Whenever I tell my friends about a delicious new IPA I’ve discovered, I usually start by talking about the hops. But today’s Flash Kick has me thinking a little differently — the unsung hero in this hopbomb is its brightly tropical kveik yeast! 

This Norwegian strain was relatively unknown in American craft until just a few years ago, and we still don’t see it often enough (for IPAs, most brewers use a standard English Ale yeast).

Drekker Brewing and Back Channel fermented their collab with kveik for a faster, cleaner process that allows the hops’ flavors to shine like a Skittles rainbow blasting out of the can straight onto your tongue! 

Speaking of the hops — this 8.2% ABV Imperial New England IPA boasts a lush four-way combo of Citra, Mosaic, Strata and Motueka. Deepened with tropical mango and pineapple notes from the kveik, the flavors of these hops flow juicily forward in waves of OJ, grapefruit, and passionfruit kush. 

And in case you’re wondering, a “flash kick” is a type of martial arts backflip performed with one leg extended outward. Being able to do one is almost as impressive as being able to grab a stash of today’s kveik-brewed Kick — Drekker and Back Channel’s limited creations rarely leave the Midwest! 

Rated 4.22 on Untappd!

*Drekker is hoarding a stockpile of Best of Craft Beer AND U.S. Open Beer Championship medals at their Fargo, North Dakota brewery!; Back Channel boasts their own hardware from the Minnesota Brewers Cup Awards.