New England Brewing Co.
Woodbridge, CT
Available: CT
The Sea Hag is said to be the ghost of the faithful wife of a New Haven scoundrel. When he fled town to escape his creditors, she followed him to sea and vanished mysteriously.
Alcohol (vol.): 6.2
Color: copper-amber
Bitterness: 65-70
Original Gravity: 15.3
Final gravity: 3.5-3.8
Malts used: Thomas Faucet Pearle, crystal- Best Malz Munich and Melanoiden
Hops used: German Northern Brewer domestic Cascade and Hallertau Middlefrue
Pours an evocative, deep, rusty-red color and wags a sustained, dirty-blonde head. The aroma is earthy, with citrus and minerals, and fresh, blended hops that don't overpower. The bod is on the lighter side, but the caramel malt provides enough backbone to carry the brew. A light malty flavor gives way to a resinous hop flavor, with Cascade the evident variety. It finishes with crisp bitterness without being dry or thin. Strong work by New England. This Hag is both enticing and embracing. Try it with a savory and tangy roasted-veggie pizza.
IPA in a can. YES! Improve your river rafting and other “no glass” experiences. Terrific and extraordinarily fresh hop aroma bursts forth from protectively lined aluminum can. Assertive hop flavors, yet well balanced and smooth in character. Quite the balance. Wonderful “noble” hop character. High drinkability. Though I’m cautiously wishing the can/label told alcohol by volume to gauge maximum servings per hour I could enjoy without—well—shall I say over-enjoying this tribute to IPA? Loving it to the max.
Another canned IPA—is this the new fashion? The beer itself has a full copper color and a modest minty hop aroma. The bitterness attacks broadly up front, but then lets sweet malts emerge into the finish, which is clean with a mineral tang. Perhaps a bit tame for an IPA, especially in the aroma department, but it’s well-brewed and very pleasant. Just the thing for a well-loaded burger.
K. Florian Klemp is an award-winning homebrewer and general hobbyist who thinks there is no more sublime marriage than that of art and science.
Author of the New Complete Joy of Homebrewing, founder of the Great American Beer Festival and a Beer Examiner at www.examiner.com, Papazian is a leading voice in beer and brewing.
Internationally recognized brewer and expert on traditional beer, Garrett Oliver is the brewmaster of the Brooklyn Brewery and the author of The Brewmaster's Table.
