All the beers in today’s flight included the same “mystery ingredient”. That was all we were told, and we were asked to try to guess the ingredient. We had no idea what it might be. And when I say we had no idea, I mean we didn’t have a clue … in so many ways.
It was a warm day on the patio, and here was the lineup.
Number 1: (far left) Very clear, with just a hint of amber. The nose reminded us on apple juice an pear juice. The taste was light and fruity, with a hint of sweet and bitterness.
Our guess: …. not a clue. And the answer was, Haus of the Rye-sing Sun.
Number 2: This one was moderately cloudy in the glass with the colour of straw. We got peach, stone fruits, citrus and “caramel-icity” (whatever that is) on the nose. The taste was rich and full, but it quickly faded leaving a clean light aftertaste.
Our guess: …. still not a clue. And the answer was Kashmir.
Number 3: Very hazy in the glass with the colour of ripe mango. The nose and the taste both reminded us of lime with a fairly strong bitter aftertaste. All of today’s beers were refreshing, but this was the best. John’s take was “best on the beach”.
Our guess: With a few hints we eventually guessed “Live Session‘ and finally we got one right. We’ll take it because we need all the help we can get.
Number 4: (far right) This beer was very hazy and the colour of pink grapefruit. One sip and it was clear this was a sour. It had a clean refreshing aftertaste, but you have to like sours if you drink this. John’s take was “pucker factor of ten”. Not for everyone’s taste, but if you enjoy sours you’ll love this one.
Our guess: Radio Guava.
And the mystery ingredient? Turns out it was wheat, which typically gives beer a hazy appearance. So much still to learn…