Name: City of Mist
Brewer: Magpie Brewing Co. (South Korea)
Style: Specialty IPA: New England IPA
ABV: 6.5%
Review Year: 2019
Magpie Brewing Co. (South Korea) embraces the haze with City of Mist, a hazy IPA brewed with oats and wheat malt.
Originally from Seoul, Magpie is based currently on the Island of Jeju, where it relocated to in 2016. The brewery produces a wide array of core beers and seasonal offerings that range from Pale Ales to Saisons and even Belgian Quadruples. The brewery also has a taproom in Seoul, where we were able to pick up fresh Magpie beers that include this one.
Read More: Catching the First Train: A Glimpse of the Craft Beer and Specialty Coffee Scenes in South Korea
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.
“Juicy or Hazy Pale Ale,” “Juicy or Hazy IPA,” and “Juicy or Hazy Double IPA” are beer styles from the 2020 Brewers Association (BA) Beer Style Guidelines. These styles are noted to represent what enthusiasts and brewers refer to as New England IPAs or Hazy IPAs.
Recommended Reading: ‘Juicy or Hazy’ Ales Debut in BA Beer Style Guide, Representing New England IPAs (CraftBeer.com, 2018)
TASTING NOTES
As expected, City of Mist pours a hazy yellow-orange color with a white head. We noted a superbly enticing aroma profile of gummy bears, lychees, guavas, passion fruit, and strawberries.
Medium-bodied and moderately carbonated, City of Mist opens up first with light impressions of oats and honey. These are then followed by a moderately sweet fruit-like flavor reminiscent of mangoes. Towards the end, faint vegetal bitterness and some indistinct fermented fruits surface. A faint dose of perceived light malt flavor manifests more after a sip and is supported by the recurring oat-like character.
THE VERDICT
Undeniably, City of Mist is something you would drink to warm up the night with or have two or three servings of in one sitting. While the appearance and the aroma are strong points of Magpie’s hazy IPA, we think the flavor can be improved further with more fruitiness and a maltier backbone.
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