Beer: Spawn of Space Reaper
Brewery: DC Brau Brewing Company (Washington, DC)
Style: IPA- American
6% ABV / 100 IBU

It’s summertime—if the livin’ is easy, the drinkin’ ought to be, too. Cue Spawn of Space Reaper, the less boozy but equally hop-forward brother-from-another-mother of DC Brau’s infamous Space Reaper Double IPA, Spawn of Space Reaper clocks in at a very manageable 6.0% ABV, a little too boozy to be considered a session IPA but equally crushable. Spawn of Space Ranger is basically DC Brau’s defiantly East Coast rendition of the West Coast IPA style. Is another East Coast/West Coast turf war brewing? When it comes to IPAs, we’re all in the same game.

Spawn of Space Reaper is, as advertised, a tuneful ode to the joy of Mosaic hops. It’s every bit as toothsome as Space Reaper and a good reminder that that there’s still innovating to be done with the plain ol’ IPA style and breweries don’t always need to race ahead to doubles, imperials, and triples to excite the senses. Spawn of Space Ranger is more about balance than extremity, but it’s worth noting that this formulation of the summer seasonal is triple dry-hopped as a nod to the hop-heads.

I also have to point out that there’s a wonderful split between the beer’s aroma and taste. Spawn of Space Reaper smells like citrus and fragrant mango. Some of the sweetness and floral bouquet is evident at the front of the palette, but it’s noticeably bitter. Not hella bitter, but bitter above expectations, and bitter—at least with one interpretation of the IBU scale—in a triple IPA kinda range. The greatest trick that the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist. The second greatest trick was making this IPA taste like a DIPA or TIPA. Hail Satan!

More more info, check out DC Brau here.