I like to browse around the alcohol aisles in Costco, as they usually have local wines and beers in stock, and are constantly renewed or replaced by different names. Riley’s beers are one of the new selections that appeared in the aisle. Riley’s Brewing Company is a brewery right here in the Central Valley, specifically in Madera County (which is just north of Fresno County). Riley’s Hazy Space was particularly interesting to me as it is in the genre of space beers, in which the space theme sets about an adventurous journey of sparkling undiscovered flavors hidden by cosmic clouds.
Riley’s Hazy Space is a hazy beer (as its name would suggest) and an IPA, so it has the characteristic bitterness of any other IPA. Despite that, it is rather sweet (leading with Californian stone fruit, citrus and vague tropical fruits), and its hazy appearance gives you the illusion of it being even smoother than it should be. It pairs well with pizza (like soda does), wine snacks (cheese, meats, crackers), and salty spicy foods like hot wings. If you’re one of those people who drink IPAs with spicy foods, you’ll find that this IPA doesn’t intensify the burn as much as others would (IPAs make spices burn hotter due to its bitter profile).