Yeah Clint Yeastwood that pretty much mirrors how I feel about them. They just don't trip my trigger. And all I can think about when drinking one is, they made some mistakes and selling it anyway.
Dude… that is the most honest and entertaining beer review I have ever experienced. The wife comment nearly got me a Saison sinus rinse. I have tried a lot of Neipas in the last year - mostly on tap - and I have found a couple that were pretty good - the last one I enjoyed was by Clown Shoes I think - but nothing I would order again or brew. I’m not an American IPA fan. I brew and drink them mostly because I have friends who love them. Brit IPAs are more my style. Neipas strike me as a brewing experiment that went a bit off and everybody just tries to make the best of it by calling it a new style. Tropical, hazy and fruity are not positive characteristics in a beer for me. I speak only for myself, of course. Thanks for the laugh.I tried Hazy Little Thing. Now I'm here to offend everyone who likes it and provoke hostile comments.
The wife seemed to like it better than other beers because she hates bitterness. I think the sweetness masked it for her. It is not a great testimony to a beer's quality when my wife likes it.
If I went to a friend's house, and they served this with lunch, I would drink it and be okay with it. It's much, much better than no beer at all. But I am not motivated to drink the remaining 5 cans any time soon. After I had drunk half the can, I really wanted to pour the rest out and pour myself a different beer.
Is it possible they tried to push beer farther than it can reasonably go? Is that why some people don't like this style?
I wouldn't brew something like this for myself, but I could see doing a hazy to get my wife into beer. Maybe sneak some Splenda or something into it. Maybe I could go easier on the dry-hopping to prevent those weird aftertastes.
Or maybe it was just old, and it's supposed to be better than this.
Understood. It was definitely well thought out and provided solid background for your deductions. Carefully stated. To the point. Not snarky. I referred to it as a review because it was one. And a good one. The part where your wife liking it was not necessarily a good thing is what cracked me up. I can relate.I had to go back and read what I wrote, because I never intended to be funny. Now I guess the NEIPA fans are mad at me. I'm making a serious effort to find out what the style is all about.
Good post, and I agree with it.A good NEIPA/ Hazy can be a very tasty, but I’ve had a lot that fall short, very short. I don’t know that 6 hops are necessary for the style. Citra and Mosaic are well known work horses for the style. I prefer NEIPA’s over standard IPA’s because I prefer the juicier, smoother flavors as opposed to the punch you in the face bitterness of the standard variety. It’s also one of the most difficult styles to deliver a satisfactory product. Freshness is mandatory, like others have stated, for maximum enjoyment. You’ll know immediately when you get a good one. Like many styles, they just might not be for everyone.
I have been meaning to try the Juicy one, but have not yet. The dank one I don't think I will try. I had a dank IPA from another brewer, I think it was Stone, and I really did not like it. If you try the juicy one please post, it is on my list to try.They have at least four "hazy" beers in their repertoire. I like Hazy Little Thing, was not wild about Tropical Little Thing, and haven't had either Juicy Little Thing, or Dank Little Thing, which is new.
Lots of options, that's for sure...
Cheers!
I think at one point I emailed them to see if I could get the recipe for the Hazy little thing. If I remember correctly, they sent me the ingredient list and a somewhat mash schedule and temps. It was a bit vague, but they did say that it really depended on my system and the list should get me the info I need to taylor it to my setup. I remember thinking that it was a good email from the company and it gave me what I needed but did not give up any proprietary info like yeast strains.Sierra Nevada responded to my question. The response was quick, considerate, generous, and a little weird.
Basically, they said two things that didn't seem to jibe. First, they confirmed that the beer was too old. Second, they said it was past the 150-day mark. The beer was packaged 91 days ago.
I am quite sure they package their ales as soon as they're ready to drink. Surely the 150-day period is counted from the packing date.
They are sending me a check of some kind, good for a 12-pack. That's really nice of them. Great customer relations. I was perfectly happy to find ways to use the beer and then continue buying other Sierra Nevada products. I took a chance when I bought it, so I figured that was on me, not them. I flat-out told them it looked like they were making a mistake, but I gave them my address because I have a feeling they'll mail the check anyway.
My plan is to try to use the check to get the other Sierra Nevada hazy I found locally. I hope I like it, because I plan to review it.
Sierra Nevada makes a lot of great beer. The fact that one guy was not overly excited about one ale doesn't mean anything.
Nearly all of your description matches perfectly within the style. Intense and wonderful fruit aroma. Citrus/fruit taste, more akin a juice than beer. Sweet upfront and bitter aftertaste.The smell was wonderful and very intense, although it was more like orange juice than beer. I wondered what kind of hops gave off that aroma, because it seemed like I should use them in wheat beer. The web says it has 6 hops in it. I have no idea how you can make an intelligent choice involving 6 different hops, but I don't know everything.
The taste was also a lot like orange juice. It reminded me of the European soft drink, Orangina. It was sweet, but bearably so. Not terribly bitter.
The main problem I had with it was the aftertastes. More than one. It went down reasonably well, but then I got hit with weird stale and metallic flavors. Maybe that's from extreme dry-hopping? It just seemed off. Like they made a mistake. The aftertastes sort of killed the pleasure I got as I swallowed it. It tastes pretty good, but not fantastic, on the way in. Then you get the bill.
The power of marketeering can sell anything, apparently.
I don't like it too. IMHO, looks like someone throw concentrated juice and caramel in a bitter beer. Completely off balance.
Indeed, the heart of the matter.With everyone's taste being a little different
I would say two hearted is a great example of American IPA. rich malt and hoppiness and they compliment each other.Indeed, the heart of the matter.
In a previous thread linked earlier, the OP is not a big fan of Bell's Two Hearted but really likes Old Rasputin citing a score of 95 on Beer Advocate. Yet, Bell's Two Hearted also has a score of 95 on Beer Advocate and more ratings behind it.
One man's trash is another man's treasure applies in many different ways.
Of course, it’s official name is con artistry.Well, that is the whole point of it.
That doesn’t mean it hasn’t been a persistent backwater style for years now. I don’t consider it a fad, because it hasn’t ever been popular enough to be called one. More a niche. It’s so millennial and as much lazy as hazy. A kind of hazing craze. I suspect American craft beer would have been more successful today had it not stumbled down a murky path.Yup, definitely has no staying power...
https://pintpleaseblog.wordpress.com/2023/06/30/beer-trends-of-q2-2023-neipa-climbs-to-the-top/
Of course, it’s official name is con artistry.
I'm kinda falling off the hazy band wagon. Don't get me wrong, I like them but I've noticed a hazy = heartburn trend for me lately. I don't get that with other IPAs.
I saw a Youtube vid on one of the popular brewers, Clawhammer or The Apt Brewer, doing a NEIPA that he said was a Tree House "clone". I thought it looked really cool, and it is on my list to do. I seem to remember though the brewer was doing something in the process that I was not able to do with my setup. Be darned if I can remember right now, but it just is sticking with me.NEIPAs may be on an overrated list, but they aren't going anywhere anytime soon. At least not around me. I'm in CT, and although lagers and lighter beers are trending upwards, all the local breweries by me say their NEIPAs sell 3 to 1 to every other style. Just because something is overrated doesn't mean it's going away. Cheesy teeny bob pop music is terrible, yet it thrives lol.
The issue is the market is oversaturated with them. So there tends to be a lot of bad versions out in public. Again, to reference music, most musicians who take their craft super seriously probably hate most mainstream pop music made on a computer. Just like most super serious brewers hate to see such generic, bad examples of a beer style taking up 3/4 of refrigerator space at the local package store.
If you ever get to try a really good example of a NEIPA I think you'd like it. Not Sierra Nevada or Two Roads versions. I'm talking Tree House, Trillium, Other Half, Fiden's, Sloop etc. A really well crafted NEIPA is not just a fruit juice bomb. It has bitterness to balance out the sweetness and has a lot of interesting flavors from fresh hops.
Just my 2 cents, which most likely doesn't mean much. But, I tend to have a home brew NEIPA on tap almost all the time. It's one of my favorite styles to brew.
That doesn’t mean it hasn’t been a persistent backwater style for years now.
American IPAs? Yes, there might be some kind of “hop-industrial complex” thing going on. I can’t imagine why else anyone would take a perfectly decent beer and ruin it.Hmm? Hazies have dominated the IPA market for years now...
Cheers!
Sez Who?Beer isn’t supposed to be like a ‘fruit juice bomb’.
And yet here you are trying to redefine beer. And, how hazy? Where do you draw the line? If you don't like them, I'm cool with that. It's your personal choice. But don't try and take my fun away.It’s me denying millennials and hipsters the freedom to redefine beer that much
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