Odell St. Lupulin Extra Pale Ale Review

Name: Odell St. Lupulin Extra Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 6.5%

It's been a busy past couple of days with the 4th of July and getting more stuff moved into my new place, so I'm going to be playing catch-up with some review drafts that I have.

As such, the first beer of the day that we will be looking at is St. Lupulin Extra Pale Ale from the Odell Brewing Company based out of Fort Collins, Colorado and is listed as Summer Seasonal by the brewery.

St. Lupulin pours a fairly clear orange color with just a slight haziness. The head, while starting out fluffy, becomes quite thin but stays that way. There is also some decent lacing to be had here as well.

The nose has a very sweet kick to it in the form of freshly peeled oranges and a bit of floral hoppiness hanging off of that. There is also some mild caramel mild sweetness in there but it's quite secondary compared to the rest of the aroma.

Flavor-wise, it's very citrus hop forward but not in the overpowering sense but rather that freshly peeled orange sort of way. With it are some floral hops, mild bitter resin hops and a malty backbone, which is more prominent here than it was in the nose.

The palate is fairly moderate in terms of body weight with a bit of thickness to it. The carbonation is fairly mild and a creamy-like texture which makes it fairly easy to drink.

I found St. Lupulin to be a very good American Pale Ale. While some people may find the flavor a bit one-sided because of the strong citrus characteristics, I found that to be it's strength and I think that makes it stand out amongst other APAs. If Odell were to make this a year-round offering, I would definitely be finding myself having this again.

Odell St. Lupulin Extra Pale Ale - 9/10

New Belgium Abbey Review

Name: New Belgium Abbey
Style: Dubbel
ABV: 7%

I know I have said this many times in different reviews before but New Belgium Abbey holds a special place in my heart for being the first Abbey style ale that I ever had. In fact alot of beers styles that I was introduced to was because of New Belgium Brewing. Funny how that works out, yeah?

In any case, when I first had this a couple years ago when I was still in college, I was taken aback by how good this was and it introduced me to a plethora of new flavors as well as what a beer can taste like. I have had quite a few Abbey Dubbel ales since then and now I think it's time for me to revisit this beer.

New Belgium Abbey pours a darker but clear red color with a filmy head. The visible carbonation is quite mild and the lacing is pretty good.

Dark fruits and licorice starts things off in the nose with caramel malts notes and some mild clove and spice notes. The flavor is more or less the same as the aroma but with more of a spicy/yeasty taste to it and there are noticeable floral hop notes thrown in for good measure.

The palate is moderately weighted which has a rather thick texture. The carbonation is also rather moderate but it helps bring out some extra characteristics in the flavor.

Having been exposed to more Dubbels since I first had this, New Belgium Abbey has held up surprisingly well and I also don't think the quality has suffered in the time New Belgium has expanded their operations. In fact, I would go as far to say that this is a great beer to introduce someone to the Dubbel-style ale. Check it out and you'll see why I fell in love with the Dubbels in the first place

New Belgium Abbey - 8.5/10

New Belgium Accumulation Review

Name: New Belgium Accumulation
Style: India Pale Ale
ABV: 6.2%

For those fortunate enough to be living in a warmer climate, we had roughly around 3 feet of snow over the course of 48 hours in our area. Thankfully the worst is over for the time being and now it's just very cold out, like -10 Degrees Fahrenheit cold.

So in continuing on with our theme of being snowed in, I bring you a beer that hits a little too close to home with me considering the events of the past week. I'm talking about New Belgium Accumulation, the brewery's newest winter seasonal. What's interesting about Accumulation is that it's a White IPA, a style usually seen in the late summer/fall months. This is a stark contrast to most Winter Seasonals which tend to be darker and heavier in terms of style.

Accumulation pours a mildly hazy yellow color with a foamy head that leaves behind some good lacing. The visible carbonation is also pretty mild in appearance.

The aroma starts off with yeasty and citrus hop notes. Wheat, floral hops, pale malts, apricots and mild earthiness make up the rest of nose.

The flavor consists of citrus/floral hops, yeasts, wheat, pale malts and mild toffee notes. The grassiness in the nose isn't present here.

The body is very lightweight and the carbonation is also very mild, giving it a smooth texture that allows you to enjoy the flavors.

After having this, I can safely say that this is the best IPA offering by New Belgium. It's got more of a complex & robust flavor yet at the same time is very approachable. If New Belgium made this a year-round offering, I would definitely be buying this on a regular basis. For now it's only a winter seasonal, so grab this while you can.

New Belgium Accumulation - 9/10

New Belgium Ranger IPA Review

Name: New Belgium Ranger
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
ABV: 6.5%


My last beer from my New Belgium collection is their Ranger IPA. As stated earlier, while this isn't their "flagship" beer, this is considered to be their flagship IPA; Though from what I heard, that title may belong to Rampant but that's another review.

As for the beer itself, I've always seen it on the shelves wherever I have gone but never have bothered to check it out...that is until I decided to burn through the staples of New Belgium's lineup.

Ranger pours a clear orange color with a foamy white head and some good lacing along the sides of the glass. Carbonation is fairly subdued with only a few bubbles climbing up.

The nose starts out with a fairly strong citrus hop/caramel aroma which is followed by yeasts and pale malts. The flavor is fairly identical to the aroma but with more of a grapefruit-esque scent and less on on the yeast/malt aspect.

Body is moderate in weight but the carbonation is quite mild; It's a pretty easy to drink IPA.

If you want to get one of your friends into IPAs, this foots the bill. It's flavorful enough for any IPA fan to enjoy yet approachable to newcomers alike and it strikes that perfect balance to make this easy to recommend.

New Belgium Ranger IPA - 8/10

New Belgium Loft Review

Name: New Belgium Loft
Style: Belgian Ale
ABV: 4.2%


The next New Belgium offering I have is called Loft, a belgian ale which is actually a throwback to 2003 when it was introduced as a summer release. Then in 2006, it was renamed Skinny Dip, I assume for marketing purposes. Then this year, they decided to bring back Loft as part of their Summer Foley set, though I got this as part of a mix-a-six.

As for the reason WHY it was brought back, I'm going to venture a guess that it has something to do with the recent spike in the number of "session" beers that breweries have been offering lately. It's claiming a full flavor with a low ABV, sounds like a session beer to me.

Loft pours a fairly clear golden/yellow color with a foamy head and a mild amount of carbonation. It leaves behind a fairly high amout of lacing.

The nose starts out with some yeasts, spices and pale malts, which are followed up by barley and some mild citrus hops. The flavor is much more hop forward with citrus hops, yeasts, spices and some pale malts. Aftertaste is on the dry side but does leave a slight bittersweet hoppy finish in your mouth.

The body itself is pretty light and the carbonation is rather crisp, falling in between mild and moderate.

In terms of "session" ales, this is one of the better ones though it lacks the robust flavor that I'm used to in Belgian Style Ales, though I suspect that was sort of the goal: Make it taste good, but don't make it too overwhelming. I paid about $1.75 for this so I can at least say it was priced correctly.

New Belgium Loft - 7.75/10

New Belgium Blue Paddle Review

Name: New Belgium Blue Paddle
Style: Pilsener
ABV: 4.8%


The next New Belgium Beer I have is their Blue Paddle Pilsener. Though the label shows a boat and paddle resting on the shore on a quint lake, the name actually comes from the brewery's warehouse manager. According to New Belgium, it refers to the "blue paddle" which was used to paddle the rear end of the warehouse manager by his grandmother when she caught him taking sips of her beer. I can just feel the love right now!

Blue Paddle pours a pale yellow color with a foamy/soapy head with the carbonation activity at a fairly mild level.

The nose has a prominent pale malt scent followed up by barley, yeasts, dough and grassiness. The flavor is more yeast focused followed by grassiness, pale malts, and barley. Aftertaste is a bit dry but earthy at the same time. The body is light and the carbonation falls in-between mild and moderate, providing it with a nice crisp feel.

This is a decent Pilsener but it's middle of the road when it comes to the style. With that said you aren't going wrong with this either way.

New Belgiam Blue Paddle - 7.5/10