3/29/2018

Todd@HoustonBeerScene

The Daisy Chain beers have been coming out rapidly with 17 of the 23 total beers having been released.  The first beer was released on February 23rd, that’s an impressive amount of releases in a short time span.  Much like the first five I sampled, the next five Daisy Chain brews are all quality and not too difficult to find.  Check back soon for my thoughts on another five Daisy Chain releases. Sláinte!

Daisy Chain IPA is a 6.6% beer made with Mosaic, Citra and Amarillo hops.  It pours a beautiful, slightly hazy golden orange with a light, yet creamy head.  The flavor is all bright citrus with an edge of fruitiness.  Bitterness is on the low side and the light body makes this a solid choice for an easy drinking IPA.

Buffalo Bayou is calling their Daisy Chain entry a “Copper IPA”.  Hoppy Copper is brewed with Simcoe and Cascade hops and a dose of Munich malt to provide more body than a more traditional American IPA.  Buffalo Bayou nailed their concept with this beer as it provides an impressive combination of malt and hop flavors.  The fruity, floral, citrus and slightly earthy hops fit well with the lightly sweet and grainy malt.  There’s a nice balance here and all of the flavors get to shine.  The complexity and quality of flavor, plus the unique hybrid nature of Hoppy Copper, make it a Houston Beer Scene Pick.

Fetching Lab decided to brew a cream ale flavored with apricot. This is an excellent cream ale in all aspects and is a Houston Beer Scene Pick.  Off D. Chain sports a gorgeous creamy head that laces nicely to the glass. The feel matches the appearance with a delightfully fluffy body.  The apricot flavor is distinct and full; fruity sweet without being too much.  All these elements combine for an excellent easy drinker that really shines as a lighter fruit beer.

Lone Pint Brewery –  Zythophile: Denali

Lone Pint used the Daisy Chain yeast in their latest Zythophile entry, their series that features a SMaSH (single malt and single hop) beer with a different hop being used every batch. As with all of the beers in this series, the hop flavor is the focus.  The Denali hop provides a fruity flavor, mostly tropical with a touch of peach. Bitterness is moderate and provides a nice balance. The use of the Daisy Chain yeast does not provide a major twist as the overall character of this beer isn’t far removed from other Zythophile brews. This isn’t a bad thing, because, as usual, Lone Pint comes through with another great IPA that does a strong job at highlighting a unique hop variety.

Platypus nailed the lighter end of the Wee Heavy/Scotch Ale style with their Daisy Chain entry. Malt flavor is at the forefront here, but not as rich as some that fall under the style. At 6.0% that’s to be expected and the flavor is more akin to the lighter Scottish ale than some of the brawnier Wee Heavy brews.  Still, there’s plenty of full caramel malt flavor that’s layered nicely throughout a sip of beer.  The balanced, complex and full-flavored malt profile earn Platypus a Houston Beer Scene Pick for their great take on the Scotch Ale style.

There was some fierce competition this month from Fetching Lab, Platypus and Buffalo Bayou, but Holler Brewing Company’s Don’t Dais Me, Bro retains the championship belt through another Daisy Chain Round-Up.  Holler’s complex and loaded with tropical flavor take on a Hoppy Brown is still my standout beer from the Daisy Chain.  Holler faces some tough competition moving forward as there are still thirteen more beers to review including some especially enticing brews from Brash and Spindletap.