As I’ve occasionally pondered in the past, I find myself wondering again if the “session IPA” title really makes any sense for a beer like Pinner. It’s definitely noticeable as being lighter of body than something like Dale’s, lightly bitter and very drinkable. The flavor, meanwhile, presents a distinctly sweet clementine or tangerine quality, chased by a bit of pine. It’s very much the aroma one might envision when someone says “session IPA from Oskar Blues.” The aroma of Pinner presents with a hint of crisp malt and classical West Coast hop notes: Citrus, pine, grassy green hops and especially orange zest. Session IPA was probably the Style of the Year (unless it was gose), so the choice was a no-brainer, although 4.9% ABV is probably the upper limit of what is typically described as “session” in today’s parlance. The brewery’s smallest year-round beer had been Mama’s Little Yella Pils (we love the Stones reference) at 5.3%, but they wanted to go a step lower still while making a beer that fit the hop-forward mission statement. Oskar Blues once trended toward the opposite side of that spectrum-did you know that Dale’s Pale Ale is actually 6.5% ABV? It’s closer to IPA territory than APA, at least in its alcohol content. That’s where our fresh cans of Pinner are hailing from, sporting an industrial-looking design of silver/white and gold.Īccording to a brewery representative, the concept for Pinner reflects the craft beer market’s growing demand for high-flavor, low-ABV ales. Much has changed since 2011, particularly the fact that the company has built and opened its East Coast headquarters in Brevard, NC, about 30 miles south of the brewery Mecca that is Asheville. Of course it was an IPA-this is Oskar Blues, after all. That wait is now over, with the release of Pinner, the Longmont, CO brewery’s new session IPA. That’s just about four years since the last time that a new Oskar Blues can was shipped all around the country. In fact, there hasn’t been a year-round beer added to Oskar Blues’ portfolio since Deviant Dale’s IPA at the very beginning of 2011. The brewery is the definition of dependability, making occasional forays into experimentation with their limited releases, but staying very rock-steady with the core lineup. In December of 2012, Oskar Blues opened the doors to an additional brewery in Brevard, North Carolina. Recently, Oskar Blues secured an additional 60,000 square feet in their Colorado location to allow additional production and add six full-size Brunswick bowling lanes to the Tasty Weasel Taproom.Together, the breweries packaged 119,000 barrels of beer in 2013, distributing trailblazing craft brews to 36 states and Washington, D.C.It’s not every day that you get to taste a new year-round beer from Oskar Blues. The brewery has since experienced explosive growth-packaging 59,000 barrels of beer in 2011 and 86,750 barrels in 2012. In 2008, the makers of the top-selling pale ale in ColoRADo, Dale’s Pale Ale, moved into a 35,000-square-foot facility in Longmont, ColoRADo. #pinner #canibeblunt #sipsipgiveįounded as a brewpub by Dale Katechis in 1997, Oskar Blues Brewery launched the craft beer-in-a-can apocalypse in 2002 using a tabletop machine that sealed one can at a time. It also makes great swag for your variety-loving craft beer buds. CANundrum will now include the iconic Dale’s Pale Ale, the crisp Mama’s Little Yella Pils, the peaty smooth Old Chub Scotch Ale, and the 4.9 percent ABV PINNER IPA.ĬANundrum gives chronic CAN’d craft beer drinkers a way to pack in four different Oskar Blues brews at music festivals, trail side, or the lake. PINNER will join the mixed-pack, CANundrum, in February for national distribution, making that a hotbox of Oskar Blues beers. PINNER will be brewed in both home states of ColoRADo and North Carolina and initially distributed just in Oskar Blues’ backyards. “Many things contribute to flavor in beer, and with Pinner it’s a focus on hops and malt–with a considerable nod to the hops,” says Oskar Blues ColoRADo head brewer Tim Matthews. “With the lower ABV, layers of flavor build on one another– with one sip citrus, the next sip pineapple, next sip papaya, next sip passion fruit, next sip toasted bread–and then on to the next pint.”ĭry-hopping with several different heady hops, including a killer experimental variety, gives PINNER this tropical, stoned fruit aroma with hints of pine and smooth malt in the flavor. To put it bluntly, PINNER will be the lowest year-round ABV beer to blaze out of Oskar Blues’ brewhouses. Coming in at 4.9 percent ABV and 35 IBUs, this primo dry-hopped brew will be easy to throw back. PINNER will be released first in Oskar Blues’ home states of ColoRADo and North Carolina in mid-December. Longmont, CO, & Brevard, NC–Oskar Blues is adding PINNER Throwback IPA to the brewery’s year-round lineup of beers in 12-ounce CANs and on draft.
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