This is the latest in the line of Voodoo Ranger beers from New Belgium. I'm still very confused as to why New Belgium didn't just spin this off as its own sub-brand and they didn't bother putting their own name on it, but I don't make their business decisions for them. I would have further suggested to them that they should make the kind of beer that is in the can readily understandable by the end-user. This says that it is a Juice Force IPA in big letters. Underneath that, it says it is a Hazy Imperial IPA. So, this is a Double IPA. Hazy means nothing, and I want you all to stop using it.
First sip is, indeed, quite juicy. I was afraid that all of this juice would cause a massive amount of bitterness, but the beer manages to hold that at bay. Instead, I get relatively sweet citrus and tropical fruits that echo the aroma with its tangerine, grapefruit, starfruit, and orange. The malt is a bit grainy, but it is not doing all that much. Instead, it's getting out of the way to let the juices flow, and I'm thankful for it. It's a pretty good sip.
Tip-in is juicy and the light carbonation does little to stop it while a bitterness around the fringes is quite noticeable. The middle turns up the carbonation across the top of the mouth while the juice becomes less smooth through the center of the mouth and reveals a fairly rough texture of rinds have joined the juice. The finish is a hint of dryness that goes with more than a hint of tart before the trail off is fruit skins under a haze of bitterness.
Bottom Line: I like it well enough.
3.0/5
