Review: Épitaphe & MacAllen Farm & Brewery Implication Brut IPA (Collaboration)

I found this beer in my luggage when I was doing laundry today - a can of Implication Brut IPA by Épitaphe as part of a collaboration with MacAllen Farm & Brewery. I'm absolutely giddy that farm based breweries are now a thing - I still remember when Farmery was planning on creating one nearly a decade back, I felt like Hank Hill (King of the Hill) thinking of uses for propane and propane accessories at that very moment. I'm not familiar with either brewery so this is a first for me. Implication is an American-style Brut IPA brewed with Canadian barley, rice flakes, fresh barley from Rawdon (QC), Huell Mellon, Hallertauer Blanc and Nelson Sauvin Hops. Strong ale brewed at 6.2% ABV.

I've only had a few Brut IPAs by this point, so lets see how this goes!

Appearance: Very thick orange juice like juiciness to the body, very hazy. Not noticing any carbonation in the body but the head has a very thick amount of fluffy snow white head on top that gradually diminishes to just still.. a good amount of head and a good amount of lacing on the glass.

Aroma: Citrusy, mildly tropical and bitter hops. I get notes of lemon, a bit of pineapple, orange peel, followed by notes of floral hops and bitter piney hops as well. A light touch of a breakfast cereal vibe from the barley at the end, as well as a very light doughiness.

Taste: Sweet, tropical and nicely hopped. There's a liberal amount of sweetness the very first sip I take - it's a bit of the malt, giving a hint of caramel, but more so the hops giving off notes of pineapple, lemon and oranges. The more the beer warms up, the beer gets more and more juice like but not overly extreme at any point. There's definitely a hefty dose of sediment in this beer as I'm definitely getting a bit of a gritty texture on my palate as the beer is starting to get past the half way point. There's a moderately floral presence from the hops, but mostly tropical. Decently dry but not overly.

Overall Thoughts: From every single Brut IPA I've ever had, not a single one has tasted the same, so I still don't get the style.. but it doesn't mean I won't enjoy it. This was sweet, yeasty, and helping with my anxiety/stress from after work. I'm still giddy that Quebec has a farm-based brewery with MacAllen Farm & Brewery (ou MacAllen ferme et brasserie)! I hope to see more farm centric breweries opening up throughout Canada in coming years!