From the sun-drenched sandy shores of PEI we are now docked in the downpour drenched ports of Vancouver Island. Our island hopping hopfest continues. From green gables to perpetual precipitation, from spud fields to rain forests, it’s a coast to coast toast to find the brew with the most. Huddled around the much smaller James Bay, Victoria the capital of BC, may see it’s fair share of driftwood, but their Driftwood Brewery is no flotsam and jetsam. Just like Stevie Ray, it’s the real deal.*
There is a Fat Tug in the harbour, ready to escort our taste buds through some choppy hoppy waters. Is it a West Coast IPA or an IPA from the West coast, or both? Northwest to be precise, accurate, correct and redundant.
A golden west coast sunset pour with a slim head adrift. The aroma warns us that there’s some hops happening here and some juice ready to cut loose. First taste confirmed my suspicions. A hop fest with the tropical juice and malt in supporting roles. An eye opener in a good way. I haven’t had anything that hoppy in a while and it’s a welcome quaff. The hops are front and centre with a nice mild fruit body shining through the ever-present haze of hops. Not really bitter, just zingy, the grapefruit in there is balanced out by the malt so no bitters, just the hop. This 7% solution isn’t boozy, just a nice hoppy refreshing treat. The hops are not quite over the top, and the malt juice combo balance things out sort of, and it all works.
This brew is fat alright, fat with hoppy goodness, fat with flavour and chunky with tropical fruit ripe for the picking and the pulling. What can I say, other than it’s a hopfest and I’m loving it.
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