O'So Brewing Company - Sixteen Candles

NOTE: O'so Special Offer Beer Volume Discounts: Save 15% on any 12 cans, 20% on 18, 25% on 24, and 30% on 48!

The fourth and final selection in this Rare Beer Club Special Offer is O’so Brewing’s 16 Candles, a 16th Anniversary Quadruple IPA. Wow(!) was the first thing that came to mind when we first encountered this amazing beer. 16 Candles was brewed in collaboration with Hopsteiner, the world class hop growers, showcasing the pronounced and unique flavors of Helios, Trident, Solero, Centennial, Lotus, and El Dorado hop varieties. This quadruple IPA definitely pushed the boundaries of traditional IPAs in hoppiness, maltiness, and alcohol content, but brought it all together harmoniously.

O’so 16 Candles Quadruple IPA pours a slightly hazy, deep, golden-amber with a persistent thick and creamy off-white head. The head was retained throughout our tasting of the beer and it left behind fine lacing on the inside of the glass. As we brought our glasses to our noses for the initial aroma evaluation, we were greeted by pronounced hops and malt aromas and we knew we were in for a treat. The combination of hop varieties really shined with massive amounts of tropical fruit aromas, dense pine and citrus blossoms, and bright grassy notes. Navel orange and grapefruit aromas were complemented by pineapple and passion fruit up front, with ripe peach and nectarine bringing in some wonderful stone fruit notes. Each swirl of the glass revealed more hop aromas as dank and floral aromas poured forth. The massive malt bill also contributed to the pronounced aromas with rich caramel notes and toasty rye expressions.

As we sipped O’so Brewing Co’s 16 Candles Quadruple IPA we were met with the same amount of pronounced flavors as we were the aromas. This is massively flavorful beer! The mouthfeel was unparalleled to any IPA we’ve ever experienced other than maybe Dogfish Head’s 120 Minute IPA; it was that impressive. The hop flavors built on each other with fine layers of navel orange and grapefruit peel, sweet pineapple and passionfruit, gorgeous ripe peaches, and dank, grippy, piney expressions. This is one for the ages. The 70 IBUs are wonderfully balanced by the smoothest and richest malt flavors we’ve encountered. Toasty caramel and rye flavors are an excellent backbone for this massively expressive IPA and make the 14% abv an afterthought and this quadruple IPA extremely drinkable.

O’so 16 Candles is full-bodied with a smooth, creamy mousse and luxurious mouthfeel. The finish is long, lingering, and grippy, as the hops don’t want to let go. Honestly, we didn’t want them to either. Enjoying 16 Candles Quadruple IPA is an adventure in exploring the limits of what IPAs can be in hoppy bitterness and malt complexity, making this the perfect choice for IPA enthusiasts seeking a truly memorable beer. This is a very limited release produced for O’so Brewing Company’s 16th anniversary, with the Rare Beer Club being allocated just a handful of cases.

The O’so Brewing Co. 16 Candles Quadruple IPA presents a unique opportunity to try maturing an IPA with its 14% abv and massive malt bill, but expect the hoppy aromas to dissipate over time. We recommend drinking now and pairing all things grilled or barbequed, or to quench the heat of Nashville Hot Chicken, or even savory and spicy Asian cuisine. Cheers!