Fulton Beer - Hop Kingdom Hazy IPA

This hazy member of Fulton’s lineup of “Hop Kingdom” IPAs delivers on the name with a super densely hazed orange color on the pour, topped by a big cap of off-white foam that retains well before lacing the glass as it drops to a persistent ring. We felt the aromas were really inviting and multifaceted, bursting with tropical and citrus fruit notes conjuring impressions of passionfruit, guava, and zesty and juicy orange, with some sliced melon, light floral touches, and a dash of mildly peppery spice. Expect a really satisfying feel on the palate too, with a very pillowy textured and creamy body thanks to the oats and other proteins in suspension. The malt undertones come through lightly bready with some wheaty tanginess, offering good support for those expressive hops to star in this fruity show. Moderate hop bitterness keeps this nicely dry and crisp without crushing the palate. For pairing options, we’d turn to dishes boasting tropical tones or bright citrus for a natural match, like chile lemon-lime pork. Additionally, crispy dishes like fried chicken offer a textural contrast. Try some crispy, peppery Chinese lemon peel beef for the best of both. Cheers!

The story of Fulton Beer begins in 2006 with the four folks behind the business—Ryan Petz, Brian Hoffman, Peter Grande, and Jim Diley—starting to homebrew together in Jim’s piddly (and cold) one-car garage. Rest assured, Minnesota gets cold. But that homebrewing inlet, like so many unexpected and fiscally questionable paths into professional brewing, led them in 2009 to start Fulton Beer together. As the story goes: Ryan and Jim were in debt from grad school, Pete and his wife were expecting, everyone else was newly or about to get married... The four had no savings, no cache of brewing connections, and no real industry experience. The circumstances, in other words, were perfect.

In the time since, we’ve been able to watch Fulton Beer grow from a small, contracting brewery into something much more established—and all in spite of the less-than-super-great chances for the whole endeavor. The first keg of Fulton Beer was served at The Happy Gnome out in St. Paul; this was back in late October of 2009. The intrepid four signed a lease for their first brewery in September 2010, which became the first brewery taproom in the Twin Cities. And, having quickly exhausted that production space, they began building a second brewery in late 2013.

Today, the majority of Fulton Beer’s production takes place at their second location: a 51,000-square-foot facility in northeast Minneapolis, about five minutes from their original spot. Today, they brew several year-round brews in addition to a wide array of limited, barrel-aged beers, and sour mixed culture beers, plus a line of increasingly popular hard seltzers. To learn more, visit www.fultonbeer.com.