Back in the good old days, our forefathers would enter a sterile Provincial Liquor Store, place their order at a service counter, pay for it, and then leave with a 12 pack of Extra Old Stock stubbies (not a lot of choices) and a bottle of Crown Royal in the cool purple velvet bag. Once discarded, the purple velvet bag became a highly coveted vessel for carrying marbles and other small collectables.

But oh how the times have changed!

Today we have choices! Provincially run or private liquor stores. Private vineyards and Save-on-Foods for the wine drinkers. And most importantly, we have craft breweries.

Craft breweries are bastions of both creativity and quality. While the monster brewers continue to pump out mindless crap they call “beer”, the brew masters of the small upstarts have taken up the reigns, brewing amazing palate pleasing beverages, and experimental projects that stretch our definition of beer.

We are in the midst of a beer-volution! One which future generations will be most certainly thankful for.

But I digress

Which is where this story begins and ends…

While perusing the quality selection of craft beers in the cooler of my go to private store, I came across some offerings from The Parkside Brewery out of Port Moody, BC. Never one to shy away from a fresh option, I snatched up a 4pk of the Graffiti IPA.

I’m fairly sure my forefathers are turning in their graves. “Sacrilege!” they would say. “Where’s the Extra Old Stock or Lucky?” they would say.

The Brew

The Details: American India Pale Ale, 6.9% ABV, 60IBU

The Pour: Nice light amber colour, a bit murky, with some floaties (nice!). Perfect white head that held up well.

The Smell: Strong citrus / grapefruit with a hint of pine needle.

The Swig: Definitely a West Coast style IPA. No holds barred here. You get all 60 IBU with very little malt. A truly hop forward beverage. Nice and fresh. Just like the scent it had strong citrus and grapefruit flavours with a pinch of pine.

Really good mouth feel. The carbonation was spot on, and the bitterness hung out just long enough.

WIBTA?: Not likely. Not because I didn’t enjoy it – there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. This was a fairly straightforward west coast style IPA. However, there isn’t anything about it that stands out from similar products.

The Closing Notes

This is a real deal West Coast style IPA – hop forward, and fresh. It was certainly a properly done, simple IPA that went down easy, with all the residual bitterness one would expect.

However, when I evaluate an IPA for personal consumption, I’m looking for something unique. That little signature flavour or characteristic to tingle my palate and make me want another. This was something I didn’t get. Good? Yes. Unique. Nope.

Available in stores as a 4pk of tall cans, or as a growler fill at the Port Moody brewery. I got mine at the Liquor Barn on Montvue in downtown Abbotsford. Although not currently available at BC Liquor stores, some of their other products are – check the website and search Parkside.

Well that’s it for now, gonna go quench that panda sized thirst… Cheers!

*WIBTA is where I ask myself “Would I Buy This Again?”