freak folk bier's Yodel Series Peacharine

freak folk Yodel Series Peacharine

freak folk bier's Yodel Series comprises single-hopped, double-dry hopped, double IPAs. If that sounds like the call for a Starbucks drink, I totally get it.

The Yodel Series Peacharine is named for the Peacharine hop, released relatively recently (2023) after development through the Bract Breeding Program of NZ Hops, the New Zealand hop-growers' R&D cooperative.

In other words, it's a can't-stop-hippity-hop in tune with the latest hop-origin craze: New Zealand. That's cool. The hops are certainly a huge part of this beer's flavor, contributing massive citrus, mango and (duh...) peach flavors. But it's the subtlety of this beer's bitterness on the back palate that makes it a winner.

freak folk is apparently the k.d. lang of brewing: capitalization not required. The brewery's name has nothing at all to do with pop music or Canada, though. Rather, it is named for a blend of psychedelic and folk music that appealed to freak folk brewery owners Lillian MacNamara and Ryan Miller.

freak folk bier, beside the classic guardrails of the Amtrak overpass bridge

I found that music to be alternately headache-inducing and soothing, and maybe that's the point: after the head-banging, a musical aspirin to get you through the next day. Are Freak Folk musicians considerate, or what?

In fact, Yodel Series Peacharine is soothing. Oh, sure: it's 8.5% abv and the citrus and tropical fruit flavors are overwhelming. This brew would satisfy any Haze Bro. But there is massive creaminess to it, and the hop bitterness drums a perfect beat: felt, but not heard.

freak folk is in Waterbury, VT, about 10 miles from Stowe, so my next stops were the von Trapp brewery and The Alchemist. The Alchemist's presentation of its Heady Topper IPA is 75% of the drinking experience, IMHO, and I confess to a certain awe as the beer was poured. Heady is naturally carbonated with CO2, but the head is so thick and the bubbles so fine that one can be excused for thinking that it's nitrogenated.

freak folk Yodel Peacharine in a crystal pilsner glass

I mention Heady Topper because Yodel Peacharine has a lot in common with it. As it happens, I had a Heady Topper the day before tasting the Peacharine, and the Peacharine got me thinking about their similarities. So I tasted a second Heady after the Peacharine.

I find that Heady Topper emphasizes the back-of-palate bitterness more than the Peacharine. At this point in my life, I find I like Peacharine's subtlety a bit more than the more obvious bitters of the Heady. But I also recognize that the difference is a matter of taste, and drinkers will like one or the other probably in equal measures. Heady and Peacharine are both excellent beers, to be sure!

More on freak folk, which was one of the nicest beer experiences I have had in a very long time, in upcoming posts.