Description on Can
“This beer is #2 in our limited Hop Spin series, but it’s easily the #1 biggest IPA we’ve ever made. At 10.1% ABV, this massive Triple New England IPA has the rich, thick, and full body necessary to support an amount of hops bordering on irresponsible. Strata and Idaho 7 hops are bursting at the seams with bright notes of passion fruit, papaya, and grapefruit. Buckle up before taking this one for a spin.”
Background
Turning new head brewer Sean Carnahan loose, Insight Brewing started their limited Hop Spin series with their Hop Spin #1 Double Dry Hopped IPA featuring Sabro and Citra hops. Weighing in at 8.3% ABV that was dangerously drinkable, I was excited to come across a four pack of this Triple New England IPA.
Review
The first thing you notice as you pour one of these is the smell - inviting tropical, citrusy aromas that belie the alcoholic punch this beer packs. In the glass, it’s an opaque light orange fading to yellow almost like a slightly watery orange juice with pulp.
Tasting this, you are treated to tropical flavors underpinned with notes of grapefruity citrus that give way to a pleasant slight alcohol burn. Somewhere in the middle the hoppiness comes through, and in true New England IPA fashion, doesn’t overburden the beer with bitterness. The longer the beer was in my glass the better these flavors integrated. With a mouthfeel like a down comforter for your taste buds - heavy, soft, and welcoming - this thing goes down way too easy, truth be told.
Conclusion
Upon drinking the first one of these, I was suddenly transported back to my first experience with alcohol. I was a freshman in college (yeah, how does a mid-Michigan boy make it that far without drinking? I don’t really know either) and my roommate and I had found someone to buy us some alcohol and we settled in for the evening. A short time later and a few screwdrivers into the night I found myself flailing around on my back in the kitchen like Gregor Samsa, drunk on cheap orange juice and even cheaper vodka. Flash forward two and a half decades, and here I am enjoying this beautiful, balanced collaboration between alcohol and citrusy goodness all the while remaining upright. While I’ll never forget drinking those long-ago screwdrivers, this beer will stay with me for all the right reasons. Insight announced that the Hop Spin series would be a year-round endeavor, and with the success of the first two, I look forward to the release of number three in the series.