I braved a blizzard for a trip up to Michigan to
visit Founders and New Holland.
Pick 6 Winner: Azacca
I was pretty sure I wasn’t going to survive the trip, somehow we did. After leaving Madison at 11 am, some 7 hours and several inches of snow later, we were in the beautiful city of Holland, Michigan.
And boy was I happy to learn that downtown Holland boasts the largest underground municipal snowmelt system in the United States. By running hot water through pipes under their streets and sidewalks, the downtown remains relatively snow free. Making it one of the best cities to enjoy a beer during a blizzard.
And so I did just that. Cheers to the new year and these fine Michigan beers.
Founders – Azacca – 7.0% – IPA
Founders: “Named after the Haitian God of agriculture, the Azacca hop has an intense tropical aroma with hints of citrus and mango. A touch of caramel malt gives a sweet backbone to support the righteous fruit character of this beer. Pouring a burnt orange color and registering at 7.0% ABV, your taste buds will worship this heavenly, hopped delight.”
Heavenly hopped delight is right. It’s a nice, bitter but juicy IPA. Filled with tropical notes of pineapple and mango, as well as some grassy hops. On top of that, the sweet crackery malt helps balance out the hops just a bit. But overall, if you love high-powered hopped IPAs, then this is definitely a must.
‘Azacca
got me dreaming
oven hot beaches
sun rays beaming
of my resolution
my last winter in
wintery Wiscon-
-sin.’
New Holland – Mad Hatter – 7.0% – IPA
New Holland’s fames Mad Hatter is “celebrated with floral aromatics from assertive dry-hopping, and a bright, hoppy body, punctuated with Centennial, Citra and Michigan-grown hops.”
Those plethora of hops really shows up to play. Mad Hatter is a nice mix of piney and citrus hops, with some subtle grapefruit, tangerine juiciness. On the malt end, it reminds me almost of a pale ale as opposed to a full blown IPA, with strong caramel and biscuit flavors, which add a nice balance to the beer.
‘New Year n’ we gotta go
follow the new season flow
don’t you know, life’s just
about digging it
loving it
getting kicks
live a life always ecstasy
open eyes finally see
all of life
beautiful
mad
holy.’
New Holland – Cabin Fever – 6.5% – Brown Ale
If you haven’t noticed, Cabin Fever didn’t make it to the picture above. I got a bit too lit on New Year’s Eve. But the beer was so good, that I even now I can recall it all.
New Holland describes Cain Fever “a roasty brown ale and a hearty, comforting companion for long, mind-bending winters.”
My notes, or what’s legible of them, tell me that Cabin Fever was a rich brown ale, with notes of caramel, toffee, and cocoa. It reminded me of a strong coffee, that’s been sweetened down, as the beer has a nice creamy texture to it.
‘Coffee brown
cabin in the
cold north woods
hiding from the
cold, drinking to
the good.’
New Holland – Full Circle – 4.4% – Kölsch
Full Circle is a very floral and grassy hopped beer, with sweet, light grain malts and an apple/fruit aroma. It’s a nice change of pace kind of beer and very refreshing.
‘Life’s two
repetitions
a heartbeat
in
finding yourself
only to lose
again
each beat
ephemeral
two halves
a full circle.’
New Holland – Lost Dune – 5.5% – Fruit Ale
New Holland says that Lost Dune is a “refreshing and aromatic summer ale. Tropical notes of Mosaic hops and bright citrus of coriander complement the rounding smoothness of blueberries from Michigan’s dune-laden west coast.”
I agree. It’s all of that. There’s definitely blueberry. But beyond that the grassy and tropical hops stand out. All of the fruit blends well with the sweet biscuity malts. However the thing I just can’t help but notice. Is that the biscuit malts, when paired with dominant blueberry flavor, makes this beer – to me at least – taste exactly like when you drink the milk after eating a bowl of Malt-O-Meal Blueberry Muffin Tops cereal. Like 100%. Holy Shit.
‘Midnight sun
glowing up
Michigan dunes
mad youth roaming
singing them heartland tunes
over a Springsteen stereo
the holy fool prophetically croons.’
New Holland – The Poet – 5.2% – Oatmeal Stout
Mmmm.. What’s better than an oatmeal stout in the dead of winter? The Poet is a mouthful of roasted dark malts, with coffee notes, that are balanced by a creamy sweet milk chocolate. It’s like the Cabin Fever almost, where it taste almost like a heavily sweetened coffee, but the burnt, darker flavors are what really sets it apart.
‘Raven black
beer inspired Poe’s
slurred words
about that
spooky ass bird.’
—
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Curious about what the hell a pick 6 poem is? Click here.)