Rollin’ Down Rodeo Wit a Sasquatch
Skookum Brewery, Arlington; Whitewall Brewing, Marysville
Style: White IPA with Mangoes and Pink Peppercorns
Stats: 6.4 percent ABV, 60 IBU
Available: On tap at Skookum Brewery and at this weekend’s Collaboration Festival in Seattle
My thoughts: This isn’t your grandfather’s White IPA.
Skookum Brewery and Whitewall Brewing came up with Rollin’ Down Rodeo Wit a Sasquatch for the first Washington Beer Collaboration Festival. It’s a White IPA in name only. Brewed with American ale yeast instead of Belgian yeast, and pilsner malt and wheat, it has a definite witbier feel to it. It also has three different types of hops – Mosaic, Galaxy and Citra – to give it that strong IPA feel.
The thing that makes it stand out, though, is the mangoes. Brewers from the two breweries peeled 100 pounds of mangoes a few weekends ago to use in conditioning the beer. The fruit gives the beer an extra tropical kick and blends well with the hops. It’s perfectly subtle. There’s also a slight spiciness from pink peppercorns used in the process as well.
I picked up a half growler on my way home from work, just a few hours after it went on tap. When I got home, I cracked the top and my nose was hit with the fragrance of fresh mangoes immediately. It was 80 degrees and the sun was shining in our front yard, so I grabbed a couple of pints for me and a buddy and enjoyed the summer-like April day in style.
Skookum and Whitewall are two of the best breweries Snohomish County has to offer. Hollis Wood, head brewer at Skookum, has done a great job with Skookum’s already impressive lineup. His IPAs are always delicious and his creativity with adjuncts has been impressive. (On the same day that Rollin’ Down Rodeo Wit a Sasquatch went on tap, a version of the brewery’s double IPA, Mammoth Jack, conditioned on hibiscus and orange zest, went on tap.)
The Whitewall guys, Aaron Wight and Sean Wallner, are also doing big things. Their Fire Trail Ale, an English Strong Ale brewed with cherry malt and aged on Spanish cedar, was the hit of the Marysville 125th birthday celebration and is absolutely amazing. (Get it on tap at the brewery before it’s gone.) Both Wight and Wallner were in the same home brew club, Stillymashers, as Wood.
On a side note, after trying Rollin’ Down Rodeo Wit a Sasquatch, my friend and I hopped over to Farmstrong Brewery in Mount Vernon to try its collaboration beer with Boundary Bay, a sour saison called Salvador. Served in a 10-ounce tulip glass, it was a nice balance of pucker and bitter.
Boundary Bay provided the lactobaccilus, or the bacteria brewery’s use to ferment sours, while Farmstong brewed the kettle sour at its brewhouse. Instead of Belgian yeast, Farmstrong brewers Mike Armstrong and Todd Owsley used the yeast from their Porch Lite IPA, giving the beer a citrus and hoppy finish. If you like sours, I strongly suggest trying Salvador (it’s currently on tap at Farmstrong).
If the collaboration festival continues to bring together breweries to make great beer together, I say bring on another one next year.
From the brewery: A White IPA brewed with Galaxy, Citra, and Mosaic hops. Conditioned on whole mango and pink peppercorn.
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