Beer Review: Wolf Prints (Imprint Beer Co.)

So somehow this got lost in the interwebs and I was able to manage to pull this out. (In other words, I drunkenly saved it into drafts instead of publishing it, and now getting around to touching it up and publishing it, my apologies all around to all those who were told this was coming out and it never did).

But have no fear, if I tell you it’s going to get published, it’s going to get published, it might be old, and all, but it’s still going to get published.

It’s a dark and stormy night, there’s thunder and lightening like crazy, raining to the point where there is cats and dogs cluttering up the gutters of the streets (and possibly a creepy clown trying to grab kids named George), what do you do? ….Well, the answer is obvious: you drink. ….And you read.

So spoiler alert to my own blog on this one: definitely try both of these if you can. That is; drink Wolf Prints by Imprint Beer Co (in collaboration with Wolf Brewing Co) and read Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman. You won’t be disappointed by either of these; especially if you like beer, and especially if you like mythology or Norse, or Thor, or Loki, or like sour beer, or like IPAs, or like sour IPAs, or what have you.

But be forewarned about the beer…. it is an odd one. Odd in that way that its both sour and IPA. If you’ve had any of the sour IPAs from Hudson Valley then you have an idea on this one. If you haven’t had any sour IPAs or Farmhouse IPAs or similar styles, your tastebuds are definitely in for a surprise.

This one surely packs a punch and a wallop and a kick to the stomach. So strap on a seatbelt and get ready for it.

Beer: Wolf Prints
Brewery: Imprint Beer Co. (Collaboration: Wolf Brewing Co.)
Style: Sour – Fruited
ABV: 7%
IBU: No IBU
Untappd Write-Up: Sour IPA smoothie with mangoes, pink guava, Tahitian vanilla beans, hibiscus petals and lactose.

So right away, you can tell that the Untappd listing on it is “Sour Fruited” but the write-up on it is “Sour IPA”. With this beer, the terms are pretty interchangeable and I don’t think there’s truly a self-contained term “Sour IPA” yet, so things are a bit muddy and murky in this area.

The adjuncts are mangoes, pink guava, Tahitian vanilla beans, lactose, and hibiscus petals. Thus its obvious why it has this beautiful pink glow and hue to it.

If you are unprepared for sour IPAs, be ready now. Because its not like a traditional sour and its definitely not like a traditional IPA. So let’s break it down like I do; appearance, aroma, taste.

First off, appearance is a pink. A dark but sorta bright pink. Kind of like a glowing pink that is still dark enough not to see through. Its an interesting look and throws you off a bit. At least takes you aback and makes you wonder what exactly are you drinking and if its really beer. (It is… and its worth drinking, don’t worry.)

The aroma is an immediate whiff of guava and a very funkyness. You get an instant ‘whoah this is going to be funky’ as soon as you crack the can and then the guava hits you, followed by the mango. There’s some kind of floral backdrop not sure if thats the hibiscus petals or hops or what.

And at first sip…. oh boy… oh yea…. its funky. And you are down to the party immediately. It is extremely tart, extremely funky, and a huge wave of guava off of the start. As you drink and gulp her down, you get some floral, some smoothness from the vanilla beans and lactose, and you get the mango making a burst-in door-stomping appearance at the end like the Kool-Aid man.

My Untappd Rating: ****.25
Global Untappd Rating: 3.92 (as of 7.18.19, updated from the draft date to the published date).

-B. Kline