Hi-Wire Brewing is one of the flagship breweries in the sneaky good Appalachian beer town of Asheville, North Carolina. Counting four IPAs among their seven “flagship” offerings, they clearly take their IPAs seriously. They also clearly believe in truth in advertising, as demonstrated by the most recent take on their Hazy & Juicy & Hoppy & Fresh Double IPA.

Part of Hi-Wire’s specialty Hazy IPA Series, this double dry-hopped New England-style IPA is everything it claims to be. The most recent version features a blend of four citrus-forward hops — Strata, Waimea, Enigma, and Idaho 7 — and their influence is apparent. This writer’s nose was immediately met with a bright hop and citrus aroma that previewed a pleasant combination of tangerine and grapefruit notes upon tasting (my wife would trade “lemon” for “grapefruit”), along with resin and pine. The label’s fine print reflects that this IPA was also brewed with vanilla. This influence wasn’t apparent at first but eased into the picture — and pleasantly so — with every subsequent sip.

As typical of good New England-style IPAs, this one flirts with the edge of bitterness without ever crossing the line. It actually drinks like a session beer … but an 8% abv suggests you probably shouldn’t.

8% abv.