From the land of the Stampede and the Stampeders (both of them),* Stetsons and the Saddledome. Partake comes from Calgary as a cowboy contender for the COMDB zero percent crown. Now a staple across Canadian and US grocery stores, Partake tell us that they brew “for those who are out there pushing the limits, defying odds, going for it.” If this beer is for those pushing the limits we should be serving it at our COMDB AGM (just kidding). As far as defying the odds goes, I did do a Vegas brew tour a while back, which sounds odd these days as I hear no one is going there anymore. ** When it comes to going for it, I had to walk downstairs to my beer fridge to grab this pseudo brew so I guess that qualifies.
This IPA is their signature beer and they describe it as follows “big, bold hop flavor with a blast of citrus, pine, and floral.” Time to sample the next entrant in our zero percent experiment.
A dark golden pale ale shade of tan with a substantial head that defies the odds, or the evens for that matter. This one actually smells like an IPA with some fruit and hops in there. The first taste is an itty-bitty bit of fruit and a quarter of a hop. An ultra light IPA that is very mild but refreshing. Watery mouthfeel and taste. I didn’t catch any “big,bold” flavours of any kind and I missed the “blast”. It was all downhill from there. On the second swig the fruit’s fading, the bitters are bashful, and the hops are hiding. Big swigs are cold water refreshing but reveal a bit of a metallic aftertaste. This one started out OK but faded like a magazine and folded like a pair of twos.
On the plus side it looks like I’m drinking beer and I could drive home after one or two or three. And for those of you not on the COMDB Beach Ball Body™ Fitness Program it does have only 10 calories. On the minus side, the lacklustre taste.
Lots of hype and hoopla but no hops. An IBU of 53? Maybe it’s an International BS Units rating for the marketing department but I can’t find any bold or bitters in this beer. This cowboy country craft is all hat and no cattle.***
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