BEER REVIEW: 413

BREWER: The Garden Brewery, Zagreb, Croatia

STYLE: Hazy IPA

ABV: 6.2%

VESSEL: 440ml tin

DATE OF POST: 5th September 2025

 

SAMMY SAY’S…

In the Adriatic sun, where the light dances on olive leaves and stone paths lead to sleepy seaside taverns, Oseka takes its first breath—a hazy IPA born of Croatian clarity and craft. Brewed in a land that embraces contrast—sea and mountain, tradition and innovation—this beer embodies that duality with elegance.

Its appearance is pure Dalmatian daydream: hazy gold, like sunlight filtered through fig leaves. The nose offers melon and grapefruit in easy alliance, reminiscent of citrus groves kissed by salt air. It’s the kind of aroma that invites pause, like the quiet beauty of Šibenik’s old town.

Then comes the sip. Lemon and lime sparkle on the tongue—bright, purposeful, Mediterranean. But it’s the melon that anchors the palate, mellow and soft like a whisper from the hills above Split. The balance is remarkable: each note distinct, none domineering. It’s mouthfeel is coastal silk—smooth and refreshing, like diving into the sea after a long hike.

Oseka doesn’t wear its ABV loudly. It’s subtle, seductive, and perilously sipable—a Dalmatian disguise for a drink that could charm you well past sunset. You could drink this under vines in Motovun or beside the buzzing life of Zagreb, and it would feel equally at home.

While the packaging may not shout, the name does the heavy lifting: evocative, memorable, just like the beer itself. It’s an understated triumph—a Croatian haze that offers more than refreshment. It offers place.

Sammy’s Rating: 91%

 

JYMI SAY’S…

Meaning mid tide and being accompanied by the most subtle but glorious piece of artwork I fell in love with Oseka pretty darn quick. This love was kinda already bubbling as the previous beer that we had tested from this brewery had scored a whopping 91% overall and I genuinely still remember the day I supped that delightful sour.

However, I was yet to open this Hazy Pale, so my heart could quite easily still have been broken.

Thankfully, it was not… Oseka is a delightful beer.

Opening with a stunning tropical nose you just know things are gonna be ok with what Garden Brewery have put forward. What follows all works together in perfect harmony…

In sip the tropical delight from the nose continues with semi sweet passion fruit nods and slight citrus tickles. This then transfers to a melon tone in the swallow which I have to say is utterly divine! Then what follows is just perfect. It’s a medium body bitterness that is just the most amazing conclusion to this simply stunning brew.

It’s bright, it’s light, it’s beautiful.

So go find and enjoy you beautiful beer loving people.

Jymi’s Rating: 94%

 

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 92.5%

MOB review next weekend: KASTEEL ROUGE by KASTEEL BROUWERIJ

Sammy & Jymi – Musing on Booze weekly since 2017

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M O B 2025