Given the rapidity with which new beers hit taps at Tallboy & Moose's brewpub, we tend to sample them in batches of more than one. They tend to be batches that cover a fair amount of ground and that's no different here, with a trio covering hazy and hoppy, malty and smoky.
In the malty camp is Sonny Brook, a Vienna style lager with an American twist (ie more hops). The hops are CTZ out of the US and Dr Rudi from New Zealand, chosen to lend the beer a spiciness, which they do but not at the expense of the sweet, biscuity malts that give Sonny Brook its amber stylings.
DDH Nebula continues the brewery's exploration of all things hazy and hoppy. Their past takes on the New England IPA style have impressed (this is their sixth) and this is another pale and cloudy affair that delivers what you want from such beers. They're calling it a "NE Session IPA" and, while it still packs a bit of weight at 5.5 percent ABV, it packs far more in the way of juicy hops wrapped in a soft, full body that should make it rather easy to session. The hops in question are Galaxy, Enigma and Moutere, which serve up a tropical fruit salad in your glass.
The last of the trio takes a rather different path through beer's ever-broadening landscape, looking to Poland and the Grodziskie style – low in alcohol content and centred around smoked malt characters. Polski Prince's smokiness is of the sweeter kind, at least on the nose, while the beer finishes with a distinct and lingering dryness.
Published February 14, 2018 2018-02-14 00:00:00
