6.9

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 6.5

Like e.g. Musketeers' Bucketlist series, Rolling Hills - still lingering in my memory as Pêtre Devos - now has a series of 'experimental' one-offs, of which this milkshake IPA seems to be the third so far. Off-white, moussey, rather large-bubbled, medium thick head diminishing into a thin ring of bubbles over a misty warm golden robe with ochre-ish tinge. Aroma of dried orange zest, unripe melon, banana peel, bread soaked in milk, soggy crackers, overripe cucumber, old dried lemon peel, something very vaguely buttermilk-like but not in the diacetyl sense of the word (rather spoiled dairy), grass, background touches of dry cider, old potatoes, 'acidic' water (as from a fen), cheese rind. Spritzy onset - which a milkshake IPA should not have - carrying a lot of stingy carbonation distracting from the flavours, which include a sweetish banana ester effect mingled with red apple, peach and pineapple, moving into a lean cereally pale malt body with cracker-like edges. The lactose sits on top, as a thin but noticeable effect of fruit porridge (think baby's food), but the overcarbonation prevents it from effectuating its creaminess and the sweetness, though present, remains a bit understated for a milkshake IPA. This 'sweet dairy' accent continues into the finish along with the malts and very mildly bittering, floral hops, which show flashes of citrusiness and even something melon-coloured here and there. Some of the sweetness lingers in the end, combining with the citrusy side of the hops into something almost orange juice-like, but subtly so. Everything gently but quickly fades after that. Puzzling - as usual, a local and average Belgian brewery well versed in traditional Belgian brewing attempts an international IPA variant but hilariously misses the point; this is, if anything, a Belgian 'IPA' (in the broadest sense of the word) with lactose added to it. Considering that "Belgian IPA" in general often comes down to a blonde (or tripel) with 'more hops' added to it, one can imagine how far we are removed from a true milkshake IPA here - even from the originals created with fruit and vanilla by Omnipollo ten years ago, when the genre - yes, it has become a genre whether we like it or not - saw the light of day. Maybe someone should have offered a few real milkshake IPAs to this Eddie, and should have explained to him that the idea really is to convey a milkshake look, feel and flavour... Throwing lactose in something which is barely a true IPA to begin with, will not get you anywhere of course - but of course very few Belgian brewers even attempted this style so far (less than a dozen have been created in this country) and unless I am forgetting something important here, none have done it really successfully. Point off for throwing dropping the ball entirely in terms of style intentions, but then this beer was not unpleasant to drink either, so I will be lenient.