Main St. Brewing is channeling the free-swingin’ spirit of the ’60s for a new Hazy Series of New England India Pale Ales (NEIPAs) that debuts with the drop of ‘Mindtrip’ on National Beer Day this Thursday, April 7.
A suite of four beers that turns back the clock to a groovier time and place when peace, flowers and free love were in plentiful supply, each NEIPA in the Hazy Series will spotlight unique combinations of hops such as Vista, Triumph, Nectaron and more sourced from purveyors like Charles Faram, Hops Connect and John I Haas.
For the uninitiated asking ‘What’s a NEIPA?’, it’s a style of India Pale Ale characterized by a cloudy, almost opaque colour (earning these beers their ‘hazy’ sobriquet), big, bold fruit aromas, juicy hop flavours and a smooth, creamy mouthfeel.
Ringing in at 5.9% ABV and 39 IBUs, Mindtrip utilizes a HDHC (high-density hop charge) brewing technique in combination with a new yeast designed to free bound thiols from HBC 586 and Mosaic hops and a delicate, calculated pale malt bill. The result is a rich juice bomb of a beer that’s aromatic, intense and unapologetically hazy and showcases aromas of pineapple and lychee.
“We want to take people on a trip to when Vancouver was vibrating in its own Summer of Love back in the late 1960s — a time to explore, experiment and expand minds and horizons,” says Main St. Brewing Co-Owner Cameron Forstyth. “In that same spirit, our head brewer Azlan Graves is expanding our own hop horizons and conjuring up vibes of hazier days gone by with four juicy new recipes comprising some really unique hop varieties.”
Mindtrip will be available on draught and in 473-mL single cans and four-packs in the Main St. tap room and retail store (261 East 7th Ave.) starting Thursday, April 7 as well as in select BC Liquor Stores and private outlets such as North Vancouver’s North Shore Liquor Store (1887 Marine Drive), Vancouver’s Eldorado Liquor Store (2310 Kingsway), Langley’s Shark Club Liquor Store (20169 88 Ave.) and Stag’s Head Liquor Store in Kamloops, and on tap at Suika Japanese Restaurant (1626 W Broadway) and Between 2 Buns (105 E Pender St.).
