Posted on 11/05/22
I’d just about finished writing this post this week, and had my mouse hovering over ‘publish’ when there was a knock at the door.
I hobbled over, answered grumpily, and quickly changed my tune: a fresh new consignment of Neon Raptor and Azvex stuff had just arrived!
Two of the new drops feature in this list. So, this week, let’s begin with Azvex…
Dry hopped with Citra, Idaho 7 and Azacca, Volcanic Lightning IPA is a fine example of much-loved hops colliding with the experimental. There’s a citrus undercurrent throughout, which leans towards pineapple, plus there’s a juicy swirl of mango brought in by Azacca. The Azacca adds fresh pine to round things off.
It’s Azvex, too – which these days is synonymous with thick and creamy. Immense.
Neon Raptor continued the haze-trend this week with Centrosaurus, a new NEIPA brewed in collaboration with F**k Cancer.
This is in the same sort of ballpark as Volcanic Lightning, with Bru-1, Citra, Citra Lupomax and Chinook hops – so dependable brilliance with an experimental twist.
The Bru-1 adds tropical fruit to citrus and you get pineapple duelling with sweet mango throughout.
Choosing between this and the Azvex is a very tough call.
Elsewhere in hop-land, Basqueland are new in this week with what… six… new hoppy gems to get stuck into, and I’d suggest anyone into hops should check out Psychic Sidekick Double IPA.
Amazing name aside, this DIPA starts out as creamy tropical juice but the whole thing somehow hand-brakes into a long, satisfying, dry lingering finish. It’s wizardry I’ve not seen before. 4.22 on Untappd – and the rating is justified.
Few beers have sold quite as quickly as the recent Arbor stash we got in, so this week we topped things up with three rounds of single-hop deliciousness in proper pint (yes, pint!) cans, and just look at the beauty of Texas Sunday Morning Hazy IPA.
Three dependably juicy hops in Amarillo, Citra and Idaho 7 combine for glassful of orange, papaya, melon and sticky apricot.
Immense!
You’ll of course want to check out Hop City 2022 DDH IPA this week too – the hop-soup brewed annually in conjunction with Hop City festival.
This year’s version was brewed by none other than international juggernauts Northern Monk, Whiplash, Fidens and Zichovec, and features a frankly ridiculous volume of hops per litre.
Reaction to this one has so far been mixed, with some complaining of hop burn, possibly from the sheer volume of hops in use. Others, however, have loved it, so I’d say this is one for the experienced.
Proceed with caution. Only £5.95 a can mind!
Over in Sourville, it’s Basqueland that once again come out on top this week, and in particular thanks to the beautiful Creamsicle Mango & Coconut Pastry Sour.
The sour mango cuts through the creamy coconut perfectly, and the vanilla sweetness that rounds things off is inspired.
Lovely stuff!
Brew York took a leaf out of Vault City’s playbook this week with their new Pineapple Cubez 4% Sour, a beer inspired by the sweets of the very same name.
Fruity, zingy and refreshing in equal measure, this is exactly what you want when the sun is shining.
And just £4.35 a can?! Sign me up!
Elsewhere Pomona Island saw Brew York’s effort and raised it this week with the mighty May Mosaydee Kaylie Lowya Roses Imperial Tropical Fruit Sour, a beer brewed in collaboration with Sommar Brew Co.
This has pineapple, citrus, there’s guava going on; sourness is subtle… and the ABV? How the hell is this 10%?!
I love Pomona Island – stuff like this is why it’s great to have them back!
Finally, on the lager front, you know it’s gonna be good when it’s by Lost and Grounded, and in the case of Dog Day Afternoon Kolsch-Style Beer the cute dogs on the can just make things irresistible.
What, you want to know about the beer? Fair point – think crisp lager. Now add body and flavour. Plus a fruity, almost jammy edge. Is it a lager? Is it an ale?
It’s both – it’s time more of us began drinking stuff like this!
The breaking dark news this week is that Sussex Small Batch have departed from their 5% sweet staples and into boozy territory with 10% Midnight Hour Imperial Stout. It’s roasty, it’s malty, it’s high ABV… Some are saying this is the best Sussex Small Batch they’ve ever had – which is saying something given the popularity of stuff like Reece’s Stout and Bountiful!
Brew York’s Obi Wan Cannoli Milk Stout is an altogether much more chocolatey affair, and those in for dessert will be wanting to get in on this monster Basqueland Pastry Stout too. The Basqueland, in particular, is top tier brewing.
Basqueland’s Chocolate & Vanilla Porter rounds off the darks this week, whereas the sours are topped by another gem in Pomona Island’s My Pink Half Of The Drainpipe Tropical Sour and Brew York’s lovely Mango & Lime Milkshake IPA. Oh, and Pressure Drop’s Yuzu & Rasberry Sour Ale too, which, as you’d expect, is proving a popular drop.
Finishing off the hops you’ve got Ooft! DIPA from the mighty Overtone, a new IPA from Pomona Island and a lovely West Coast IPA in Fortune of Fear. Plus Gravity Well are back in with Hypersphere NEIPA and the kveik yeast fermented Kveik It Simple Nelson Sauvin NEIPA.
There’s a truckload more online as always – I’m beginning to lose track of just how many beers we now stock but it’s well into the hundreds! So choose by brewery, price, ABV or even hops, and go wild. Get hunting – there’s so much good stuff to explore!
As always, I really hope you get to enjoy some of these epic new beers this week.
Cheers and happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Step 1
We trawl the globe tasting great beer
