Sunday, January 15, 2023

514. Big Lug Brewing Co. (Indianapolis, IN) - Hans Grubeer

“Everyone’s favorite Christmas movie villain now has a Christmas beer. A heavily hopped COLD IPA, basically a hoppy lager, that focuses on letting the hop flavors shine. Yummy Ki-yay. Yeah, we said it, not ashamed.”

Amy suggested Half Liter BBQ for lunch today, and if not for that suggestion, I might never have known of the existence of this beer. The name alone was enough to make me try it, and the one I had at the restaurant was okay—mild melon and papaya flavor up front and a pleasantly bitter finish (more like a straight-up IPA than a Cold IPA). Good, but not interesting.

Then I got a four-pack so I could try them at home, and just looking at the label on the can made me glad I had made the purchase. The Christmas tree on the can has the beer’s name in what looks like the font from the one-sheet for A Christmas Story, and it also has ornaments of Hans Gruber himself, as well as Nakatomi Plaza (pre-C4 and “Take this under advisement, jerkweed!”), John McClane’s lighter, and Karl’s chainsaw.
But wait! If you act now, you can double your pleasure and double your fun by turning the can over to look at what they stamped on the label just above the production date—it’s “Yippy Ki-Yay MF.”
And how do the one in the cans taste? A little bit different, actually. More like mixed fruit and vanilla up front, with a smooth finish that leaves a vague, lingering dryness on the back of the throat. Much more interesting than the one I had at the restaurant. I haven’t tried enough Cold IPAs yet to have an opinion, but if this is the kind of thing that can be done with them, then I’m on board.

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