After a deluge of dessert-themed smoothie sours, One Drop move through summer with a fresh round of jet-setting lagers, a new wave pilsner and a mighty DIPA.
Nego Što Adriatic Lager and Island Time Fijian Lager see the brewers take a deep dive into their fascinating Water Exploration series, which aims to make great worldly beers by recreating the distinct water profile of a region.
Given beer is around 90 percent water, it’s funny how often H2O is overlooked as a key ingredient. Let’s face it, compared to those attention-hogging hops, malts and yeasts, water is pretty much the Hufflepuff of the brewing world.
Channelling the water profile of Croatia’s deep springs (we’ll have to take their word for it), Nego Što stuns with its bright gold hue and glassy clarity. Built on elegant light malts and vibrant noble Styrian hops from neighbouring Slovenia, it is super clean, crisp and stupidly smashable. If all beers taste this good in Croatia, book me a ticket ASAP.
Island Time emulates the island’s natural artesian aquifers that made Fiji Water a staple of mini bars everywhere. Pouring like a golden sunrise, it’s a lovely and lively lager with flavours of lime, sav blanc and passionfruit from the new NZ Kohia Nelson blend, which combines Nelson Sauvin and Rakau hops with powdered passionfruit all in one. Fiji Gold ain’t got nothing on this.
Their Hoo Bangin' SoCal Pilsner thankfully doesn’t recreate Los Angeles’ dismal water profile but it does deliver a West Coast cracker that’s ideal for the last slice of summer. I love a good hoppy pils – West Coast, New Zealand or otherwise – but sometimes they can come off a bit thin and unconvincing. Not this one. Its light German malt bill and refreshing mouthfeel set the stage for the hops to shine, with double hits of Mosaic, Motueka and NZ Cascade imparting flavours of grapefruit and lime with a good dose of dank too.
If there’s ever a hops shortage, it’d be wise to look at the Super Freak DDH DIPA – I think they’ll all in here. There’s Motueka added to the mash before the boil and a heavy payload of Nectaron, Peacherine, Kohia Nelson and Citra thrown in after, adding a potent punch of passion-peach-nectarine to its pillowy mouthfeel.
It’s all supercharged with Phantasm powder, a new(-ish) NZ product that uses powdered grape skins to make brews even more ridiculously fruity (read more about it here). As with other beers featuring Phantasm, these performance-enhancing steroids do add a distinct, slightly "unreal" taste which might not be for everyone, but there’s no denying this freak is a hop monster.
Jason Treuen
Published January 16, 2024 2024-01-16 00:00:00
