Little Man Salted Oreo Stout by WeldWerks Brewing Company (Greeley, CO) - Pastry Stout
Roasted malts, chocolate, lactose, marshmallows and salt bring a flavor not unlike liquid oreos but before it gets too much into sweet area a healthy dose of long lingering bitterness in the finish really brings it back. Very well balanced pastry stout.
Puff the Magic Hydra by Mortalis Brewing Company (Avon, NY) and Tripping Animals Brewing Company (Doral, FL) - Smoothie Sour
Another fantastic smoothie sour from Mortalis out of their Hydra “series” - tons of black- and raspberry flavors but not overly sweet instead the natural tartness of the fruits nicely wirk together with the tartness of the sour. The marshmallow and especially the coconut add an unexpected flavor in the end which really brings the sour together.
Wizard Hand of Evil by Cellarmaker Brewing Company (Oakland, CA) - IPA
Good example of a NEIPA which doesn’t cover too much the overly sweet profile but still has plenty of juiciness. Good flavors of pineapple and orange give way to some notes of grassy flavors (which are never too much present). Relatively strong malt backbone and a dry, low-to-medium bitter finish.
Roach Clip by Great Notion Brewing (Portland, OR) - NEIPA
Very fruit-forward NEIPA with tons of ripe peach, orange, honeydew and relatively high sweetness. There is some resinous dank in the second half of the sip but quite moderate. The sweetness from the start reappears towards the finish which has low-to-medium bitterness. Interesting hazy IPA which is close to the tipping point of overly sweet (but still it is hard to stop drinking it)
Gretel by Foundation Brewing Company (Portland, ME) - Maerzen
The bready biscuit smell transfers to the taste which also involves some slight caramel sweetness. Some additional grassy, earthy flavors lead to a very dry and quite bitter finish. Overall a robust Oktoberfest Maerzen with less sweetness and more bitterness and higher carbonation than most others
Pavia by Fair Isle Brewing (Seattle, WA) - Saison
Quite complex saison which initially starts with peach and grape flavors but quite fast adds this typical goaty taste of many saison with plenty of funk but also some lighter notes of vanilla from the oak. The second half of the sip gets some stronger tartness and a very dry, quite bitter finish with some citrus notes.
3-Way IPA (2025) by Fort George Brewery (Astoria, OR), Sunriver Brewing Company (Sunriver, OR), Mirage (Seattle, WA) - Hazy IPA
Very well done collaboration NEIPA with well balanced flavor profile - citrus (tangerine) and tropical (honeydew, peach, mango) flavors dominate before some grassy notes add to the flavor. Dry, low-to-medium bitter finish. Very smooth mouthfeel and highly drinkable
Gemini (Strawberry, Kiwi, Starburst) by Mortalis Brewing Company (Avon, NY) - Smoothie Sour
The Gemini series is a kind of playground for sours at Mortalis where they try out small batches of unusual combination. This one worked quite well with strawberry and kiwi having some sweetness but also inherited tartness whereas the starburst gives an interesting background flavor. Everything is balanced by the tartness of the sour even though the sourness could have been a bit higher.
