Society & Solitude #5
Hill Farmstead Brewery

Society & Solitude #5Society & Solitude #5
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From:
Hill Farmstead Brewery
 
Vermont, United States
Style:
New England IPA
Ranked #28
ABV:
8.1%
Score:
100
Ranked #123
Avg:
4.54 | pDev: 6.17%
Reviews:
204
Ratings:
1,654
Status:
Active
Rated:
Oct 17, 2023
Added:
Sep 23, 2012
Wants:
  452
Gots:
  174
Our experimental Double IPA series continues.

Imperial IPA. American and New Zealand hops. Think Grapefruit.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by 4ster:
Photo of 4ster
Reviewed by 4ster from Canada (ON)

4.58/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Bottled into 750ml swing-top growler on July 26, 2013. Poured into a large tulip and paired with salmon.

A: Golden straw yellow, hazy, bright white frothy head.... lots of bubbles, nice lacing on the glass.

S: As others say, loads of citrus coming from this....grapefruit especially...orange, light on the lemon, some floral.... I don't find it that grassy/piney/bitter on the nose, but slightly sweet.

T: Silky smooth, lots of grapefruit, but more sweet juice and not so much pithy bitterness, also orange and light fruits, peaches, nectarines, lightly floral, maybe some melon. Not really acidic enough to be called so tropical and not so bitter to be piney....though has a nice mellow bitterness to it. Underneath it has a nice sweet, light malt base and only slight alcohol on the aftertaste when it warms.

M: Extremely balanced, less carbonated than it appears, hardly any sparkle, not really sticky, just slightly drying.

O: Another fine HF beer.... like most of their beers, they don't blow you away in their over the top-ness, but in their perfect balance and drink-ability.... This is a fantastic DIPA... will it blow your top off like Heady.... personal, I don't think so... like so many of S.Hill's other beers, it's not about being in your face. What it is, is a perfectly balanced, integrated, sweet, malty IPA that you could drink all night.... Where Heady really plays up the hops to like 150%, I don't think I could drink it all night, whereas this reins everything in to the point that it took no time whatsoever to polish off the 750 growler... I'd say this has a bit of a more toned down Abner feel to it... on an aside, I'd really like to see more HF beers being bottled, as I feel that the quality of the beer gets lost a bit on tap and if anything, the beers are almost cask like... not really flat, but not really sparkling... anyway, not really a complain, just a rumination...
Aug 02, 2013
More User Ratings:
Photo of BEERchitect
Reviewed by BEERchitect from Kentucky

4.39/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
With a blend of American and New Zealand hops, a well-engrained idea of what an imperial IPA should be. the talents at Hill Farmstead put their nose on the grindstone to develop the best taste possible from this hop medley. Society & Solitude #5 shows what's possible with the cooperation between the Pacific Northwest and the Land Downunder.

The foggy golden-straw beer takes the hues of sepia and puts it in a haze-infused and unadulterated pour. Its cottony swath of foam fills the room with a tantalizing fragrance of tropical, citrus and vinous fruits that wet the whistle by scent along. Its taste is succinct with the delicacy of sugar cookie and shortcake sweetness with a nearly tart interplay.

Its radiant fruit upstart soon makes way to a drying middle palate where the racy and radiant fruits come out to play- white grapefruit, branch-ripe orange, hints of lemon and white grape tease the tastebuds while the pulpy richness of under-ripened pineapple, passionfruit and kiwi round out the fruit punch and sherbet tangy-sweet flavor. Gooseberry, green tea and white wine finishes the session with those unapologetic urges of hemp, chive, verbena and earthy geranium.

Fuller in body, the beer's firm and smoothly bitter grip on the throat is balanced and bitter-sweet. Its soft resinous power of fresh spruce turns to lemongrass and fresh grass clippings before trailing with a dank and tart fruit aftertaste.
Oct 17, 2023
 
Rated: 4.5 by craigbelly from Iowa

Oct 15, 2023
Photo of brewandbbq
Reviewed by brewandbbq from New Hampshire

4.3/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
16oz can dated 9/18/23.

Pours cloudy gold with an inch of dense white head. Persistent retention with plenty of spongy lacing. Melon, mango, bubblegum, white grape in the nose. Medium bodied with a soft mouthfeel. Ripe and tropical on the palate with minimal malt or bitterness on the palate. Honeydew, mango, wild grapes. Finishes juicy and ripe.
Oct 12, 2023
 
Rated: 4.5 by akopczyk from Ohio

Sep 19, 2023
 
Rated: 4.25 by cryptichead from Illinois

Sep 10, 2023
 
Rated: 4.37 by PDinunzi from New Jersey

Aug 27, 2023
 
Rated: 4.25 by IanX from New York

Aug 14, 2023
 
Rated: 4.66 by mattmarka1 from Minnesota

Aug 05, 2023
 
Rated: 4.53 by bret27 from California

Aug 04, 2023
 
Rated: 4.93 by Drkstr24 from Maine

Mar 23, 2023
Photo of jb_4226
Rated by jb_4226 from Texas

4.9/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5
#155, yummy!
Mar 12, 2023
 
Rated: 4.49 by AD17 from New Jersey

Jan 02, 2023
 
Rated: 4.49 by dtm426 from Michigan

Dec 23, 2022
Photo of jngls
Reviewed by jngls from Germany

4.8/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
3 weeks old. Can to wine glass.

L: Pours an opaque orangeish yellow with a fluffy white head that leaves a good amount of lacing. A few tiny floaters visible.

S: Candied grapefruit and lemon paired with fresh pineapple and strawberries.

T: Fresh grapefruit bitterness, tart lemon notes and subtle sweet hints of tropical fruits, white grapes and strawberries.

F: Very juicy and refreshing with a medium low carbonation.

O: Fantastic IPA. Highly complex and perfectly balanced. Best Society & Solitude I've had so far.
Dec 06, 2022
 
Rated: 4.93 by Ben1313 from New Hampshire

Nov 30, 2022
 
Rated: 4.46 by benjaminsa from Vermont

Nov 17, 2022
 
Rated: 4.65 by Khaack from New York

Nov 07, 2022
 
Rated: 4.29 by AlpacaAlpaca from New York

Oct 04, 2022
Photo of stevoj
Reviewed by stevoj from Idaho

5/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Draft at The Farm House. Hazy orange golden with two finger fluffy, creamy head, chunky lacing. Light fruity, citrusy aroma with a peppery edge. Taste is like a pillow in your mouth, fruity, citrus, floral, full, creamy. Drinking a cloud. This is exquisite. Lifetime beer. 5 stars all the way.
Sep 29, 2022
Society & Solitude #5 from Hill Farmstead Brewery
Beer rating: 100 out of 100 with 1654 ratings