New Holland Phi

Brewed by New Holland Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Holland, Michigan USA

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

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12oz bottle. Poured medium orange with a short cap of off-white head. The aroma picked up sour orange peel and grainy notes, along with faint lighter fruits and hay.. rather bizarre. The flavor had an almost oppressive continuation of that sourness, and I hope it wasn’t intentional.. refreshing orange zest rides around the edges, along with some grains of paradise spicage.. this didn’t do it for me. Sour on the palate, which would have been fine if it was backed off a bit.. dry, sour, and spicy finish. Not so good.

Rust/orange/copper in color, this beer poured a 1/4" head that dissipated rather quickly and barely left any lacing. The nose showed a mix of piney hops and sweet malt with scents of brown sugar, caramel, pine, grapefruit, orange and pumpkin. In the mouth begins with grapefuit hops initially hitting the palate and remainis sour throughout the midpalate and even the finish which adds some dryness. There is the slightest touch of sweetness in the midpalate but other than that the malt seems to be non-existant in the palate. Overall, this is a nice beer though rather unremarkable.

12 Oz Bottle (At the least an older bottle). Weak bretty nose; sour coconut, lush apple, banana cream and light yuzu zest. Bits of malty sugar. Pours a deep gold, with pale edges and a rocky soap of white. Flavor is generally pretty mild. First, some tart sour Brett lemon juice, then a wash of bland sugar and finally a reminiscence of hops. I don’t believe this was intended to be a Brett beer, but me loving accidental Brett beers, this is interesting. It’s possible there’s a good bit of Lacto in here too and I’m just not picking up on it directly. There is some unsettling melon bitterness in the smack, but it’s not terrible. There’s really nothing happening behind the Brett, so unique yeast flavors or malt character. Instead, just a plain base of a now dryly, refreshing Brett beer. Higher alcohol makes this unique. Definitely some Asian pear and green tomato further down. A tasty accident. Thanks Sean!

Name: PHI
Date: 04/28/2006
Mode: Draft
Source: Brewpub

dark golden yellow, scant head, big sweet candy aroma, tart malt flavor with a sour twist, light spicy character,

Aroma: 5/10; Appearance: 6/10; Flavor: 4/10; Palate: 5/10; Overall: 7/20
Rating: 2.2/5.0
Drinkability: 5/10
Score: *+/4

I was pretty disappointed by this beer. I paid $10.99 for a 4 pack. Very flat texture, little flavor, no character. It’ll get you drunk fast if nothing else. I only give it points because it leaves a clean touch on the tongue with only a hint of bitterness. Not for the hop head. Perhaps for the aristocrat who just can’t be seen with a Bud Light in their hand. I would recommend any number of other beers in its place. Particularly Sam Smith Pure Brewed Lager.

pours hazy orange color. little head and low carbonation. taste is sour white grapes. alcohol is a well hidden given it is 9%. finishes dry.

12oz Bottle $9.99 6-Pack Sam’s Downer’s Grove Phi pours the color of iced tea but absolutely glows when held to the light. Minimal carbonation rise slowly along the sides of the glass. A thin cap formed on an aggressive pour. Leaves drink lines after each sip. Aroma is strange. White grapes start things off but are quickly followed by a dirty scent and a sweet sugary maltiness. Flowery and sweet. The aroma isn’t all that appetizing. Not bad but not very good either. Flavor starts off with the white grapes, somewhat sweet but also tart. Flowery mid palate with a powdery yeast finish. Not bad but that dirty flavor comes around and taints things. Body is on the thicker side of medium and coating. Finishes bone dry. I’d drink another of these but that would be it. A little to viscous to drink too much. Decent beer from New Holland. I don’t know if this was brewed again in the last few months or what but this was purchased about 2 months ago. According to the website last brewing was 2005. 5/27/07

Rated 9/15/06: Based on some quick research I believe this Phi is a 2005 edition, the abv listed on the bottle is 9%. Pours a nice medium orange/burnt yellow with a medium white head and tons of lacing followed by strong carbonation. Aroma is sour and fruity. Very sweet to the taste buds at first which soon becomes sour and acidic. Tangy and fruity as well this ale is very interesting. The alcohol is well hidden. Rich on the palate with a sour finish that is dry. Perplexing and rather tasty.

12oz. bottle. Hazy orange-gold with a thin film of white head. Sweet, bready malt with banana and appleskin in the aroma. Turning apple and grapeskin tartness with a slight earthen herbal hop component. Fruity esters emerge in the finish with a resurging malty sweetness, fades to a metallic astringency. Mouthfeel is medium, rather dry.

In the bottle. Pours a hazy dark gold with a rapidly fleeting white head. The aroma is of big banana esters and Johnson’s paste wax. This beer has an extreme sourness. At first, I thought it had gone bad, but then convinced myself that it was supposed to be a flemmish sour, and I was just crazy. Then, I read that it is a "strong Ale." So now I’m totally confused. This has a big tannin-filled astringency. Sour grape fruitiness. Milky mid-palate. Very fast finish. A mixture of sweet tarts and battery acid.