Great Notion Brewing Shepherd of the Forest Hazy Double IPA

Beer Name: Shepherd of the Forest
Brewery: Great Notion Brewing (Portland, OR)
ABV: 8.3%

How sold: 16 oz tallboy cans; on draft
Where bought: Unknown
Price: Unknown, gift from a friend.

Date Canned: Unclear, possibly August 16, 2020
Date Drank: October 17, 2020
When brewed/released? Limited-time or rotating beer.

What's on the Can: "Just as the forests of the PNW are made of varied trees, Shepherd of the Forest was brewed with varied hops including Strata, Galaxy, Citra, and Vic Secret."

Hops: Strata, Galaxy, Citra, Vic Secret.

Where distributed: Great Notion Brewing currently self-distributes their beer. They do can releases (4-packs of 16 oz cans) at their NW location, and otherwise may sell leftover 16 oz cans or 32 oz crowlers at their NE Alberta taproom. COVID-19 and the West Coast fires affected dine-in service in 2020.

REVIEW:

Appearance (5%): Poured hazy light-orange into a pint glass. Unfiltered, sediment at the bottom of the can. Frothy white head, some lacing. 4.5/5

Smell (25%): Balanced malt, resin, and soothing tropical citrus and stone fruit (mango/papaya). 4.75/5

Taste (40%): Malt, resin, and slight octane to start, but the tropical swoops in almost immediately. Stone fruit flavors come through, but it's the juicy citrus that engulfs the mouth and stays with you. Really takes on the classic NE-style IPA profile. 4.75/5

Mouthfeel (10%): Medium-full bodied, some carbonation. Very juicy with some dry tongue. 4.25/5

Overall (20%): An outstanding to world-class Double IPA. Great Notion always seems to come through with memorable brews. Full of citrus and stone fruit flavors, and while the 8.3% shows up more when the beer is cold, it stays dormant enough for a Double IPA lover to enjoy the full experience. The octane mellows out as the beer warms, so you can pick up more flavor at that point. 4.75/5

Final Weighted Rating: 4.688/5