Brewery: West Coast Brewing
Country: Japan
ABV: 8.5%
Style: IPA – New England / Hazy Double
Other Notes: Hazy Double IPA. Hops – Wai-iti, Cashmere & Moutere

Brewer Description: (from website) Everyone has a Dark Side? The Alchemist’s Shadow is the Dark Soul of our Full Hop Alchemist, bound to serve the Nemesis and The Darkness. Our band of heroes must defeat and free the Shadow from the Nemesis’ grasp to weaken him and more importantly to obtain the final sigil (enough gatekeeping already?). In phase 1 The Shadow has potent peach/grape/lemongrass abilities and should be tanked by a Hop Dude with high Hop Burn Resistance. At 75% he becomes Full Bodied (resistant to physical attacks), and equips a more yeast-derived (maybe reduce pitch?) magic attack, with watermelon and lychee tank debuffs and far more heat than any of the previous bosses. It’s a race to the finish after 15%–if you’re feeling the chalkiness/sweetness you might need MORE DOTS (or drop a healer for more DPS) to push through the enrage and get him down. Epix and sigils on the other end, in addition to yet another WCB hazy trip that we hope you love as much as we had fun cooking it up!

My rating: 4-
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.98
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 500ml can, canned on 31st October 2023. Poured into a winebar glass.
Appearance: A hazy orange colour with an almost two finger beige white head that good retention and left nice lacing.
Aroma: Juicy, orange juice, citrus rind, tropical mango notes, and a splash of toasted coconut.
Taste: Melon, sweet mandarin, orange zest, citrus rind, a touch of mango, and a slight booze throughout.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: Good aroma, while the flavours were balanced albeit a touch boozy at times.