It is #beersaturday again and I have been off again scouring the region for new beers to share with the world!

Beer blogging came naturally to me due to years spent brewing for myself and restaurants, working with breweries on their technology & marketing, and the decades spent imbibing. Hence, the self-decreed title of the #Blockchain #Beerologist doing my best to consume, report and even brew to do that title justice.

This week, I have FINALLY gotten my hands on a variety pack I have been hunting a month since it was released!

Pint of the Week

The pint of the week is usually a nice draft I have on the town, in a pub, or somewhere social. This is one that helped me kill many birds with one stone! First, it accompanies a wonderful Indian lunch with my favourite Indian dish, Lamb Dansak https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/dhansak Second, they are clients of ours https://rajastratford.ca/ so I was able to shoot some pictures for social media while supporting them as a client as well. Third, it was a business meeting with another client so the company https://towncriermarketing.ca - @town-crier paid for it! Fourth, it is another nice beer I can share on the beer blog that gets read around the world!
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The Good Karma 4-Pack!

I love my gift/variety/taster packs as they often feature beer you cannot buy out here individually, they are often limited run batches you cannot get again, and it is an easy-mode theme for #beersaturday. Given this one is from probably my favourite brewery https://www.greatlakesbeer.com/ and my big city friends have had access to these for weeks, I was stoked to finally get my hands on it!

Their Karma line of beers have been IPAs with single hops in it to make them similar but distinct beers that are delicious. When I heard of this pack first, I was hoping that Karma Citra, Karma Simcoe, Karma Sabro and a couple other single hop varieties were included so I could sample and compare. I was half right and the other half we surprises with Double IPA and a Cryo! Let's dive in!
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Karma Citra

If I gave it considerable thought, Karma Citra https://www.greatlakesbeer.com/Beer/karma-citra/ would be in my top 10 and challenge for top spot if it was available year-round (a prereq for the top 10) As it is, I celebrate the spring even more as that is the season I can find this one. A great addition to the combo pack for SURE! Being that special to me, this fantastic pint is my perfect balance with the sweetness of a New England IPA, the boldness/bitterness of a great west coast IPA, and a smoothness that comes with Oats and wheat all with perfect proportions.

Citra is obviously the hop of choice for this one and it is a common thread in so many of my favourite beers. When I creep into brewmaster territory, I would probably use Citra, Mosaic and Galaxy in my signature IPA that will pack a punch! Thank you Yakima Valley for producing such a great hop and to GLB for mastering it in this brew without any help from other heavy weights. I will buy these every trip to the store until they are gone and wish they would make this available year round so I can measure it against the best.

Karma Sabro!

For a long while, there was only Simcoe....only in spring and great on its own. I was very pleased to discover more of the Karma series as they debuted and behold another hops in its own spotlight. I was hoping that Karma Simcoe appeared in this Karma Pack so that I would taste it outside of its winter seasonal spot and along side the others to compare. Sabro was one I have not had at all or at least in a long while so giddy up!

This Karma Sabro https://www.greatlakesbeer.com/Beer/karma-sabro-ipa/ was fresh enough to pour like an ice cream cone and I was anxious to get my nose into it. Looks like Sabro also hails from Yakima Valley like Citra and has really taken hold in the few years it has had a name and been available to brewers. It definitely goes possess the citrusy character of Citra bit has a nice and sweet blend in this brew aptly compared to coconut. At this point, if I had to take only one, Citra might take the cake but I will have to sample them both side by side.

Good thing I picked up a pair of these 4-packs!

You may have to wait a week to get the other half of my report but know it is good enough so far for the dog to stand by it and give his approval. Tune in next week for some Cryo and Karmageddon Double!
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#BEERSaturday!

I really should start a series like #themorningbeer on #beersaturday so I can become a star like @davedickeyyall with his #morningbowl. This week, you can join @detlev, myself and all the other beer bloggers at @detlev/beersaturday-309 for this week's edition.

This week for #BeerSaturday, I would like to invite @jang as keeping us informed on Space Weather patterns must be thirsty work! Take a few pictures, tag #beersaturday and raise a glass with us on Hive!