#140: Green Flash Brewing Co. » Green Bullet (Triple IPA)

Green Flash 9th Anniversary offering hits seasonal rotation...

The Brewery: Green Flash Brewing Co. (San Diego, CA)
The Brew: Green Bullet (Triple IPA)
Availability: 12 oz. & 650 mL Bottles
ABV:  10.1
Rating: 9.3/10
Location: Home
Found: Fingerlakes Beverage Center

The Story? Back in 2011, Green Bullet was Green Flash's celebratory, 9th anniversary beer, which was met with fan acclaim and a bit of cult status. For 2013, this Triple IPA is available throughout the U.S., having been bottled for the first time.

The beer takes it's moniker from its namesake, one of two New Zealand hop varieties used in the brew. If you like single and double IPAs, why not keep going, right?

The Beer? I poured Green Bullet into my favorite wide-mouth wine glass (I really need to get a tulip glass) to a hazy, translucent caramel appearance and as slim amount of white head.

Bright citrus, candy sugars, lemon, and grapefruit are notable in the nose, which is more earthy than bitter. Alternatively, the taste is highly bitter. Tart, lemony, grass bitterness dominates with a parching finish.

Pungent, piney, and spicy - this triple delivers along with plenty of boozy esters that don't hide the 10.1%. All that said, it's highly enjoyable the whole way through the glass and never tiresome.

Overall, a solid hop-bomb that's worth checking out.

#063: Green Flash » Grand Cru (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)

GF's mysterious dark ale...

The Brewery: Green Flash Brewing Co. (San Diego, CA)
The Brew: Grand Cru (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)
Availability: 12 oz. & 650 mL Bottles
ABV:  9.1%
Rating: 8.5/10
Location: Home

The Story? As part of my aforementioned goal of working through Green Flash's entire bottled offerings on this blog, I found myself with a bit of free time for a drink and a science documentary before performing. A smooth, high gravity brew from Green Flash ought to do the trick.

The Beer? This Grand Cru starts off with an intriguing, dark, rich nose with hints of citrus and chocolate. Fluffy head with lots of late and staying power caps the chocolate colored brew.

Delectably smooth, with a light body. Refreshing, dark ale, intertwined with roasted malts, citrus, fresh plums, and other juicy fruit. Classy, clean taste and mouthfeel complimented by cordial interactions of yeasts, spice, rich malts, and hop complexity. A twist of the 9.1% heat begins to creep in at the end with mild raisin noses.

Overall, a unique and elegant Belgian style that is complex and accessible.  Recommended to share with friends. I think everyone is going to experience this one in their own way.

#035: Green Flash Brewing Co. - Palate Wrecker (Double IPA) #IPAday

In honer of IPA Day, time to wreck some palates...

(amazing how photo editing on a different comp can change pic settings...)

The Brewery: Green Flash Brewing Co. (San Diego, CA)
The Brew: Palate Wrecker (Double IPA)
Availability: 12 oz. & 650 mL Bottles
ABV:  9.5% | IBUs: 100+
Rating: 9.5/10
Location: Home

The Story? It's IPA Day! Let's play with some heavy hitters.

The Beer? I can already smell the hops from a foot away taking the picture on this one! Pours translucent copper with a bit of lacy head. Do they make air fresheners of this?

Beautiful, refreshing hop goodness. Hints of sweet on the first sip, but bitters quickly.

A hop lovers dream in a bottle right here. Puckery grapefruit, with a solid malt spine, providing robust support. Definitey on the brighter, acidic side of things and it works in its favor.

A bit of boozy tang in the background which grows throughout the glass... not sticky sweet like a barelywine, but does become more and more prevalent. Nice.

Funny thing is, I like this one better in the bottle. I've had it on draft twice of late and cold, out of the bottle I'm able to pull a far broader spectrum of flavor.

I've seen some remarks that this beer is overwhelming and unbalanced (even taking in the nature and purpose of it), but I find it, while still Palate Wrecking, to still be well crafted, balanced, while packing a huge hop punch and letting it shine.

It's never abrasive. Dry, bright, and bold, but I can still sit and hang out with it knowing it's a beer and not some while liquor or herbal disastor.

#028: Green Flash - Saison Diego (Saison / Farmhouse Ale)

One for the subtle ones...

The Brewery: Green Flash Brewing Co. (San Diego, CA)
The Brew: Saison Diego (Saison / Farmhouse Ale)
Availability: 12 oz. & 650 mL Bottles
ABV:  4.2% | IBUs: 20
Rating: 7.5/10
Location: Home

The Story? Green Flash's offering have peaked my interest for a while and Saison Diego was next up, in my attempt to make my way through their entire bottled line. After Le Freak, Pallet Wrecker, and Friendship Brew; this had high expectations.

Green Flash lists the beer as "Unfiltered golden farmhouse ale, brewed with Seville orange peels, Chinese ginger and grains of paradise. Light, bright, spicy aromas, lively carbonation and earthy flavors co-mingle with musty notes that add funky complexity" - a great number of those words, especially in the combination sound like tasty to me.

The Beer? Mmm... a nice Belgian noise with some mild funky/sour hints - sour dough bread, maybe?  Hazy yellow coloring with a medium head after the pour.

First sip - the ginger is very mellow and not spicy at all. More of the earthiness of the ginger is present than the usual spice. A mild, bright taste with perky carbonation. The orange peel is in there somewhere along with the grains of paradise. Hints of pepper, white bread, and yeast all dialed back with some funk in the back of the room.

Finishes with a bit more earthy, funk imprint at the end of the bottle, but never aggressive.

Overall, a very delicate beer. Not as attention grabbing as I had hoped, but good for those looking for subtle, mellow, and light.  Reminds me of the Game Of Thrones Blonde from Ommegang (another brew featuring grains of paradise) - neither is a disappointing beer by any stretch, but in they're both a bit mellow for their own good. Saison Diego has a lot of potential for wowing beauty with the citrus, ginger, funk, grains of paradise, and yeasts present, but none are present enough to lead the pack.

I'd be very interested in comments from anyone who seeks out more delicate beers such as this and their thoughts on the matter.

#022: Green Flash - Le Freak (Belgian IPA)

"Belgian IPA" is likely the most understated description possible for this Freak...

The Brewery: Green Flash Brewing Co. (San Diego, CA)
The Brew: Le Freak (Belgian Trippel / American Imperial IPA)
Availability: Bottles
ABV:  9.2% | IBUs:
Rating: 10/10
Location: Home

The Story? The beers from Green Flash are those kind which I should just keep in at all times. Anything really. As long as something of theirs is in the house, we'll be good to go.  I had a couple close calls finding this on draft, and for that reason put off diving into it until then.

The official description from Green Flash is "An ‘out of the box’ modern ale crafted by converging two beer styles, Belgian Trippel and American Imperial IPA. Dry-Hopped and Bottle-Conditioned – it’s a zesty brew with enticing American hop and fruity Belgian yeast aromatics." - which is really dead-on compared to some overzealous (or underzealous) from the brewery descriptions. Get ready..

The Beer? Crazy, complex nose - big booze, lots of hops, and Belgian spice all vie for my olfactory attention. Nice lacy head too. The taste - zesty indeed!! Those hops and Belgian spices build wonderfully on each other. It's like a feedback loop of brew-tasticness wonderment in my mouth. You almost have to exclaim something after drinking it. Vibrant and bold.

There really is a lot going on here. Very west-coast on the hops in the best of ways, a bit tart, with the slightest hint of must. A very refreshing, complex beer. I want more now...