Lately the Oklahoma IPA scene has been dominated by Roughtail Brewing, with such releases as Everything Rhymes with Orange, fruity E-Juice brews, and their rotating Adaptation Series. Well a new beer is about to hit shelves that may give Oklahoma hop heads a new option. Broken Tile, a juicy Double IPA, is the latest offering from Vanessa House, a relatively new Oklahoma brewery that is currently contracting out of O’Fallon Brewery in St. Louis. So far their 401K Cream ale and 5th Keg Imperial Milk Brown have been solid packaged brews, so a Double IPA is very exiting.
We’ve had this beer before on tap thanks to a couple of pint nights and the Oklahoma Craft Beer Festival where we thought it was one of the best beers of the whole fest. The thought of seeing this on local shelves is incredibly exciting. There will be a few events coming up to promote the beer such as a pint night at The Pump on June 20th (which will also feature some surprise beer cocktails) and a tank top and flip-flop crawfish boil at Parks Bar and Grill on the 24th.
The beer is brewed with Mosaic and Citra hops with some Columbus for bittering and was pretty sweet and tropical in its draft release. Let’s see how the bottled brews are!
Disclaimer: This product was provided at no cost to Barrels and Mash with no strings attached.
Company: Vanessa House Beer Co.
Location: Oklahoma City, OK, brewed in St. Louis.
ABV: 8.4% ABV
IBUs: 80
Style/Description: Double IPA
Price: $9 per 4-pack
Appearance: Hazy honey with a sticky white head that slings laces the whole way down.
Nose: Bright and resinous with tropical things like pineapple and mango. Kate says it smells heavenly. It’s floral and somewhat earthy as well, which makes for a very complex vibe. From the nose it seems like the texture is going to be great, let’s hope that’s true.
Taste: It’s true. The texture is really nice with an almost fruit cocktail type of vibe. Pineapple, mango, pear and some floral things (Kate says “the way lilies smell, but I’ve never tasted a lily”) are things that jump out up front. Later in the sip there is some nice pine and resin with a bit of dry boozy heat sneaking in.
Finish: For all the sweet things so far, the finish is surprisingly crisp and dry. I finally get some of the floral notes that Kate was picking up and the tropical fruits fade into some lingering booziness that is actually pretty nice.
Overall: The Vanessa House guys have definitely dried this recipe out a bit since its keg-only release, and that is not a bad thing. While I loved the tropical juice bomb that this beer was previously, drying it out brought more balance and complexity to the brew that is really, really nice. Broken Tile is a welcome addition to the OK IPA game and showcases some fantastic promise and versatility for Vanessa House.
Rating: 4.5/5
