Thus Let Us Drink Beer – Green Beacon TDH OC IIPA
I am in love.
While I have tried and enjoyed the fantastic and award decorated core range of one of the stalwarts of the ever evolving Australian craft beer scene, i.e. Green Beacon, founders Marc Christmas and Adrian Slaughter have created a brew to celebrate their eight anniversary and it won me over instantaneously.
Their previous IPAs and special releases from barrel aged variants to fruit sours have been a delight and just when I thought that Green Beacon having become part of Asahi might have dampened their experimental endeavours to push the envelope, they release a monster that goes by the moniker TDH OC IIPA.
Despite clocking in a 9% ABV, this babyh is smooth and velvety and while the bitterness is subdued (15 IBU), the fact that it is a hybrid of four different cryo hop-varietals, i.e. El Dorado, Azacca, Idaho 7, & Mosaic, results in an extravagant tour de force of hazy deliciousness with tropical highlights.
As the royally indulgent name suggests (“Triple Dry Hopped Oat Cream Double India Pale Ale”), there is a whole lot going on with this brew and each sips brings on a wave of new flavours, playing the claviature from creamy oaty nuances via a dominant pineapple streak, resting on a piny, resiny backbone and a slightly herbaceous aroma.
Golden amber in colour with a soft white head and soft carbonation, toffee and caramel weave in with a big dankness and a zesty, stonefruity punch, culminating in a warm, desserty crescendo with the finish, which has me go for seconds.
I paired the TDH OC IIPA with a dram of Ardbeg’s Corrywreckan, which resulted in my better half telling me of as she got annoyed that I stopped engaging in a conversation as I kept swirling endlessly and only had lip-smacking to contribute.
If this brew was to celebrate Green Beacon’s eight anniversary, then I cannot wait to see how they channel their alchemy for the tenth.
