Ölbeat 267: Victory Hop Ranch

Brewery: Victory Brewing Company
Country: United States
Style: Imperial IPA
Abv: 9 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is hazy golden orange with a small white head. Aroma has orange, mango and pineapple. Taste starts with sweetish fruity bitter bite. Bitter piny grapefruit takes over with orange and caramel side tones. Towards the end pine and sweeter fruits like orange and mango step in the line with grapefruit. Aftertaste has sweet orange, bitter grapefruit and boozy pine.

My kind of Imperial IPA. More citrus fruits than biting bitterness, pine comes out supportive, not dominant. Alcohol stays viciously almost hidden. Damn delicious. Quite a salute towards the hop farmers from Victory Brewing.

Ölbeat

No country- nor farm-themed songs fit the mood of this great brew. And this song isn't about the fields of barley, neither.

Gary Moore (feat. Phil Lynott): Out in the Fields (YouTube)

From the 1985 album Run for Cover, the song was written by Gary Moore.

Ölbeat 203: Thornbridge Huck

Brewery: Thornbridge Brewery

Country: England

Style: Imperial IPA

Abv: 7,4 %

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What about the beer?

Colour is bright golden orange with a finger-thick white head. Aroma has grapefruit, lemon, orange - nice fresh citrus palette. Taste starts with citrus bitter bite. Fresh grapefruit with gentle resin takes over. Towards the end bitterness grows and both citrus (grapefruit-lemon-orange) and pine come clearer through. Aftertaste has lots of lasting strong grapefruit and spicy piny dryness.

High quality Double IPA. Beautifully tasty citrus with developing piny bitterness. Extremely enjoyable. In my books Thornbridge seems to have the top resume in Pale Ales in England.

Ölbeat

The combining theme with the beer and the song's name is obvious. The brewery hasn't kept its beers inside Derbyshire borders, but sent them "over the hills and far away". Good for people like me, since we like ales that rock.

Gary Moore: Over the Hills And Far Away (YouTube)

From the 1987 album Wild Frontier, the song was written by Gary Moore.

Ölbeat 056: De Ranke XXX Bitter

Brewery: Brouwerij De Ranke
Country: Belgium
Style: Belgian Ale
Abv: 6 %
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The hop-upgraded version of XX Bitter

What about the beer?
Colour is bubbly clear yellow with small white head. Aroma has lemon, yeast and grass. Taste starts with bitter and sour first bite. Lemon sourness and hoppy bitterness ride smoothly together. Near the finish the bitterness gets some tones of yeast and herbs. Aftertaste is sour and dry.

The tasty combination of sour citrus and dry bitter hops works with me. There are similarities with saison and farmhouse ales, which is excellent, but the bitterness turns the experience to a different direction, which is also excellent. Overall very fresh and clear cut experience.

Ölbeat

Bitter-sour brew can be matched with a blues song. Since the beer doesn't loosen its grip on the drinker easily, I found this piece of art from the master of blues rock:

Gary Moore: Enough of the Blues (YouTube)

From the 2001 album Back to the Blues, the song was written by Gary Moore.