Try?
Re-buy?
Who doesn’t love Hawaii? I know I sure do. I’m not sure what Asheville, North Carolina and Hawaii have to do with each other, but the fine folks at Asheville’s Highland Brewing Company obviously think there is something they share else they wouldn’t have brewed up their special release Hawaiian Lounge Juice Extra IPA.
Actually,
it’s the beer itself that has a Hawaiian theme, brewed as it is with, as
Highland says, Passionfruit, mango, and tropical hop aromas that
make for paradise in a glass. I put the “that” in there, in case you’re
wondering. Makes a lot more sense that way. Tropical fruit in your IPA might
have, as Michael Jackson once said of beer geeks sticking their nose in
their pints, got you asked to leave the pub 10 years ago. Today, though,
it’s a common occurrence, often with these tropical note producing hops.
What hops does Highland? Here are the beer’s ingredients, from the Highland website:
Hops Summit, Mosaic, Azacca, & Citra
Grist 2 Row, Caramel 40, & Flaked Oats
Highland Hawaiian Lounge Juice Extra IPA has an alcohol content of 8% by volume with 65 IBUs. I paid $7.50 for an 11-oubce glass at Taco Mac and Total Wine sells it for $15.99 a six-pack. Ouch!
My glass of Hawaiian Lounge Juice Extra IPA arrived a deep orange amber in color with a medium head of creamy foam and a passion fruit and citrus in the nose. Both appear in the palate, too with kiwi and mango and more citrus. A warm alcohol and grassy bitter finish round the beer out nicely.
I enjoyed this sipper well enough, but the high price on tap and even more so in the bottle would probably keep me from buying it again. $16 is a lot to pay for a six-pack of fruited IPA.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft
(G)=Growler
