Some of the best vacation days are unplanned – snow days, being a tourist in your own town, or a spontaneous day trip. Relish the unscheduled time with Daycation IPA, Highland’s portfolio linchpin and, at 4.9 percent ABV, the potential for any day to be a Daycation.
Beyond the name, creating the right low-gravity IPA came with months of targeted recipe trials. Daycation is a small beer with a big grist bill, because the desired balance and body is a harmony of six different malts.
“It’s hard to make a beer this small that doesn’t disappear. We wanted some body and mouthfeel and got the right mix by adding small percentages of wheat, rye and flaked oats,” said Brewmaster Hollie Stephenson.
From that base, Brewing and Quality created three rounds of dry hop trials. Using variable quantities and combinations of hops – Mosaic®, Citra®, El Dorado®, and Azacca® – a dry hop sensory panel twice determined the best combinations for a third pilot before the winner was sealed and the final recipe was scaled up for full production. This beer packs in tropical, lemony, pineapple leaf flavors and aromas, perfectly balanced with a bready, bright, sessionable body.
Sold in six-pack bottles and on draft, Daycation will be available in all of Highland’s distribution areas beginning March 6. Look for cans to follow in early summer 2017. At the brewery on March 3, starting at 4 p.m., celebrate the first keg of this long-haul IPA. Highland will have live music from Woody Pines and food trucks on hand. On March 4 in Asheville, raise a toast with Highland staff as they Daycation-crawl at a string of their favorite hometown hangouts.
Highland has delivered several quality American IPAs since Stephenson’s arrival. The brewery kicked off the recent streak with the small batch King MacAlpin Double IPA, followed by the incredibly well received West Coast-style, year-round Highland IPA, and the crushable orange year-round Mandarina IPA. Daycation rounds out the IPA family with full flavor and a low ABV.
Lively and light-bodied, Daycation celebrates Mosaic®’s ripe stone fruit notes, while an Azacca® and El Dorado® dry hop adds layers of tropical fruit and lemon. Balanced by a varied malt profile, with enough bitterness to satisfy hop enthusiasts, this beer is crafted to bring you back for more.
Grist – 2 Row Brewers Malt, White Wheat, Rye, Vienna, Caramel 20 & Flaked Oats
Original gravity – 11.8° Plato
Hops – Mosaic®, Citra®, El Dorado & Azacca®
Alcohol – 4.9 percent by volume
IBU – 40
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