Local Oak Brewing Co. “Now That’s What I Call IPA! Vol. 30”

Style: New England IPA
ABV: 7.5%

Local Oak Brewing Co. in Winterville, NC has been crushing it with small batch IPAs since they opened their doors almost 2 years ago. Several of these IPAs have been the muse of our reviews and now they are on their 30th release of the style with “Now That’s What I Call IPA! Vol. 30.” Knowing how much we liked the other 29 IPAs (and yes, we have tried just about every single other one) we couldn’t wait to get out to the brewery and try the 30th rendition of a style they have become known for in the local area.

Joe’s Take

“Vol. 30” (for short) was served in a curvy tulip glass and was a pale orange color that almost resembled a creamsicle. It featured a robust pillowy white head that floated on the beer like a cloud of delicious aroma. Oh, and did I mention it was hazy? 

The aroma of the beer was strong and captured well by the glass it was served in. The robustness of the head also helped those aroma compounds escape and get the drinker prepped for the flavor to come. The smells of the beer were citrusy, juicy, and with a hint of stone fruit. The aroma of the beer was primarily hop derived and was soft with no harsh alcoholic tones (despite the relative heft of the 7.5% ABV). 

“Vol. 30” was medium-bodied and had an extremely smooth mouthfeel that made it go down easy. At first I thought there may be lactose in it based on the mouthfeel. However, I think they crafted the texture of the brew au-naturale without the adjunct. 

The IPA was packed with citrus, tropical, and juicy fruit flavors and I enjoyed every sip. There was also a decent malt body to the beer that helped keep things balanced. The beer was very light on bitterness (10 IBU) and focused on hop aroma and flavor. This, combined with the mouthfeel, made “Vol. 30” my new favorite beer available in the taproom … for now. Drinkability is excellent, but be cautious as a 7.5% ABV can sneak up on you. We definitely recommend you get out to the beer garden and try one. Heck, why not tonight? 

Nick’s Take

I don’t know about Joe, but I was excited to learn that Local Oak, one of our favorite local staples in the beer community, was releasing four new brews all in the span of about a week (okay, so maybe I DO know about Joe, and he was equally excited). Of course, they had to include an IPA in the listing of impending libations. “Now That’s What I Call IPA! Vol. 30” is a great enough name to draw me in, but once I got my pint, I was even more eager. This hazy boi was a dull orange – not quite as bright as orange juice but similar – and left no space for light to pass. My pour got a really nice head of fluffy white foam, almost resembling a meringue topping before the bubbles started to subside. This was a fun beer to photograph! It still left a nice amount of lace and retained some of the head as I continued on my tasting endeavors.

The hop-forward profile (shocking) of the aroma produced an incredible blend of fruity/juicy and dank hop character. I picked up citrus, namely orange, some stone fruit, and of course a dank herbal note from the strata hops. I honestly spent more time than usual smelling this beer because I kept finding slight nuances each time – and because it was truly enjoyable.

Eventually remembering that beer is intended to be drank, I grabbed a moderate sip and let it rest on my tongue for a moment. While a touch sharp upfront (whether from carbonation or imparted by the hops), “Vol. 30” eases up into a super soft and smooth beer. The medium body allows for each drink to go down easily, and doesn’t leave any harsh mouthfeel. It invites you to take another sip as soon as you finish the one before it.

I was not the least bit surprised to find that the flavors in “Vol. 30” aligned closely with the aroma profile. The hops – citra and strata – make for an exciting medley of juicy orange and grapefruit flavor, some sweet stone fruit, and earthy hops. The contributions from the malt were subtle for my palate but I think still very evident, as there was a bit of a reprieve from the hop flavors after each sip, whereas sometimes those compounds can really linger (not always a bad thing). I think this makes this IPA a very suitable option for food pairing.

As Joe mentioned, “Vol. 30” is so drinkable despite its ABV surpassing 7%. I’d like to experiment with various foods to see how they benefit from this IPA. We’ve attended a couple food and beer pairing events put on by Local Oak in conjunction with Prevail Food Truck, and I think Prevail could come up with something perfect for “Vol. 30.” I’m thinking anything with pork would be a winner. Come by Local Oak and give it a try for yourself!