With two double IPAs and two near-identical†recipes, Hargreaves Hill are on a journey exploring the modern IPA. Paper Hands and Diamond Hands are both 7.7 percent ABV and share the same malts and hops of Mosaic, Galaxy, Amarillo and Centennial, but where they differ is the rate at which those hops were added, when they were added, and the yeasts and the makeup of those malts.
Paper Hands is the clear and bitter West Coast, with the name stock market slang for someone who sells an investment quickly – maybe too quickly even, forcing them to miss those stocks going back up. Does this mean we can infer the Hargreaves team think too many breweries have moved away from classic West Coasts? Maybe, but what we can say for certain is that Paper Hands is a classic IPA, showcasing a floral and piney display, along with citrus flavours of sherbety orange and grapefruit against a quite chewy and bitter backdrop.
Meanwhile, Diamond Hands refers to someone who holds onto an investment in the face of a downturn, even if it doesn’t feel like anyone is abandoning hazy IPAs nor is there a downturn in terms of how many are being released. This steadfast hazy provides a mix of orange juice, pawpaw, passionfruit and ripe stone fruit and, in a textural sense, Diamond has a creamy and quite thick mouthfeel which ensures a soft landing over a sudden crash.
Will Ziebell
†As someone has since pointed out on Twitter, beers in which the use of hops, the choice of yeast, and the quantities of malt are different might be stretching the concept of "near-identical", so let's think of them as Arnie and Danny in Twins... Editor.
Published April 7, 2022 2022-04-07 00:00:00
