冬の気まぐれ 2018年 (Fuyu no Kimagure 2018)

The Kimagure series is ever changing, and it is also our canvas for experimentation with new techniques and ingredients. While recipes are never the same between seasons or between years, quite often what we learn during these brews is incorporated in future products or used to fine tune the methods we use in existing ones. For the most part, the most obvious elements of this experimentation revolve around the hops, and this year’s Fuyu no Kimagure is no different.

When most people think of Session IPA these days, they think fruity, citrusy, and juicy. While any beer hitting all of these notes is sure to be a winner, we wanted to challenge ourselves a bit by looking to different hop varieties than the usual go to choices for the style. As we looked at our inventory, Calypso stood out as an obvious choice to feature this year, with its description ranging from apple and pear to tropical fruit to grassy and herbal. It seemed like a perfect fit for our American Ale yeast that provides a hint of fruity white grapes, and Cascade and El Dorado were chosen to balance out the flavour and aroma. All of this hoppiness was layered on a simple yet delicious background of malt made up of 65% base Pilsner, 25% malted wheat, and 8% malted oats that gives plenty of character despite the low ABV.

In the end, this is one of the most unique iterations of Fuyu no Kimagure to date. Dry and drinkable, with a refreshing blend of fruit and herb flavours, this beer is sure to be a go to throughout the season!

Style: Session IPA

Malt Bill:

Pilsner, Wheat, Oats

Hops:

Bittering: Merkur

Flavour/Aroma: El Dorado, Cascade, Calypso

Yeast: American Ale

ABV: 4.5%

IBU: 20

Gas Volumes: 2.4