With Karlvana, Rocky Ridge's brewers sharpen their focus: this isn't a mere West Coast IPA, this is a Pacific Northwest IPA. That said, given just how broad and vibrant the hop-growing industry is in the region, it's not like they're hampering themselves.
The IPA comes bearing a shopping list like offering of hop additions in various forms: Ekuanot, El Dorado, Idaho 7, Cryopop, Amarillo, Sabro and Talus. Little surprise, then, that a flavour wheel of hop characters is on full display here, contrasting well against each other without any one flavour overbearing. Sweet, dark berries and piney, woody, earthy notes sit against nutty coconut, ripe, fleshy stonefruits and pome fruits like nashi pear and apple. All of these, and more, collude upon a clean and crisp base beer, in part thanks to fermenting it with a neutral lager yeast strain.
While the can artwork and name make clear reference to Nirvana and their famed 1991 album Nevermind, thus drawing a connection to the Pacific Northwest, this beer couldn’t be further from a grunge act. Instead, it's clean, fruity and entirely approachable; more post-grunge or Britpop, perhaps?
It's a highlight among the many recent RR releases, which have also included: a rebrew of their popular collab with Copper & Oak, Good Energy West Coast Juicy IPA (7 percent ABV); See Me Rollin' imperial hazelnut choc stout (8 percent ABV); Summer Slam passionfruit pale with The Pourhouse (5.5 percent ABV); Hopnotic NEIPA (6.66 percent ABV), Frostbite Californian IPA (7 percent ABV); Lookin’ Back On The Track Italian Pilsner (5.2 percent ABV); Alrighty Then West Coast Juicy IPA; Frootie and the Blowfish fruited smoothie sour (8 percent ABV); Tin Can of Emotion NEIPA (6.8 percent ABV); and, for fans of their core staple Jindong Juicy, the appearance of that beer in tallboy 500ml tins for the festive season.
Jono Outred
Published November 27, 2023 2023-11-27 00:00:00
