Brewview#93: Night Signal by 42 North Brewing

I was planning on writing this the other night but my 3 year old, Audrey, asked me to cuddle and well I think it’s obvious how my night ended; very little space to sleep but with the best cuddles. Alas, here we are a little bit later than anticipated. 42 North Brewing’s Night Signal, a DIPA that I acquired from Adrian, a friend of mine, who has the pleasure of working at 42 North. Thanks Adrian, I hope you enjoy the read!

The Beer: Night Signal by 42 North Brewing

Style: Double IPA

ABV: 9.0% IBU: 20

Hops: Cashmere

Mosaic

Sabro

Brewer’s Facts

On 42 North’s website, be sure to check out the ‘Taproom’ tab and ‘Now On Tap’. This has an amazing list of the beers you can enjoy on draft while at the brewery. For tonight’s sake let’s jump down to the Night Signal. 42 North shares a brief but to the point message of what signals we will be picking up from this presumably delicious DIPA.

‘Featuring Mosaic, Cashmere and Sabro hops, this incredibly juicy double IPA expresses a silky mango flavor preceded by a refreshing melon aroma.’

https://www.42northbrewing.com/beers/

Crack It Open

Night Signal is a very attractive beer, from front to back and top to bottom. The pours itself will leave you in a daze between the appearance and the aromas. Night Signal is a pale straw color with a haze that will carry on for days, the only thing your seeing through this beauty is mere shadows. There is a slight head that dissipates with time but leaves behind a fluffy top for the beer.

The aromas themselves will grab onto you and never let go! Just like 42 North said this is a ‘juicy double IPA’ and it presents itself as one, the ‘juicy’ part that is. The overall feel of the aromas will leaving you thinking tropical paradise. Though there is more to it than that. The one major aroma that instantly jumps out is melon, and it is endless. Some aromas you get at the beginning or end of a sniff, not this melon it is staying with you till the end. Beyond that I am noticing minor notes of pineapple and mango, but they easily succumb to the melon aroma and may even be missed at times. Either way I am sure you will be very pleased after you stick your nose in your glass, I’m talking instant aroma therapy.

Down The Hatch

Wow! 42 North sure nailed this one on the head. Packed full with the aroma and then the flavor follows in suite. Jesus! How am I only supposed to drink just one seeing that Night Signal is 9% ABV? I may be drooling by the end of this, just know it’s worth it.

The beginning of the sip is great. The aromas begin the process without you putting any effort forth. They jump out as if to prep your senses for a beergasm. The melon aromas possess this mellow affect on the mango flavor that is packed into Night Signal. But only for a second once you get passed the aromas and are able to fully appreciate the flavor, you’ll notice a somewhat silky mouthfeel with some bitterness topped off with an amazing mango flavor.

As I move towards mid sip I’m noticing a slight kick in the bitterness, I’m thinking it’s almost like a citrus bitterness with some limited citrus flavor. But try not to pay attention to the citrus flavor if you notice it like I do. What you should take notice of and appreciate is how well the bitterness pairs with the mango. It’s astonishing! This could’ve been a juice bomb with no bitterness what so ever, when in reality the slightest touch of bitterness really optimizes the mango flavor. I’m kind of getting a Mosaic vibe from the light bitterness and how well it pairs with the flavors. It’s something I’ve noticed with other beers. That may just be a Jeff thing, who knows?

Mid sip itself is a bit different. The bitterness seems to mellow out if not totally make a run for it. And the mango flavor really settles out. It’s not jumping out at me as much as is it fully engulfing my senses and giving me this tropical laid back feeling. The silky mouthfeel takes over and gives Night Signal a pillowy soft feeling for a brief second. Right after mid sip, transitioning to the end and swallow there is a slight change in atmosphere. But totally warranted if you ask me. That pillowy soft mouthfeel takes a backseat and there is a sudden warming bitterness at the beginning of each swallow. Part of that I’m sure is due to the 9% ABV, which I have come to love in DIPAs of this sort. it really helps me mellow out after a stressful day at the hospital. With this surge of bitterness the mango flavor takes off, blasting through the roof of my mouth. Though after giving it some thought, I may be noticing some papaya floating around. What do you think?

With the surge in mango we will see a dip in the bitterness. As pleasant as the bitterness may have been it mellows out rather quickly. Though have no fear, the aftertaste does have a touch of bitterness lingering around, though I’m more inclined to believe it’s more of a citrusy bitterness. Just know, this isn’t a West Coast bitterness, it’s what I tend to believe can make or break a juicy IPA or DIPA. The IPA can be juicy and refreshing but still leaves you with a touch of tropical hop bitterness. In Night Signal’s case it is spot on.

And here I am left with an empty glass and delicious aftertaste. I’m getting more of tropical feel that centers around the mango flavor but still has more to offer. There are some of the melon notes I spoke of earlier with the aromas. It took me a while to figure it out but there is a slight orange flavor as well in the aftertaste. Not the typical citrus flavor more of a mandarin orange flavor. Are you getting the same thing here, or am I just eating too much of my daughter’s mandarin orange fruit cups?

Either way I am left totally impressed and sad that my glass is empty. What the fuck am I going to do now?

Concluding Thoughts

Well yet again, I’m sure it was easy to see how pleased I was. I’ll be honest at first when I saw juicy and melon on the can I may have been a little skeptical. For fairness sake I try to keep my own dispositions out of my writing, yes I will always be honest but I will never make it personal. With that being said, holy nuts 42 North! I can’t think of anything I disliked about this beer, besides the can being empty at this point. Both the aromas and flavors fully engulfed me providing different stops upon this journey. My favorite part, and I hope everyone enjoys it as much was I did, was the warm bitterness just prior to the swallow. It’ll lift you up and then deflate you into a chill state of mind. I may have reached Nirvana, who knows? All I know is I’m left with a smile on my face and a very welcomed buzz!

Please, grab a pint or a 4-pack but take caution. Night Signal holds a 9% ABV but doesn’t always present itself that way.

Cheers!