Citra, Strata, and Nelson is not a novel hop combination anymore. Plenty of breweries reach for some version of this trio when they want a NEIPA that leans fruity rather than dank, and Coastal Mass. is not claiming otherwise with Tail Fin.

What the brewery is offering instead is a signature beer that does the fundamentals correctly: apricot, peach, passionfruit, grapefruit, and pine, at 7.3 percent ABV, without any of the usual overreach into a fifth or sixth hop variety just to justify a longer ingredient list on the can. Coastal Mass. calls this one its signature NEIPA, which is a specific kind of commitment - not a rotating seasonal, but the beer meant to represent what the brewery does best on a given day. A whale's tail on the label is a fitting touch for a Beverly, Massachusetts brewery sitting a short walk from the water.

It is on the current pour list at the taproom now. A well-executed familiar hop combination is still a well-executed beer, and Tail Fin does not need to reinvent the NEIPA to be worth a pour.