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Hazy Days Route #51

Hazy Days Route #51

Hazy Days Route #51 is the wildcard in Guggman Haus's yeast experiment, a new-to-them Verdant strain that drove this hazy IPA drier, lighter, and stronger.

If Route #50 is the control group, Route #51 is where Guggman Haus Brewing Co. got curious. Same base recipe, same Citra and Simcoe dry-hop, but fermented with a new-to-them Verdant Yeast strain instead of the house standard, and the difference shows up immediately in the numbers alone: 8% ABV against Route #50's 6.6%.

That's the nature of a highly attenuating yeast strain, it chews through more of the available sugar, leaving behind a drier, lighter-bodied beer with a higher final alcohol content almost as a side effect. The flavor shifts too, bright notes of tropical fruit and citrus zest coming through in a leaner package than its sibling batch, proof that changing one variable in a recipe can move a lot more than just the mouthfeel.

Indianapolis's Guggman Haus clearly brewed this pair specifically to invite comparison, and Route #51 is the more surprising half of that equation, a beer that ends up stronger and drier purely because of what was fermenting it rather than anything added to the recipe.

Available now at the main taproom in a small batch, best enjoyed with Route #50 close at hand for an actual side-by-side.

Same grain, same hops, different yeast, different beer entirely. That's the whole experiment in one sentence.