Name: Karma Hues (December 2019)
Brewer: Half Baked Brewing Collective (Philippines)
Style: Specialty IPA: New England IPA
ABV: 7.2%
Review Year: 2019
Karma Hues, a “Juicy IPA” brewed using Citra and Strata hops, marks the first beer of Half Baked to be released in cans. Although this pilot batch will not be released commercially yet, a keg of this beer will make its way to one of Manila’s craft beer bars very soon. Trivia: the name of the beer was inspired by the lyrics of the song Lawn Boy by the blues-rock band, Phish.
STYLE GUIDELINES
This beer is being evaluated as a Specialty IPA: New England IPA (21B) in the context of the provisional guidelines of the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) for the said beer style. The most current version of the guidelines can be found on the BJCP website.
Recommended Reading: ‘Juicy or Hazy’ Ales Debut in BA Beer Style Guide, Representing New England IPAs (CraftBeer.com, 2018)
TASTING NOTES
Karma Hues pours a hazy dark orange colored beer. Aromas of tropical fruits, particularly guava and passion fruit, make the first impression. The initial nose is then followed by caramel, honey, and strawberry notes in the foreground, while indistinct citrus notes compose the background. Hints of ethyl alcohol were also detected.
A light-medium bodied beer, this Juicy IPA has grapefruit and bread-like flavors up front. This is then followed by a basket of strawberries, passion fruit, and papaya. Pine hop bitterness is also present slightly to balance the fruitiness. Aside from the hints of ethyl alcohol, Karma Hues has distinct malty and cereal notes at the back end.
THE VERDICT
Despite the presence of ethyl alcohol notes on the nose and the palate, Karma Hues still passes as a very juicy and dangerously drinkable beer. To us, it is a beer that really showcases the salient characteristics of the hop varieties used. Further iterations (or the keg version) would likely not have the mentioned alcohol notes and thus would give more way to fruity aromas and flavors.
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