The new brew will be available on Thanksgiving Eve…
There’s a certain kind of anticipation that follows a new hazy IPA in Northeastern Pennsylvania, part hope, part habit, part “let’s see what they’ve come up with this time.” And up in Scott Township, the crew at Last Minute Brewing has released a beer with a name that feels more like a prompt than a product: Was It All a Dream or Memory.
I haven’t had the chance to try it yet (the beer doesn’t debut until the day before Thanksgiving). But sometimes the story around a beer tells you almost as much as the first sip.
The beer: What we know (and what we’re waiting for)…
Even without a taste, Last Minute Brewing offered us plenty to go on.
Style: Hazy IPA
ABV: 7.7%
Hops: Idaho 7 up front; double-dry-hopped with Citra and Nelson Sauvin
Profile (per the brewery): resinous depth, tropical aromatics, bright citrus
“Idaho 7 on the hot side,” as mentioned in the Last Minute Brewing Instagram post above, typically brings pine, papaya, and a resin-forward backbone. The Citra and Nelson dry hop suggests punchy citrus, mango, gooseberry, and a subtle white-wine lift from the Nelson Sauvin.
What interests me most isn’t the haze or the fruit notes, it’s the promise of balance. Last Minute tends to avoid the sugar-heavy hazies that can lean more fruit purée than IPA. Their beers, even the softer ones, usually hold their structure. Haze with purpose, not haze for haze’s sake.
A brewery built on the “do it right” mentality…
If you know Last Minute Brewing, you know they’re not chasing hype or algorithms. Since opening in March 2019, tucked into a quiet bend of Scott Township, they’ve carried themselves like a place where brewing remains rooted in routine and patience rather than spectacle.
Owner and brewer E.J. Lastauskas started like many great brewers do, homebrewing with his dad back in the early ’90s, learning the slow, steady rhythm of grain and hop long before hazy IPAs became their own cultural shorthand. A hobby eventually sharpened into a plan, and today he runs a five-barrel brewhouse focused on small-batch releases and dependable quality.
As he put it in a 2020 interview, “The goal that was set from the beginning was and is very simple: brew good beer.” It’s not a slogan or a marketing hook; it’s the backbone of Last Minute Brewing’s identity. And in a beer landscape increasingly driven by novelty, that kind of simplicity feels almost radical.
The name matters…
Was It All a Dream or Memory is classic Last Minute, thoughtful without drifting into pretension. The brewery has always had fun with time and timing, and this one leans reflective, maybe even a little nostalgic.
It signals intention. This isn’t a rush job; this is a beer meant to linger.
Where it fits in the NEPA scene…
The 570’s craft beer scene is expanding, but it still rewards breweries that stay grounded. Last Minute Brewing has earned its following by being local, low-key, and consistently good, the kind of place where the brewer hands you a sample, remembers what you liked last time, and hints at what’s fermenting in the back.
A double-dry-hopped hazy IPA with this hop bill fits squarely within what NEPA drinkers gravitate toward, while still carving out its own identity. If the execution matches the ingredients, this could quietly become one of the standout releases of the season.
Final thoughts…
I haven’t tasted Was It All a Dream or Memory yet, but everything surrounding it, its hop bill, its balance-focused philosophy, its quietly ambitious name, points toward something worth seeking out. If you’re the kind of drinker who prefers hazies with personality rather than pure sweetness, Last Minute’s latest might be exactly what you’re looking for.
And once I finally get my hands on it, I’ll let you know if it lived up to the anticipation.
