Saint Brewis

A St. Louis Craft Beer Blog

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4 Hands Brewery – Cloud 9

Brewery: 4 Hands Brewery
Location  St. Louis, MO
Style Fruit Beer
 ABV 5.5%
 IBUs n/a

 

Best Quote During Tasting

If you type into Google "the meaning of life the universe and everything," it'll say 42.

Justin:

Aroma - I did not expect the big hops that I get based on the color of the beer. There's big grapefruit and like a tacky resin. Raspberry is there and the lime zest is in the background but the vanilla is very subtle (spoiler alert it comes out more when it warms up).
Score: X/12
Appearance - The beer is a slightly hazy amber-red with a nice, off-white head made up of small bubbles that starts off as one finger but goes down to a slick film, although it never leaves.
Score: X/3
Flavor - Whoa! There's a subtle tartness that is strictly from raspberries and it's darn nice. The lime shows up a little more here and adds to the fruity tartness. The vanilla, while still subtle, brings a sweetness that accompanies the wheat bread malts and those big juicy hops are around with some nice bitterness, making sure the sweetness stays under control.
Score: X/20
Mouthfeel - The carbonation is just above medium and the body is medium as well. It's quite biting on the tongue but it cleans the palate.
Score: X/5
Overall Impression - This beer was actually a creation from The Nine Network, 4 Hands and Feast TV. Nine Network contributors crafted beers using a french press at an event a few months back and a panel of judges selected the best one to be brewed by 4 Hands. I was actually one of 4 judges that chose this beer to be brewed by 4 Hands. For that reason, I didn't want to score this one because I could obviously have a bias one way or the other. What I will say is that the hops and subtle tartness from the raspberries were a great combo. I was a little underwhelmed with the vanilla on the nose and flavor at first but after two or three sips, it starts to show up more in both places. I don't see this one being canned anytime soon but 4 Hands did recently get a crowler machine so technically, you could take this out floating or to your softball game or your niece's baptism...whatever.
Score: X/10

 

Blake:

Aroma - It's more hop forward than you'd expect. The hops produce pine, resin, and some tropical fruit notes. The added fruit comes through nicely blending seamlessly from the tropical notes in the hops. Lime and vanilla are subtle, but make their way out as the beer continues to warm.
Score: 10/12
Appearance - Ruby red in color with a small off-white head.
Score: 3/3
Flavor - The raspberry is stronger in the flavor than the aroma, and adds a great tartness and sweetness. Adding to the sweetness is the vanilla which is also stronger in flavor than aroma. The hops balance the beer out and keep it from getting to sweet with some pleasant bittering qualities. 
Score: 17/20
Mouthfeel - Hefty carbonation lifts up a medium body and creates a crisp clean mouthfeel.
Score: 4/5
Overall Impression - If you like City Wide, and you'd like to try it with some fruit and other additions, then you can't go wrong with this beer. It's a bit too sweet to call crushable, but there is no doubt it would still go down quickly on a summer day. I'm glad I have some bottles of it to get me through the summer.
Score: 8/10

 

Cloud 9 Final Score
  • Aroma
  • Appearance
  • Flavor
  • Mouthfeel
  • Overall
4.2
User Rating: 0.0 (2 votes)
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Justin Phelps

Justin Phelps

Co-Founder at Saint Brewis
Justin Phelps is a Certified Cicerone® who was born and raised in St. Louis. His passion for beer goes beyond just drinking it as he is also an award-winning home brewer. While he may be a marketing professional by day, he's a blogger, brewery hopper, and beer enthusiast by night.
Blake Fehl

Blake Fehl

Co-Founder at Saint Brewis

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