I’ll preface this one by saying that yesterday (Wednesday) we wrapped up the judging on the New World Beer and Cider Awards, and I am still in a mild post-judging fugue. The event remains one of the more shattering strings of days in my year. Tasting and discussing beers all day sounds like a blast, and it is, but the relentless pace and mental up-time is like little else. It’s the air traffic control of drinking.
Time for another beer then…
With the fresh hop season coming to a close, Garage Project’s illustrious series of Hāpi Sessions collabs with international brewers is again upon us. Volume 18 taps Seattle’s Fast Fashion brewery, with this (not stated, but maybe just implied these days) hazy IPA, double dry hopped with 2025 harvest Motueka, Cascade and the still unclassified NZ02 trial hop from Hāpi’s own breeding program.
Gentle lime citrus, minty mojito and distinct fresh lychee aromas precede similarly soft, tropical and stone fruit driven palate, with a remarkably creamy, somehow almost fluffy, mouthfeel. With a very easygoing bitterness and that incredible creamy roundness on the palate, it bears a striking fruit-salad-topped-vanilla-icecream energy; all without any lactose.
Before you wonder if I’ve been replaced by the body-snatchers, no, this isn’t my thing, not by a mile. But it’s still a remarkable demonstration of just what can be built out of simply malt, hops, yeast and water. Sweet hazy lovers should move on this while they can, the Hāpi releases do not hang around for long.
