamber NEIPA: 1) It’s a NEIPA, and NEIPAs ALWAYS SELL [sidebar: I’ve come up with a handy acronym for this: NEIPAAS, which is pronounced “nee-paas” like a sheep] 2) It’s in a can, and cans are clearly better than glass if your beer wants to highlight an ingredient that is highly susceptible to a chemical reaction when UV light is applied to it, i.e. hops, 3) Said can is half a litre and brightly coloured canary-yellow, so that a) I wont finish it too soon, and b) I can see it in the bottle shop’s craft fridge. All of which puts Noisy Minor in the running for a “Doc’s Most Improved Brewer of the Year Award” yay!

Poured from a 500ml canary-yellow can into a nonic pint.

A: Hazed amber body with a thin but dense white head and little splotches of lace inside the glass. Not the prettiest NEIPA then, bit too amber-coloured, not enough murk, and a minuscule head/lace… seen worse though. 6/10.

S: Rich and piney with an earthy overtone, bubble-gum/juicy fruit notes, floral scent, hints of stone-fruit/citrus. This is more like a whopping great West-Coast style American IPA than a NEIPA in aroma, however it’s the flavour that really counts: will it be more like a glass of juice, with a well defined sweet slant and minimal bitterness? That’s what a good NEIPA is, but as Hop Nation has shown with Jedi Juice – sometimes rules are meant to be broken. 8/10.

T: Forward with hop characters of: piney/earthy hops, mingling with a light biscuit base, touches of floral/stone-fruit character and a sweet/mild bubble-gum note in the finish… all sounds rather well and good, bit of a West-meets-New-England IPA (like Jedi Juice), but then *DUN-DUNN* you notice a sense of something unnatural, like the flavours have been watered-down just ever so slightly. 7/10.

M: Medium bodied with a light but dense carbonation and a thin feel compared to other NEIPAs I’ve encountered. 7/10.

D: It’s a real distraction with this 7.2% ABV NEIPA that doesn’t go away as you drink it – that diluted-beer feel, whereas the last Noisy Minor I reviewed (Bad Wolf) was an absolute corker, this is… well it’s not bad per-say, just lacking where it counts (in the old flavour department). It begs the question: Should Noisy Minor stick to the ethos “bigger (ABV) is better”? Or try to refine their lighter brews further? My personal view is the former here. This NEIPA needs work. 7/10.

Food match: I’m going to be lazy and play the pizza card here: BAM! There I did it.

Black Hops Caribbean Crusher

Total Score: 8.05/10

Doesn’t say “New England” anywhere on the can, but for all intents and purposes “Hazy IPA” comes across as pretty NEIPA to me. Well what have we here Mr. Black Hops? Back from their recent controversial P-Juice Poem Post (their PJPP), and having read the second apology they issued for their mistake I feel that Black Hops have learnt a lesson and we can all move on now. So when this new (formerly Recon Series) beer dropped into my local it was a simple insta-buy for me. Brewed with citrus, pineapple, mango and coconut-infused Mt Gay Black Barrel Rum – this sounds like having a relaxing time in a beach chair watching the sun set and drinking an island cocktail in a coconut shell (don’t forget the little drink umbrella!): sweet!

Poured from a 375ml can into a nonic pint.

A: The haze is strong with this one. Cloudy mango-coloured body with a foamy off-white head that soon drops back leaving little lace and a thin patchwork of bubbles on top. Seen better, seen worse, seen purple-monkey-dishwashers. 7/10.

S: Spicy green papaya, mango, and sour pineapple hops to the fore, vanilla and woody notes from the rum. They nailed that Caribbean cocktail vibe – I’m suddenly wearing white shorts, loafers, a Hawaiian shirt and a captains hat, and I don’t even know how or why this has happened. Brilliant aroma here. 10/10.

T: Juicy and vibrant green hops (this was canned 2 days ago so no surprises there!) with the above mentioned green papaya, mango, sour pineapple, vanilla and woody tones throughout the flavour profile. Malt presents as a wafer-thin cracker, adds dryness but doesn’t really bring anything else to the table. Balance is more towards dry/bitter with a spicy/grassy aftertaste. There is a sense that this is missing a touch of sweetness – to really give it that cocktail vibe, but otherwise this is a solid brew. Probably needs to sit in the fridge for a week or 2 – these hops are green as. 8/10.

M: Mouthfeel could be a bit more lush too – mid to light bodied with a thin but fizzy carbonation. 7/10.

D: Wow this brew reminds me so much of their G.O.A.T. NEIPA that I wouldn’t be surprised if that is the base beer. TBH the flavour profile of this was a bit too much towards dry (just like G.O.A.T.) and shows that BH are still lagging behind CoConspirators, Hop Nation and 3 Ravens when it comes to balancing a great NEIPA (which should be a touch on the sweet side of sweet/bitter without cloying). It’s a tough balance to find and BH are still finding their feet here. 7/10.

Food match: Did someone say luau!?! No? Oh well then… *kicks up dust*

3 Ravens Salted Caramel Shake Milkshake IPA

Total Score: 8/10

Yep, told ya there would be some weird brews coming our way – next up is 3 Ravens Salted Caramel Shake Milkshake IPA, following on from (and having a similar ingredient list to) Moussey Juicy Chocolate Milkshake NEBIPA, which I did quite enjoy [for how out there I thought it would be it was actually pretty tame and tasty]. In any case, I’m enjoying this Juicy Odyssey that 3 Ravens have been taking us on – they used to be such a domesticated murder of ravens – before they embarked on this Juicy madness their oeuvre consisted of beige names such as: White, Black, Dark, Golden Ale, Bronze… yawn, I much prefer what 3 Ravens have become today. Let the madness continue! *cracks can*

Poured from a 375ml can into a nonic pint.

A: Almost clear copper-caramel body with a 1 centimetre Ecru-coloured head that fizzles down softly leaving nary a spot of lace – bit different from Moussey Juicy, strange how a base beer doesn’t always guarantee good head. Liking that colour though. 7/10.

S: Diacetyl City, population: this beer. Holy mole is there a lot of butterscotch rocking in this brew, its got a real butter-menthol thing going on. Apart from that, hints of vanilla, caramel, salt, light herbal hops in the background. Hopefully that butterscotch doesn’t destroy the palate like this former homebrewer knows it can [Diacetyl can be a total beer destroyer – ask me how]. 6/10.

T: Surprisingly good! Ticks all the boxes at least, caramel: check, salt: check, milkshake-like body: check. Lucky that butterscotch is a background note to the caramel, and there is some mighty fine caramel going on in Salted Caramel Shake too. Along with this are notes of herbal-almost-medicinal hops, vanilla and a touch of brown sugar… and yes this is a sweet beer, that herbal hop does balance it out though. Much better than I was expecting. Quite a moreish flavour here. 9/10.

M: Identical to Moussey Juicy AFAIC – creamy mouthfeel, medium bodied, dense carbonation – still feel that given the ingredients this body is thin. 8/10.

D: Much like Moussey Juicy this brew is a pleasant surprise. You would think the flavours that they were aiming for wouldn’t work in a beer, but they do, and despite having a level of Diacetyl that wouldn’t normally be acceptable for any beer outside an English Bitter this is a tasty caramel affair that I would definitely try again (although that’s one specific mood that I’ll need to be in). 8/10.

Food match: Caramel slice is nice… with… err, ice. Shuddup!

Dainton Mocha Chocca New England Black Rye IPA

Total Score: 8.45/10

Couple of odd brews coming at ya tonight, first is: Dainton Mocha Chocca New England Black Rye IPA, a chocolate beer without chocolate (why do you think they call “chocolate malt” chocolate malt? Because it tastes like bubble-gum?). This is my first brew from Dainton, who I’ve admired from afar but found their beers a bit expensive, and when there’s so much choice out there it’s tough to cough up for a Dainton. That said Mocha Chocca managed to sway me with a reasonable $23 for a 4-pack of 355ml cans… when I put it like that it doesn’t seem so reasonable anymore, oh well, the beer is in my fridge now.

Poured from a 355ml can into a nonic pint.

A: Cloudy AF chocolate-brown body with a very-happy-to-see-me 1.5 inch mocha-coloured head that recedes slowly leaving a nice sticky lace behind. Props to Dainton for making a beer look like its name: mocha (head) chocca (body), props to me for calling it [thanks me] you’re welcome me. 8/10.

S: Well… I don’t know what and how they did it, but there’s a really BIG chocolate aroma wafting from this brew – powdered cocoa, cacao nibs and a leafy green almost floral note coming through too. This is chocolate to the power of three! Mighty impressive as I’ve sniffed beers with actual chocolate in them (I’m looking at you Wells & Young’s!) that don’t have this much of a chocolate hit. 8/10.

T: Flavour profile, first up: this is really really well-balanced with chocolate/herbal flavours and that old brewers chestnut – the sweet/bitter paradigm. Starts out dark chocolate, powdered cocoa, mid-palate milk chocolate sweetness pops in and says “hi!”, then that leafy green floral note, slight twist of roasted coffee bitterness towards the finish. Balanced on a tenterhook between Stout/Black IPA, this is one NEBIPA [trust me: this is one acronym that will soon take off – you heard it first here] that delivers the best of both worlds. Where’s that Rye though? 9/10.

M: Medium(ish) bodied with a dense/light carbonation, no complaints here… well, maybe it could use a touch more body… so a tiny complaint. 8/10.

D: Great start from Dainton. 8/10’s don’t just fall off trees, and this is one brew that delivered exactly as stated on the can – not every brewer manages this (and sometimes they manage this and the flavour combination is terrible anyhow). Mocha Chocca is a solid chocolate beer, Doc recommends. 8/10.

Food match: You might think I’m going to say “chocolate tart” but you’re wrong: I was thinking chocolate brownie with this one 😛

Hop Nation The Dawn Double NEIPA

Total Score: 8.35/10

I have a friend who always used to tell me: “The light is always darker before the dawn”. Well screw him, because [as a pessimist] I say “The light is always lighter before the night”! #semantics – Well here is the latest train to leave Hype Station, heading for Massive Over-excitementville: Hop Nation The Dawn Double NEIPA. Yes, yes, those magnificent [bastards!] makers of Jedi Juice, which can barely last a day without being sold out in bottle-shops across the nation, have doubled down on this their latest NEIPA. Is the light always darker before dawn? Or is the NEIPA [New England India Pale Ale] always sweeter when it’s 9% ABV in the can? Soon I can (no doubt) safely say “of course it is idiot!” and “yes, shockingly sweet and strong!”.

Poured from a 375ml can into a Duvel tulip.

A: Cloudy golden-orange body with a chalky white head that soon drops back leaving patchy lace-work. Looks OK, not amazing, but looks aren’t always important… at least that’s what my girlfriends used to tell me… wait, what? 7/10.

S: Not unlike Jedi Juice with that BIG grassy/green/cannabis hop vibe, but with more tropical fruit on the nose: papaya, mango, passion fruit, and some peppercorn thrown in for good measure. This is definitely the aroma of a sleek, self-assured Double NEIPA from the makers of sleek, self-assured single NEIPAs, pretty damn awesome work here from Hop Nation, huzzah! [don’t even know why I added that “huzzah!” but I am feeling good right now]. 9/10.

T: Yep it’s a bit like double Jedi [does that make it Sith then?] with more tropical flavours thrown in, and less grassy/green hop notes than detected in the aroma. Flavour profile begins with that papaya/mango/passionfruit combo, add a bit of juicy fruit gum, dash of grassy/green hops, mid-palate bread-like malt base (more banana bread than normal bread), finishes more sweet than bitter. 9% ABV??? Get outta here! Can hardly tell it’s anywhere near that – this is dangerous stuff indeed. Touch too fruit-juice-like is my major criticism (though that’s only because Jedi taught me that a NEIPA could be assertive). 8/10.

M: Mid to heavy, not as heavy as expected but good, dense carbonation. 8/10.

D: Once again Hop Nation have: nail = hit on the head. The Dawn is a well-oiled [hop oiled] machine. The only thing I would change, now that I’ve had Jedi Juice, is I would add more of those grassy/green hops. Ironically when I reviewed Jedi I found it too assertively bitter, now I’m wanting that bitterness. 9/10.

Food match: Gourmet pizza with pineapple if that’s your sort of thing… now battle!

Behemoth Brewing Humorous Ludicrous Hazy Lupulin Hopped IPA

Total Score: 7.3/10

So the plot thickens… into some sort of gelatinous blob it seems – as I learned (learnt? Can someone teach me the difference???) here’s the deal Behemoth Brewing is known as Behemoth brewing everywhere except Australia. Why? Well rumour has it (and it’s probably fact, I couldn’t be bothered looking it up) that KAIJU! Beer had already trademarked ‘Behemoth’ with their most delicious brew: Where Strides The Behemoth: Double India Black Ale. The irony, as it seems, is delicious as KAIJU! themselves were subject to their own trademark infringement when they were previously known as ‘Monster Mash’, in their own words: “A certain energy drink company didn’t like us using that name, so we changed it”. In any case ‘Chur’ is a fitting name for a NZ brewer, chur brah!

Poured from a 500ml entire-top-pulls-off [ETPO I’m calling it] can into a Duvel tulip.

A: Tasty-looking NEIPA: Cloudy AF orange-sunrise body with a creamy off-white head that drops back to a thin blanket leaving a light amount of lattice-work lace on the side of the glass. Like I said: Tasty-looking NEIPA. 9/10.

S: Funky overripe rockmelon/honeydew/any other sweet melon you can think of – Humorous Ludicrous has melons for days mate. Aside from this the aroma is nothing out of this world, those melons though, if you like melons then mister: you’re in luck. Hints of floral character linger in the background. A bit more variety in the hops is my only real complaint here. 8/10.

T: Woah, bit on the sweet side, cloying even, with melon flavours as described above (mostly rockmelon and honeydew) touch of sweet orange makes an appearance to round out the hops. Malt-wise it’s a dextrose sugar hit, with a hint of dry cracker in the background. Finish is still sweet with a mild bitterness trying to level it out, but ultimately succumbing to the sugary onslaught. Look, it’s probably not quite as bad as I’m describing it, however it is too sweet and needs a bit of green character from the hops to counter it. Plus that melon character has a bit of funk to it – like biting into overripe fruit. 7/10.

M: Medium bodied with a dense/almost-flat carbonation, touch too flat. 7/10.

D: After the glory of Dump The Trump [a slogan beer I think we can all get behind] this beer goes too far in the opposite direction of the sweet/bitter dichotomy. I love a sweet beer from time to time [friends, Brisbanites, countrymen: lend me your Tripels!] but this brew cloyed too much for me, sorry Chur. 7/10.

Food match: Chicken and leek pie for some reason.

Black Hops Beetlejuice Black NEIPA

Total Score: 8/10

What the??? I had a can of Beetlejuice Black NEIPA sitting in the back of my fridge and I haven’t cracked it yet – such a travesty is not befitting a craft beer aficionado of my caliber! “By “caliber,” of course, I refer to both the size of their gun barrels and the high quality of their characters… two meanings… caliber… it’s a homonym… Forget it.” [Dr. Evil FYI]. According to the Black Hop rep this is the worlds first Black NEIPA – first brewed in 2017… I somehow find that hard to believe, because, you know: America – that really big country that has 6,000-odd craft breweries that is constantly inventing then re-inventing new beer styles, it’s difficult to conceive that no one had thought of doing a Black NEIPA [“then again Doc, it isn’t inconceivable that Black Hops came up with something new” – the counter argument].

Poured from a 375ml can into a Duvel tulip.

A: Yep, she’s black alright – like some sweet obsidian slumber Beetlejuice forms a delightful murky soup inside my tulip glass. Head is tan, yet it doesn’t stay for long, retreating to leave whispers of lace-work. 8/10.

S: Punchy tropical fruit character with lychee, overripe jack-fruit and paw paw, hint of grain and roasted coffee provide a nice earthy tone that tries to balance the tropical fruit, without a great deal of luck – that tropical character lays down an iron monkeys fist, a challenge to duel with our senses. TL;DR: It’s good, overly hoppy – if that’s your thing [it is my thing, so I’m pretty chuffed]. 9/10.

T: Bit of a pendulum swing back towards malt – with those tropical hops taking a backseat (the lychee, jack-fruit and paw paw noted above) to the roasted malt, which gives an earthy/nutty/forest floor character overall. Finish is mildly bitter, as a good NEIPA should be, with dry notes and grassy hops coming through right at the end. Flavour profile is decent, however – as with several Black Hops IPAs – lacking punch due to being on the lower ABV side @ 6% ABV. 8/10.

M: Medium bodied with a creamy/dense carbonation… yep pretty spot-on given the style/ABV. 8/10.

D: Feels like a bit of a missed opportunity from Black Hops – if only they had knocked it up a notch with the flavour/ABV, then they would have been on to a winner winner chicken dinner. TBH I suspect that Beetlejuice is using the same base beer as G.O.A.T. Both have a similar hop profile/ABV/are overly dry – yep it’s hard not to think G.O.A.T. and Beetlejuice aren’t in cahoots here. 7/10.

Food match: Damn I really feel like a chicken dinner now 😐

Prancing Pony The Zeppelin All Hop NEIPA

Total Score: 7.95/10

Another bottle of a Prancing Pony donated to my cause (reviewing beers natch) by the super-friendly Prancing rep whose name I should know by now (regardless she’s an absolute gem). So this is the beer Prancing Pony took to last years GABS (Great Australian Beer Spectapular), and I heard it’s a tasty brew: The Zeppelin All Hop NEIPA. As to why they needed to say “All Hop” in the beers name [pretty much all beers have hops in them apart from Gruits, Kvass and Sahti’s], I guess they were using a shorthand version of “full hop flower”… anyway, only Prancing Pony knows the answer and all I’m getting out of him are neighs and whinnies – uh-huh Prancing Pony, uh-huh, I totally understand whatever it is you’re trying to say. Anyhow, now is the winter of our NEIPA content made glorious summer by this beer of Mt Barker!

Poured from 330ml bottle into a nonic pint.

A: Murky AF golden/mango-coloured body with a light foamy white head that dissipates fairly quickly leaving a smattering of lace inside the glass. Not the greatest looking NEIPA ever, but not half bad either – head and lace could be better. 7/10.

S: Funky stewed green mango, bit of a grassy tone, orange-peel and a spicy/piney hint – this aroma reminds me a bit of CoConspirators The Matriarch NEIPA, which was tasty-times to the factor of ten, good start Prancing *horse snort*. 8/10.

T: Yep, we’re in “juice-box” NEIPA territory: begins with an orange/mango juice note, mid-palate dryness from a light biscuit/cracker malt, towards the finish hints at piney/green hops – but that doesn’t eventuate – finishing crisp and with a light and well-restrained herbal bitterness. This is about as classic NEIPA as it gets, the balance is a touch on the sweet side but otherwise well managed. Not as bold as other recent NEIPAs I’ve had though still tasty. 8/10.

M: Medium bodied with a nice creamy/dense carbonation – very German-beer-esque with this chunky Deutsche mouthfeel, das ist gut! 8/10.

D: Decent effort from the guys and girls at Prancing Pony, though it’s not mind-blowing, this is simply a well-crafted and straightforward NEIPA that proponents of the style can relate to and enjoy. Yes there are better NEIPAs out there, in fact there are better Prancing Pony beers out there too, I would still drink this any day of the week and be reasonably satisfied… unlike Mick Jagger, terrible stuff what with him getting no satisfaction. And thanks again to the lovely Prancing Pony rep for taking a punt on me reviewing their beers, cheers. 8/10.

Food match: The roasted pork belly I had for dinner is a winner with this brew.