Fresh Hop Of Bel-Air
Upright Brewing Company

 

murky orange pour with a creamy yet sparse head. that belgian saisony yeast aroma is detectable from a foot away, strong with clove, grass, vanilla, carrot, and countless other earth-grown goodnesses. if there's fresh hop in the nose, it gets somewhat lost to the bold euro-style of the beer. i get the hops in the mouthfeel though, as it drinks easy but finishes with a dry, earthy balance. bringing together the belgian flavors with a fresh hop feel, no sweetness or heft and extreme drinkability makes for a real winner. when i taste this beer, i think it's what fantome's orval clone would taste like. make sense? hope so. another excellent beer from alex & co.

On tap the Upright Tasting Room during Blazer pre-game. Thanks, Alex.

Deep golden brew, a bit of chill haze, one finger semi-rocky head, nice lacing. A bit sweet upfront with bready malts in the nose, with citrusy (grapefruit, meyer lemons?) hop presence on the tastebuds, but a pleasant sweetness present. Very smooth, probably due to the one-hop (Liberty) recipe, with a chewy, dry finish. Super drinkable. A different take on fresh hop beers. Another winner from Upright. Worth seeking out while available.

Had heard good things about this brewery, and based on the sizeable sample I had of this beer at the fresh hop festival in Portland yesterday, all I can say is that I'm impressed so far.

The beer pours a golden peach color with excellent head retention and lacing. The beer looks a bit viscuous in the glass and just looks impressive. On the nose, this is again very impressive stuff. While I get the expected honey and spice, there is also some orange citrus and lots of black pepper. Flavors on the palate replicate the nose, but the black pepper comes through even more on the palate, which tends to quickly dry out the light to moderate sweetness I get. This beer really has a considerable amount of flavor, but is not the least bit heavy or tiring on the palate. I'd guess the alcohol to be in the 7% range, but in any event, drinkability is quite good in this beer.

The only unfortunate aspect about this beer is that I assume this is a "one off". That's a shame, as this is really good stuff. Along with the ridiculously popular Killer Green, this was my favorite beer at the hopfest. Clearly need to try other beers from this "new to me" brewery.