The brewery crew at White Bay have described this hazy IPA as "easily their haziest beer to date"; I'd got with hazy cubed... If it was possible to be more opaque than opaque, this peachy-hued liquid would be there. Ripple Effect explodes with clouds of citrusy, stone fruit and melon rind aromas – indeed, the character is reminiscent of rubbing a plump hop cone in your palms at harvest time or falling backwards into a mound of freshly plucked hops. It doesn’t hold back on the pithy bitterness either. Essentially, they've gathered a stack of Simcoe, Citra and Mosaic hops and asked them to run riot in your glass and across your palate.
It's one thing to release a series of IPAs, but who does a series of coffee porters? White Bay and Little Marionette, that's who. They're back with a third collab and, I'd suggest, their most enjoyable to date. Drip features custom-roasted Mexican coffee beans, English and Kiwi specialty malts and a "charismatic" English ale yeast strain, and serves up a welcoming coffee expression of the chocolate-and-dark-fruits kind type. There's a little sweet nuttiness in the mix, the smoothest of mouthfeels, and a vibe that makes you wonder whether it would be OK to sip one of a morning in slippers and gown. Really rather relaxing.
James Smith
Published April 30, 2021 2021-04-30 00:00:00