Happy Sunday Funday ya’ll! It’s a dreary, rainy day here in Central Florida, but that didn’t stop me from picking up New Belgium’s latest release in their Voodoo Ranger IPA series. While none of the previous ones I have tried have been home runs, they were BOGO at Publix, so I got 12 craft beers for $10. Can’t beat that with a stick!
Appearance: This pours a clear, golden yellow with a 1 finger white head that hangs around forever. Especially considering that it’s a stout (pun intended) 7.7%!
Aroma: This is a tropical, fruit-forward aroma profile with lots of mango and pineapple. Most of their Voodoo Ranger series is closer to a New England IPA as opposed to the classic, super bitter West Coast IPA.
Flavor: Like the nose, this is a tropical pineapple flavor with a bit of bitterness at the very end. There isn’t a heck of a lot going on like the other ones in the series, but you get pineapples, tropical hops, and a touch of bitterness. As they say, “It ain’t much, but it’s honest work.”
Mouthfeel: For being a heavy hitter, it drinks like a Budweiser or Yuengling. It’s fairly light on the palate, and I think the carbonation helps brighten it up.
Value: 12 craft beers for $10, sign me up!
Overall: New Belgium always has solid beers. But I’ve never had anything that they distribute that makes me go “Wow!” The flavors here are decent but pretty blasé, so I’d give it a 5/10. As far as juicy IPAs go, this is middle of the road, but there are far better ones.
I’ll be travelling to NC this week, so hopefully I’ll have some new brews/breweries to report back on! Until next time, tight lines and cheers!
Tight Lines & Beers 