Night Shift Morph IPA

A couple of weeks ago, as part of one of the best birthdays I’ve ever had, my lovely wife took my cousin and me on a tour of a number of local breweries. Just over the Tobin Bridge you can find three of the most innovative breweries in Massachusetts, and I couldn’t think of a better way to spend a Saturday afternoon. We started at Night Shift Brewery in Everett. I have previously visited the new brewery (full write up HERE), and it continues to impress. Everything is top-notch – the space, the staff and of course the beer. I was pleased to see that most of their offerings are now available as part of their tasting flights, including a number of beers from their limited release Art Series. In addition to bottles and growler fills, Night Shift now cans a few of their offerings, including Morph, their new rotating IPA. Morph is an interesting concept, each batch is going to have a different malt and hop profile. This first batch of Morph was originally brewed as The Constable, a release in the Night Shift Art series. Morph is available for a limited time on draft and in 12 oz. cans, but soon enough there will be a new batch with a new recipe. In addition to my tastings at the brewery I grabbed a 4-pack of Morph to take home.

Night Shift MorphNight Shift Morph pours the color of white grapefruit juice, along with the nearly opaque cloudiness. Poured out of a can you get a large but quickly dissipating white head. The first smell is a big hit of citrus and tropical fruit. The hops dominate the flavor too, with lemon, grapefruit, pine and a little mango and grass. Despite all of the hop flavor the beer isn’t aggressively bitter, it’s more crisp than tongue numbing. There is also some noticeable maltiness to provide balance and contribute a bit of bready grain to the flavor. The finish is very clean with just a hint of bitterness. Night Shift Morph is very easy to drink, at 5.9% ABV it is right in the wheelhouse for a single IPA. Overall this is a solid beer, a drinkable hop-forward IPA that is perfect for what is left of the warm weather in New England. Hoppy Boston score: 4.0/5.

Previous Night Shift reviews:

Night Shift Ever Weisse, Night Shift Grove, Night Shift JoJo, Night Shift Taza Stout, Night Shift Simcoenation

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