DDH Double IPA · 8.6% ABV · Canned 09/19/26 · “DRINK EM ALL” · Pokemonk on Untappd
Reviewed: October 4, 2026 (inferred from the Apple Note’s creation date; the note says I tasted it a week earlier too).
Double Dry Hopped (DDH) Double IPA showcasing fresh dank dank hand-selected CITRA!
The beer is beige in color, pale, looks like orange juice with oat milk added, fully opaque, very hazy. Foam is medium coarse, about a finger high, and disappears rather quickly. The beer shows copper, brass metal, newly cut cactus, newly cut trees, white grape skins, raw mustard greens, soursop, subtle pineapple and mango, not typical but subtle plastic and diesel dank noses. The prickly pear and cactus juice aroma is herbal, and quite unique to this batch of Monkish Brewing Co. beers. Not sure if the title says it correctly; yes, it does have some wet hop’s herbal and pungent dankness. This smells less like a nice and rounded Citra, but has a lot of tree leaf and cactus dankness in it.
The beer is lightly sweet, low in bitterness, pillowy, creamy and smooth, medium bodied. I tasted this beer one week ago, and it was more pungent and showing more hop burn. Maybe that’s right: a double IPA, even as a DDH hazy, tastes a bit more mellow at its peak, in the second week. It shows less cactus dankness in the mouth, showing strong lemon drop, lemon peel, vodka-dipped lemon peel aromas when it flows into the mouth, and then Valencia orange, gooseberry, pineapple juice, mango purée, lychee, muscat-shine white grape, Jolly Rancher orange candy aromas—pretty fruity, sleek, lightly tropical. If you get greedy and drink it faster, it will burn your throat. The hop burn still exists, just less aggressive on the tongue, but still aggressively coating the throat. But if you sip, that’s very smooth, no hop burn. The aftertaste is lemony, with citrus peels, crushed whole orange, golden kiwi, hemp, dried passion fruit aromas.
It’s funny, this gives me the impression of “Plump,” which is a beer from Great Notion Brewing. The metaphor is Ripe (Citra-heavy hazy IPA from Great Notion, which contributed to their earlier success) may give you a plump feeling on your fruits. I thought that impression was funny: you get more juice, packed in a more rounded shape, still smooth, but at the core it’s still a Citra beer. Trying to reverse-engineer what hops are used normally defeats your tasting experience; you will lose the game. If the information is right, I did sense these extra cactus, white grape aromas which distinguish it from the sleek Citra hops.
Untappd listed this beer at 4.43/5 from 4,241 ratings when checked on October 12, 2026 (UTC). That is a snapshot of Untappd user ratings, not my own score.
Beer review critics
Two responses to this beer’s changing character over time, and to the gap between a gentle sip and a throat-burning gulp.
Gemini — Gemini 3.1 Pro (High), via Antigravity CLI
What I like in the observation. Your tactile breakdown is sharp, especially separating a pillowy mouthfeel while sipping from throat-coating hop burn during faster drinking. Capturing the aroma shift from brassy metal, cut cactus, and grape skin into juicy Valencia orange is vivid. Riffing on Great Notion with the "plump" metaphor neatly conveys an amplified, rounded Citra core without collapsing into generic fruit-salad descriptors.
What isn't established. Inferring wet hops or hidden varieties from herbal pungency overreaches; Citra lots vary widely. Monkish’s description emphasizes hand-selected Citra, which doesn’t verify the complete recipe, but unusual notes do not prove unstated ingredients. Moreover, Untappd’s 4.43 rating over 4,241 check-ins signals broad popularity, not sensory consensus on these specific notes.
How I'd test it. Run a controlled repeat tasting across weeks three and four using remaining cans from the same batch. Evaluate side-by-side pours at fridge and cellar temperatures alongside a benchmark single-hop Citra hazy.
— Gemini, selected excerpts from a new critique by Gemini 3.1 Pro (High reasoning).
ChatGPT — OpenAI GPT-6.1 Sol (high reasoning)
What works. The sequence gives me something to follow: cactus, brass and white-grape skins on the nose; lemon peel opening into rounded fruit in the mouth; citrus and hemp lingering afterward. Revisiting the same beer a week later adds more than another adjective list. Your fast-gulp versus slow-sip distinction is especially useful: pillowy texture and perceived throat burn can coexist. “Smooth” doesn’t necessarily mean irritation-free.
What I'd challenge. “Wet hops” moves from sensory resemblance toward a production claim. Herbal pungency alone doesn’t establish fresh, undried-hop use. Likewise, cactus, metal and white grape don’t identify other hop varieties.
The softer second tasting supports your experience, not a general second-week peak. Storage, temperature, drinking pace and palate condition remain possible explanations. Your preference for “nice and rounded Citra” also shapes the quality judgment: another drinker might prize cactus-like greenery or dislike metallic notes regardless of smoothness.
The supplied Untappd snapshot—4.43/5 from 4,241 ratings as of October 12, 2026—shows enthusiasm, not sensory consensus; the visible public check-ins offer little sensory detail.
Next tasting. Keep your “plump” metaphor. Next week, compare another same-batch can at the same serving temperature, alternating equal-volume slow sips and quicker drinks. Record creamy texture separately from tongue and throat irritation, noting onset and duration. That would test your pace observation while keeping ageing explanations provisional.
— ChatGPT, selected excerpts from an OpenAI GPT-6.1 Sol (high reasoning) critique using the brewer description and limited Untappd comments.