Belt’s Beer Garden: Drink Local (755)

There are around 37 breweries in St. Paul, Minnesota (according to the city’s travel/visitor bureau) and, while Surly, Modist, and Fair State might be the most well known, a new challenger entered the ring back in 2017 - BlackStack Brewing.

BlackStack, a family-owned brewery, is located in the Midway neighborhood of St. Paul and has been working under the philosophy of “no shortcuts” since the beginning. That simple stance has led to them crafting some amazing brews that have garnered quite a bit of attention lately.

Normally these beers don’t leave the Twin Cities but today I was able to get a few cans of their newest “Local 755” series. Each beer from this series of hazy IPAs is double dry-hopped with a new combination/variation of hops.

The version I have of DDH Local 755 is brewed with a slew of Motueka hops and has a nice 6.8% ABV. Each 16-ounce can had a $6 price tag. The beer was canned on May 21st and this review was written on July 13th.

This double dry-hopped IPA poured a bright, but cloudy, straw color with just over a finger of off-white head building up. The thicker foam slowly fizzled away, leaving some lacing, as it began to clump together in certain areas around the edge of the glass.

I took my first whiff...and, whoa, was this brew juicy! Mango, pineapple, and tangerine led the way. There was a slight candied sugar characteristic and some light melon as well. The malt base, flaked wheat and oats, also provided some additional sweetness, making this a very inviting beer.

My initial swig began with a creamy mouthfeel but it wasn’t as thick or heavy I was expecting it to be. It had a light to medium body and didn’t weigh me down/fill me up like some of the heavy sitting beers can do.

There was a light fizzle of carbonation before the tropical flavors really kicked it into second gear and blasted my taste buds with juicy notes of tangerine/orange. The tropical flavors continued, as the mango and pineapple quickly joined in.

Towards the midway point of the sip, the flaked grains added a dash of breadiness and a very light honeydew flavor peeked through.

Finally, as the beer was ending, there was a very acidic and sharp pineapple pop that spiked and quickly faded away.

This variation of Local 755 ended rather cleanly. There was a tiny bit of dryness but absolutely no lingering flavors. It was a super crushable IPA.

This was my first introduction to BlackStack Brewing and it made quite the first impression. Super juicy, super tasty, and super easy to drink. The nearly 7% ABV was hidden entirely and that made having a few of these rather dangerous...in a good way.

I can’t wait to get more from BlackStack!