580. Moontown Brewing Company (Whitestown, IN) - Mounds

“It’s time for another Pints for Parks series adventure! We are headed to Anderson for our 9th park, Mounds. We brewed a hazy juicy IPA featuring Strata, Citra, and Mosaic, favoring heavier additions of Strata throughout the process. A pleasant and bright tropical fruity nose greets you on your path to dankness. Take the path, it drinks clean, creamy, and easy, loaded with tons of fresh fruit flavors. Cheers to our state parks, thank you for your support!”

Strong grapefruit and pine up front when it’s cold, and some mid-range strawberry from the Strata as it warms. The bitter finish contrasts quite beautifully with the strawberry flavor, but the 9% ABV is too high for them to claim that it drinks easy. That said, it’s an excellent beer, and probably the best thing I’ve tried at Moontown.

579. Henderson Brewing Co. (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) - Rush Canadian Golden Ale

“This Rye Golden Ale pours a gorgeous old gold colour, with a dense, ivory head. Notes of orange, caramel and black tea accompanied by a piney & citric hop character welcome you at the sip; then followed by a dry spicy, bitter finish reminiscent of white rye bread.”

That rye is strong up front, and it mostly masks the other flavors; but it’s crisp and interesting, and it’s the best of the four Rush beers I recently acquired.

578. Deschutes Brewery (Bend, OR) - Squeezy Rider West Coast IPA

“Chill out with this juicy refresher that’s packed with heaps of hops to bring torrential tides of tropical flavor and a dab of dankness. Big tropical fruit punch aroma, light dank, and melon paired with clean, light malt character. Hop and yeast-driven fruity sweetness balanced with a bitterness that is laid back, leaving you care-less about IBU’s."

Um. Orange up front while it’s cold, and then papaya up front as it warms. The finish isn’t quite bitter, but it does kind of linger on the palate. If they had not said they were shooting for West Coast-style, I would not have guessed it. It ain’t bad, but it ain’t quite what they’re selling, either.

577. Deschutes Brewery (Bend, OR) - Farmstand Fresh Mango IPA

“We sought to create an IPA that brought huge mango flavor from aroma to finish. The experience is like traveling to a tropical locale and grabbing a mango from a farm stand and placing it in your IPA and hanging in your hammock.”

Yep…it’s a mango IPA, all right. The flavor is big up front, and it lingers well past the back end. It’s almost cloying, but they wisely build in a dry finish that gives the beer a nice balance. There might even be a hint of coconut in there.

575. Quaff ON! Brewing Co. (Nashville, IN) - Six Foot Strawberry Blonde

“Quaff ON! Six Foot Strawberry Blonde features real strawberry infused into our popular Six Foot Blonde ale. Crisp and refreshing with pleasant touch of fruit, Six Foot Strawberry Blonde is a taste of summer at any time of year.”

Crunch Berries in a bottle. That’s either going to get you there or turn you all the way around in the other direction. Not sure how I missed posting this before now, as this is one of my all-time favorite beers, from one of my favorite breweries.

576. Centerpoint Brewing Company (Indianapolis, IN) - Birdie

“This India Pale Ale was brewed with Mosaic and Pacifica hops that give this beer a fruity, citrus, and floral aroma with mild bitterness.”

The orange flavor from the Pacifica hops stands out both up front and on the back end, while the fresh pine flavor from the Mosaic sort of goes streaking by. There’s just a hint of bitterness in the finish, which nicely balances the sweetness of the orange flavor. Looking back over my other entries, I’m noticing how often I mention orange flavor when I try Centerpoint beers. Maybe that’s their thing. If it is, they’re pretty fucking good at it. For one goofy second there, I thought I was getting tired of IPAs; but this one brings right back to mind how wonderfully complex and interesting the style can be.

574. Moody Tongue Brewing Company (Chicago, IL) - Juiced Lychee IPA

“In our search for balance, we began to explore the creation of a beer which would celebrate the flavors and aromatics of South Pacific tropical fruits without the bitterness of many West Coast IPAs. The Juiced Lychee IPA showcases the same tropical profile which provides acidity for salsas which cut through rich dishes like al pastor tacos and fried shrimp. Enjoy this IPA on the beach—or around your closest friends thinking about the beach—while celebrating with all of the tacos and seafood that you can hold in one hand.”

Um. I keep thinking these beers are going to be better than they are, and I keep being disappointed. If you want to call this one tropical, knock yourself out. The one I had on tap at Byrne’s Grilled Pizza this afternoon might well have had some tropical flavor, but it wasn’t prominent. There was fruit flavor, but it was sort of all over the place. It had a nice, dry finish, but was not especially impressive.