As promised, we are spending six days exploring random IPAs and trying to figure out what it is I don't like about them anymore (with the noted caveat that IPAs are wide-ranging, and it's not fair in the slightest to claim I don't like them, when there are so, so many different varieties).
Today, I had a Focal Banger. I recall that this was one of the more expensive beers that I bought in this IPA six-pack, but I wanted to get a nice variety of prices in there, and one would think that the more expensive ones would have a better chance at tasting better.
True, Focal Banger was better than Follow the Gull, but it was still a hazy juice-bomb bullshit IPA. It was a little crisper than FtG, and maybe hoppier? But definitely the same amount of haze. The Alchemist's website states right out front that they specialize in "fresh, unfiltered IPAs," so the haziness shouldn't be a surprise.
Here's something interesting—Beer Advocate calls this a "New England IPA," which they differentiate from American IPAs. New England IPA is not a style type that is mentioned in Tasting Beer, so I'm only going off of what this website says. Apparently, NE IPAs "deliver a bursting juicy, tropical hop experience." This might be a good way to easily distinguish between beers I might not like and beers I definitely won't like. A canary in the juice mine, if you will.
Anyway, there are two hops listed for Focal Banger: 1) Citra; 2) Mosaic. This means that we've had two beers that I didn't really like, and both had citra hops in them. Both were unfiltered as well, so the jury is still out. Eventually, we will run into a beer that is filtered, and can use that as a variable.
BEER: Focal Banger
STYLE: IPA ("New England IPA")
ABV: 7.0%
BREWED BY: The Alchemist
LOCATION: Stowe, VT
PURCHASED AT: ABV on Richmond
PAIRED WITH: pizza with the fam
GRADE: 2.5 pukes out of 5
BEER COUNT: 211 (I am a weak man who had a Miller Lite as well)
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