“The fourth beer in our new bi-monthly IPA series is a nod to the old school, with a Bridge Road (citrus) twist. A luminous copper colour in the glass, the aromas are big, zesty and resinous.  A bright, fresh, tangerine tang on the palate, makes way for a firm, lingering bitterness and a hint of malt sweetness on the finish. Vol.4 is a blissful reminder, that you need NEeD.”

Glassware: IPA.

Appearance: Pouring a deep bold amber with full transparency. It forms a sturdy two and a bit finger head which maintains nicely. Excellent lace work left on the glass.

Aroma: Wow the tangerine is really evident. To the point where it even starts give off heady Jaffa notes…and furthermore how do they get the chocolate aroma out of it? That’s remarkable. As we delve deeper we get more nuanced orange citrus and candied fruits, peppery spice, lemongrass, pine/spruce, green mango and fresh oregano. Quite a hefty sweet malt structure at the base. Solid!

Flavour: Packs a nice old West Coast punch to the palate. Again the tangerine features heavily upfront then blends nicely into the kinda pithy, herbaceous and piney middle. All the while the sweet Caramalts provide a subtle yet crucial counterbalance in the background. The strident hop bitterness grabs the back of the throat as it sets up for a rather dry, bitter and aggressive finish.

Mouthfeel: Pretty smooth yet grippy with more than enough to chew on. That IBU really kicking in late. Medium body and Co2. The 7% ABV arks up here and there.

Overall: Doesn’t come close to ‘NEED #2’ but we’d have to rate it higher than both hazy releases (#1 and #3). Pretty tight all round it just doesn’t have the polish on it to make it superb.