Beer Review: Brouwerij West Picnic Lightning

I paired Brouwerij West Picnic Lightning, a Hazy IPA, with some street tacos at a pretty cool restaurant in San Francisco during a work dinner with co-workers. Someone else described it as “mop water,” and I hate how accurate that is.

I’ve mopped more than my fair share of kitchen floors, and yes—there is undeniably a mop-water note right up front. That slightly musty, damp, vaguely mineral thing you get when the mop has been rinsed just enough to be clean, but not enough to be forgotten. It’s there immediately, and once your brain makes the connection, there’s no unmaking it.

And yet… somehow… it works.

After that initial musty hit, the beer settles into something surprisingly well-balanced and genuinely delicious, especially for a hazy. The hops smooth out, the bitterness stays in check, and there’s a soft, rounded body that keeps everything from tipping into “why am I drinking this?” territory. Instead of fighting the weirdness, the beer seems to embrace it, like it knows exactly what it’s doing and dares you to keep going.

That mop-water association never fully disappears, which is what makes this beer so fascinating. It’s not a fleeting off-flavor or a flaw you can ignore—it’s the headline act. And yet, it never becomes unpleasant. It just sits there, oddly earthy and damp-adjacent, while the rest of the beer quietly proves it has its act together.

I like it. I would absolutely drink it again. But it’s easily the strangest forward flavor I’ve ever encountered in a beer I genuinely enjoy. It’s confusing in the best way—like your taste buds are arguing with your brain and somehow both sides are winning.

I like it too much, and I don’t fully trust myself because of that. 🍺

Can Art Rating: 3.5

I’m going to start adding a separate rating for can artwork that doesn’t affect the overall beer score, but feels like another fun metric to track. I’d give the art a 3.5. I really like the pixelated, video-game-style skeleton riding a bunny with a sword. I’m not sure it connects all that well to the beer’s name, but it’s playful and memorable nonetheless.

Drink Rating: 4.0

4.0 Look.
Opaque peach body.

4.5 Smell.
Nice aromas of juniper, pine and citrus.

3.75 Taste
Takes a bit of a hit here for that mustiness. But those citrus notes and a hint of Carmely malt that I like so much, so nice.

4.0 Feel.
Super astringent, the way I want a well-hopped hazy to be.

4.0 Overall

4.0 Rating, which is -2.4% under the BeerAdvocate overall rating

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