Low ABV Upside Down Haze - Echo Session Ales
The fine folks of Montreal’s Echo Session Ales are back with their latest release, a 3.8% Session NEIPA heavily hopped with Calypso, Ella and Azacca, fermented with Kveik yeast, and a subtle hit of lactose. This is the second time Echo have deliberately labeled their cans upside down, with the intention that drinkers would turn the can upright before pouring to agitate any hop sediment inside.
The beer pours with a bright yellow milky haze and a fairly thin head (and no sediment at all from what I could see!) The nose has lots of guava up front which definitely carries through on the palate. They nailed the mouthfeel. It’s medium bodied, slightly creamy but not thick. It’s still got the tingly carbonation of a Session IPA but without the harsh bitterness that often comes with it. The prominent guava on the palate gives it a notable tartness, alongside some zesty tangerine notes. The lactose and Kveik combo do wonders to smooth out the texture. Echo’s goal has always been to make low ABV beers that don’t compromise on flavour. In my opinion, they nailed that goal with this one.
Echo takes the quality of their product very seriously. It’s a fact for any brewer that not every beer turns out the way you want it to at first, and that’s exactly what happened with the first batch of this Session NEIPA. Not content to put a product on shelves that they weren’t happy with, they made the difficult decision to dump the first batch. Not an easy call to make, but at least they have a good sense of humour about it.
Thanks JF for letting me try this one!
Photography by Nathan Does Beer.
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