Leo from SpindleTap and Texas Beer Experience came through in the clutch with a can for me because he’s basically a beer fairy. Or a beer angel. Yeah, angel sounds better.
I saw that GIB canned their first batch of Island Haze IPA, and I wanted to get some (so I could write this), but I couldn’t justify the drive with everything else I had on my schedule.
We always try to walk through what the can and tap handles look like, so you could possibly find it on a shelf, but not for Island Haze IPA! It’s a plain brite can, usually an indicator of a very small run. Mine didn’t even have a sticker like the cans pictured above, and I wish it did! I would’ve proudly put that bad boy on my beer fridge. GIB Taphandles are a wooden stick with their logo in a badge and a shell at the very top.
Island Haze IPA pours as opaque as the beach water on Galveston’s shores, but instead of brown, it’s a bright orange color. Straight juice. The foamy white head departs as quick as it came, almost like a small wave on the shore.
GIB Island Haze’s name must be a double entendre because it smells like straight fruity weed. Island Haze? Get it? Sweet mango and papaya notes combine with the piney, dank hop aromas. All these aromas come from the Mosaic and Nelson Sauvin hops, no fruit or bud are actually in this beer.
It’s a terrific beer, and I’m glad to see GIB submit their entry to Juiceton Texas’ haze list, but there’s a lingering bitterness that’s a little off-putting for the style. All of the sweet, fruity, dank aromas make their way to the palette along with the semi-thick mouthfeel.
This reminds me a bit of Baa Baa’s first attempt with The Cow that Jumped Over the Moon. Theirs was a little bitter too. Aside from that, they’re very different beers. The fruity, weed-like presence of the hops reminds me a bit of SpindleTap’s Hops Drop.
Where will you find Island Haze IPA? Nowhere until it’s brewed again. When that happens, check the GIB taproom first. They may have something special at this year’s BrewMasters Craft Beer Festival. You can get General Admission tickets for $5 off (15%) with code “BC” at checkout.
My Overall Rating
4
Galveston Island Brewing Island Haze IPA
Overall Galveston Island Brewing Island Haze IPA was a real hit, and I’m glad Leo passed some to me. Puns wholly intended. The juicy, fruitiness and spot on carb/mouthfeel overshadow the bitterness.
Let us know by voting below or tell us about it in the comments! Beers to you, Houston!
Anthony's a Houston native, a Creative Strategist at https://ledgeloungers.com/, an adjunct instructor of Visual Communication at Lone Star College, and a UH Coog that loves good beer almost as much as he does his city. Anthony lives to help others and that's found a home helping some of the coolest breweries on earth with creative and marketing projects that can be seen on our Portfolio page. Fueled by hoppy lagers, sessionable IPAs, and gangster rap, he's ticked his way through H-Town, rocking the most unusual Nikes he can find. When he's not writing for us, he's with his family or very patiently rooting for the Rockets.
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