Anton Aus Thiol

Pours unclear blonde. Scent is full, TIPA typical boozy hoparoma. Sweet fruits expression. Taste is full, sweet, bit boozy. Cloying, bit bitter. Sweet, higher alcohol is hidden by the sweetness.

Released alongside Heidi Aus Terpeen, this is a hefty NEDIPA using Phantasm, the miracle powder made from grapes and invented by Jos Ruffell in New Zealand a couple of years ago, as a pioneering trendsetter in what is now referred to as biotransformation: extracing, in some way or another, the best of flavours and aromas out of plants. In this case, thiols (or mercaptans) are enhanced in this Phantasm powder, creating the aromas of tropical fruits brewers seek to display in hazy IPAs; I believe Dok, at the cutting edge of both tradition and innovation, is effectively the first brewery in Belgium to make use of this new technique. From a can at De Welkom, Dok's own pub in the Patershol quarter of Ghent. Eggshell-white, thick and densely moussey, slowly thinning and opening head over a hazy pure yellow golden robe. Intense bouquet of honey pomelo, lychee, cherimoya, 'meloenjenever', apricot jam, frying shallot, ripe pear, meringue, wodka, diesel. Cleanish, sweetish onset, citric and tropical but in any case immediately very fruity, with again lychee, cherimoya and honey pomelo, even some Durondeau pear, medium in carbonation and full in mouthfeel; oily, sweet cake-like core with velvety oats around the edges, continuously soaked in these utterly fruity hops, with the aforementioned fruits firmly standing their ground. Aroma is everything here (intentionally so), but some very mild hop bitterness is noticeable, though it is reinforced by somewhat astringent, wodka-like alcohol. Postmodern, very contemporary and very aromatic NEDIPA - Dok is justly proud of this creation.

As far as I know it's my first Thiol enhanced beer. Result: It's a mediocre DNEIPA. Hard to know if the Thiol has improved or detracted from the final product. Based on this beer Thiols are certainly not a game changer. Somewhat buttery and grassy with subtle tropical fruit sweetness and a slightly pithy bitterness.