new trail brewing company – Drink a Beer and Play a Game https://www.drinkabeerandplayagame.com Fri, 09 Apr 2021 15:27:06 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.1.7 New Trail Brewing Tent Zipper Review https://www.drinkabeerandplayagame.com/new-trail-brewing-tent-zipper-review/ Fri, 09 Apr 2021 15:24:59 +0000 https://www.drinkabeerandplayagame.com/?p=2737 New Trail Brewing is quickly becoming one of the hottest breweries in PA and they have gained a tremendous following. If you follow Breweries in PA you can see by their fan base the love is very real. So naturally I had to get my hands on a can, and seeing that I live close to Philly the options I had were limited. I previously wrote up a Beer Battle were I compared two New Trail Beers, and I decided to follow up with a review of the winner.

Background: There is not a ton of background on the beer available other than the notes provided on the side of the can. “Tent Zipper is a Hazy IPA brewed with Germanic malts, wheat, and oats. Heavy handedly hopped with some of our old favorites Cascade, Centennial, and Crystal. Then hopped again with some of our new favorites Mosaic and Citra. Expect lush orange, deep piney resin, and a blend of your favorite tropical fruits.”

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Appearance: A distinct dark green can with blue and black accents that cover a nice picture of a lake. The New Trail logo is a bit more subtle as compared to other beers this time, which I prefer. This beer pours super hazy with a khaki brown body and a light white head. I will say this is what I expect when I see a hazy poured and its a damn good looking beer, if you like hazys.

Aroma: The aroma was strong with pine, lemon and orange. After a few sips I was able to get some other tropical fruits, but the orange is the dominant scent throughout. I feel like this is one of the Tent Zippers best qualities, it smells pretty damn good.

Taste: The aroma give way to a very similar taste that is full of citrus, as you may expect from a Hazy IPA. I mostly notice grapefruit, papaya and oranges. There is a distinct sweetness that mixes well with the citrus that I cannot quite put my finger on. Its very tasty upfront, by the end of the glass the citrus may be a bit overpowering.

Experience: From the first sip to the last this beer goes down very smooth. The body feels creamy and light with a dry finish. Not too heavy or sweet and definitely not too bitter. This is definitely a well rounded pub beer. It may not stand out in the hazy crowd but it gets the job done.

Game Pairing: When it comes to game pairing I chose Green Hell released for the Nintendo Switch and Windows. In the world of survival games this one is fun and disturbing at the same time. The tropical setting was the inspiration for the pairing. The citrus of the beer will help calm your nerves as you attempt to stay alive while also dealing with all of the psychological anxiety this game presents.

Thanks for reading the review and if you would like to learn more about New Trail you can click on their link here.

]]> Beer Battle #7 – New Trail Brewing IPA Battle https://www.drinkabeerandplayagame.com/beer-battle-7-new-trail-brewing-ipa-battle/ Mon, 22 Mar 2021 03:27:15 +0000 https://www.drinkabeerandplayagame.com/?p=2515 Welcome to Beer Battle #7, it has been a while, but I finally have the site back up and running so I decided to bring back this fun weekend competition. This weeks beer battle is between two IPAs from the New Trail Brewing Company, a brewery that has gained a lot of traction in PA over the past year. A part of me is always cautious when I see so much hype for a brewery so I tried to go in with an open mind when trying both of these beers.

The two beers competing are:

  • S.O.B Hill, 6.5%
  • Tent Zipper Hazy IPA, 6.5%

After spending a solid 3+ hours clearing brush/trees and getting myself genuinely exhausted. After a much needed shower I sat back and cracked open one of the S.O.B Hill IPAs which is described as an American IPA brewed with a mixture of Pilsner malt, Light Caramel malts, and Wheats. Heavy handedly hopped with a mixture of newer American varietals as well as some “old standbys”. This IPA is meant to bridge a gap between the West Coast body/ bitterness and East Coast aromatic craze.

S.O.B Hill IPA

Appearance: A nice bright green can with yellow and black accents helps make this one stand out. The New Trail logo is huge and is flanked by a subtle topographic map. Once poured

Aroma: Fairly aromatic with heavy hops, nothing too special.

Taste: Semi-Citrus with notes of a tart peach, tropical fruits/hops and a decent sweetness from the malts.

Experience: This has a medium body with a bitter after taste. There is some sugar left on the lips, but overall it goes down easy. Drinks like most IPAs.

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Next on deck was the Tent Zipper Hazy IPA, which is described as a Hazy IPA brewed with Germanic malts, wheat, and oats. Heavy handedly hopped with some of our old favorites Cascade, Centennial, and Crystal. Then hopped again with some of our new favorites Mosaic and Citra. Expect lush orange, deep piney resin, and a blend of your favorite tropical fruits.

Tent Zipper Hazy IPA

Appearance: A distinct dark green can with blue and black accents that cover a nice picture of a lake. The New Trail logo is a bit more subtle this time, which I prefer. This beer pours super hazy with a khaki brown body and a light white head.

Aroma: The aroma is strong with pine, lemon and orange. It smells pretty damn good.

Taste: Alot of citrus in this one, as you would expect from any Hazy IPA. I mostly notice grapefruit, papaya and oranges. There is a distinct sweetness that mixes well with the citrus.

Experience: From the first sip to the last this beer goes down very smooth. The body feels creamy and light with a dry finish. Not too heavy or sweet and definitely not too bitter.

Overall both are solid IPAs that I would easily recommend, but you are here for a winner. I think that the Tent Zipper IPA offers more in terms of taste and is not quite as bitter as the S.O.B Hill. It was not a clear cut decision but after having 2-3 of each I tended to enjoy my time with the Hazy IPA a little more. If you want to learn any more about the New Trail Beers be sure to check out their website here.

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