Ten Bends’ Green Fountains IPA

Now that election season is behind us and we are beyond the phone calls, TV ads and endless mailings for the candidates, we can get back to life in Covid country. In the coming weeks, who knows if we will see anything change from our new normal of face masks, student online learning and ‘working from home’ which has us all frustrated. One good thing though is the fact that the folks that keep us well stocked in craft brews are still hard at work. With that said, let’s focus on this week’s selection; Green Fountains IPA from Ten Bends.
Ten Bends Beer Company, based in Hyde Park, Vermont, refer to themselves as providers of small batch ales. Mike Scarlet and Jason Powell created their first beer recipe and brewed it in Jason’s workshop one weekend not long ago. Though the climate and lack of good equipment were some of their initial stumbling blocks, the beer turned out amazing. With fresh enthusiasm of turning a hobby into a business, they decided to go for it. Ten Bends comes from the amount of turns the nearby Lamoille River makes as it winds through Morrisville and Johnson, Vermont. Today they operate a seven-barrel brewery where they produce distinct ales inspired by the unique nature of their origins and the region. When they are allowed to reopen to the public, you can stop in and chat with them and appreciate one or all seven of their taps. Only one of their beers is below 5% ABV and they appear to focus primarily on IPAs. Open for online beer pickup only, they are located at 590 East Main St, Hyde Park, Vermont. Check out their website, TenBendsBeer.com
Green Fountains’ title is a play on Vermont’s namesake; the Green Mountain state. It also refers to the choice of plentiful hops used in this IPA. Pouring into a pint glass, a brilliant white attractive head and opaque haziness are among your first impressions. You can gather lots of lemony citrus aromas before your first sip. With a moderate mouthfeel and bready texture, you’ll notice what the malt character has achieved here. As far as hop involvement, Cascade imparts the citrusy grapefruit flavors we look for in New England style IPA’s. Mosaic brings in tropical fruits and berry notes. But Strata hops are used throughout the dry-hopping process to multiply the tropical nature of the beer. All of this planning in the recipe has currently made this IPA one of the most flavorful and sought after beers from Vermont. At 7.2% ABV, this juicy wonder will most likely be on your shopping list.
BeerAdvocate.com hasn’t officially rated Green Fountains as of this writing since it is newly released. Contributors to both Beer Advocate and Untapdd though agree on this one being quite special.
You can find 16 oz four packs of Ten Bends Green Fountains IPA at Case-n-Keg in Meredith as well as other fine beer providers so come and get it!