Review: Two new Rohrbach IPAs
Review: Two new Rohrbach IPAs
The Sunday Brunch IPA and Hop Drop Double Animal DIPA deliver from Rochester's oldest craft brewery
Noted: This newsletter is supported by Donnelly’s Public House, a wonderful canalside establishment in the village of Fairport.
Rohrbach Brewing Company, Rochester’s original craft brewery, has a long history of delivering classics.
Two new India pale ales from the Railroad Street brewery demonstrate two incredibly different things.
One, a hazed out New England-style IPA finished on fresh orange. The other, a genre-bending double IPA with assertive bitterness and malt backbone.
In recent years, Rohrbach launched its Hop Drop program, which is designed to get beer into stores as fresh as possible. Typically, hoppy beers are canned that morning and then delivered to local Wegmans and other stores that same day.
The latest one, Double Animal, is a beefed up version of its flagship Different Animal IPA. The Rohrbach brewers did a really nice job of translating the hop character of the single IPA into the DIPA. It features a pink grapefruit-forward bitterness derived from the use of Talus hops and a sweeter, caramel-forward malt backbone. The bitterness was clean and lingering. And at 9 percent alcohol, it’s dangerously drinkable. I enjoyed this one much more than expected, especially the old school-leaning malt character not often see in modern IPAs. It’s a really nice changeup.
The latest release in the brewery’s experimental Neoteric series, Sunday Brunch IPA, however, was my favorite recent offering from the pioneering brewery. It features hops that impart flavors of pineapple, coconut, and white grape and was then finished on orange puree. All of these flavors blended exceedingly well in an abundantly juicy IPA. It’s one of the cooler IPAs I’ve had from Rohrbach. And I hope it’s a massive success so we see more batches in the future.
Both were released in the past three weeks and can still be found across the Rohrbach distribution area. But they might be dwindling supply, especially the DIPA, which Rohrbach owner/founder John Urlaub said is one of the brewery’s top-selling series. Miss out on these, there is little doubt a new Hop Drop will release soon. Same with the brewery’s playful and inventive Neoteric small batch series.
And just a note of appreciation for Brittany Statt from Brittany Statt Marketing + Design, the creative force behind Rohrbach’s beer labels and whole aesthetic, really. She continues to design such beautiful and vibrant labels, especially the latest Sunday Brunch label, which really captures a fun retro look.
(Unrelated, Brittany is an incredibly talented artist with amazing hand-lettering skills. She has done a few Christmas ornaments for us. I highly recommend her for some awesome personalized gifts.)
Genesee Tropical Pineapple Kolsch video review
Just wanted to share this really fun video review I did with one of my good friends, V Spehar, the TikTok superstar behind everyone’s favorite and most trusted news source Under the Desk News. Maybe there will be more of these video reviews in the future? Either way, if you aren’t already following V for news and insight, remedy that ASAP.
Introducing the first newsletter sponsor
Before I could even put out a call for sponsors, Scott Donnelly texted me. And because of the support of him and his amazing wife Stephanie, this newsletter will remain free to readers for at least the next several months.
I’m really, really proud to introduce Donnelly’s Public House, 1 Water St. in Fairport, as the first sponsor for the the Cleveland Prost newsletter. So make sure to get out to Fairport and support the Donnellys.
My testimonial: Donnelly’s is one of the best gathering spots in this region. It’s cozy and inviting. It fosters community. There are 33 rotating beer options, including a permanent line for one of my favorites: Carlsberg. The draft list is always well curated and features a ton of great local and New York state options. The food is outstanding. And the people make it truly memorable and welcoming. Long before this sponsorship, I was a huge fan. I encourage readers in this space to support this Fairport spot.
I’ve got so much more stuff planned. And I remain open to sponsorships, sponsored content, and advertisements, especially if it’ll keep the newsletter free for readers. For more information, feel free to drop me a line at clevelandprost@gmail.com.
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