Port brewing began life as a homebrew facility in a garage putting out a house beer for a small pizza parlor in Solana Beach. But after more than a few patrons showed up for the beer rather than the ‘za, Tomme Arthur and Vince Marsaglia decided the beer needed a bigger venue. Moving into a recently vacated brewery, Port Brewing Company was formed. The original vision was a Belgian-style brewhouse focusing on classic European styles. That changed to an all around craft brewery serving up American west coast recipes with Cali’ flavour. Over 15,000 barrels come out of the Port facility each year and their reach has crossed a continent, and slowly crosses the pond. The world is starting to taste Port Brewing’s creations. The Wipeout is an American-style IPA: hop forward with a mix of well known western varieties delivering killer flavour. Clear, crisp and tasty. Serves well at 8°C and should be cracked open soon.
Pours a clear, golden honey colour with mild carbonation, and a thin, clingy head of white foam.
A stronger scent of the sweet caramel malt on top of this beer than you’d expect from an IPA. The mixed hops come on first with a sharp, pine resin scent but ease back into a more flowery nose. A touch of citrus zest and vanilla in the background.
Taste flips the script from the nose, putting the hop flavour up front and letting the malt take the back seat. The hops match scent by delivering a bitter, pine resin flavour but relaxing into a flower and herb combination with complexity. The malt rides the back half of this taste with some sweet caramel and toasted bread flavours. Near the end comes a twist of sharpness with the citrus note and then the whole taste chops off.
This is a classic IPA flavour and comes from the oceanfront — dig into the best shellfish and butter sauce you can get your hands on.