Name: “Route via Cubao-Antipolo”
Brewer: Hideout Craft Brewery x The Marc’s & Tony Brewing Co. (Philippines)
Style: Specialty IPA: New England IPA
ABV: 6.5%
Review Year: 2019
Two of the country’s most experimental (and our most reviewed) craft brewers, Tatz Ang of Hideout Craft Brewery (Cubao, Manila) and Tony Sindayen of The Marc’s & Tony Brewing Company (Antipolo, Rizal) team up for the very first time. The result of this collaboration is the Route via Cubao-Antipolo, a New England IPA at 6.5% ABV.
Brewing a New England IPA seemed to be the obvious style to create for these two. Tony has been impressing us with his previous juice-like creations such as the Andromeda NEIPA, Citrus Galaxy NEIPA brewed with Kveik yeast, and his back-to-back release, Hop Bombs and Tropic Jam. Meanwhile, Hideout Craft Brewery has gone on a full experimental phase with his Hopman series, releasing various single-hopped beers that bring the best out of each hop variety used.
The two brewers executed their respective reinterpretations of the base recipe they have agreed on. Think of this collaboration beer as a coin with two sides. Route via Cubao-Antipolo was released in packs of four, with half of the beers made by Hideout and the other half by The Marc’s & Tony. The cans are differentiated by a tiny red dot on the label.
STYLE GUIDELINES
These beers are being evaluated individually 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.
TASTING NOTES
Route via Cubao-Antipolo (left dot marked red)
The first of the pair is pastel yellow-orange in color. Compared to its counterpart, this has a brighter shade and is visually less cloudy. The nose evokes freshly peeled lime, orange peels, leafy vegetables, rambutan, and lychee. With a medium-body, the palate of this beer is composed of juicy and sweet mandarin orange pulps, pineapples, and some white grapes. Puckery oranges, pine bitterness, and more hints of rambutan leave their lasting mark.
Route via Cubao-Antopolo (no dots marked red)
The second version is visibly hazier, with a slight pinkish-orange color. Aromas reminiscent of rambutan, lanzones, mangosteen, and gumamela flowers come forward. The nose also picks up slight alcohol notes along the way. Meanwhile, the taste profile of this NEIPA is of zesty lime, pomelo, and pineapples, with more sourness present relative to its counterpart. This one is also noticeably less sweet than the first one. Some tartness from tamarind and pomelo continue after, with a longer and lingering finish compared to the first one.
THE VERDICT
As to not spoil the fun, we will not disclose which variant we favored more. However, what we can tell you is we think the first version is by the Cubao-based brewery, while the second one is by the Antipolo-based one.
From the appearance alone, the second variant has a more opaque aesthetic. Cloudy beers seem to be Tony’s recurring theme in his recent brews as we suspect oat additions play a part in making his beers look hazier. We also think the first one is by Hideout because it is more aromatic. Tatz has been using quite a lot of hops in his double dry-hopping process to give his beers more fragrance. This is evident in his previous brews.
The flavor profile of the first variant reminds us of Hideout’s previous releases. We reckon this NEIPA is a hybrid between The Mandarinian and Infinity Hops Plus One. Lastly, in terms of the beer’s mouthfeel, the second variant is more pillowy. Again, it is most likely due to the addition of oat flakes by Tony.
Do you agree with our guesses? Which one did you like more? Send us a message or comment below!
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