Society & Solitude #6
Hill Farmstead Brewery

750 mL growler poured into a chalice.

Appearance - Hazy orange body with some sediment floating inside. Nice white head that nearly overflows the glass. Impressive sticky lacing down the sides.

Smell - Incredibly complex aroma from what is effectively a single hop. Tropical fruit, citrus, pine, and a nice herbal character reminiscent of a Lawson's IPA. Really nice.

Taste - Still incredible, but doesn't quite reach the heights of the aroma. Citrusy, but the tropical fruits don't come through as much as the pine and herbal characters do. I go for tropical fruit more than the other flavors, but it's still excellent. Just a little bit of sweetness behind it all.

Mouthfeel - Low sweetness, medium carbonation. Not quite the body of a double IPA, which is nice. Never feels heavy and is impressively drinkable.

Overall - Stunning, as always, from Hill Farmstead. That one hop is delivering all of this flavor is all the more impressive.

 

 

 

The serving arrived in a nearly full clear pint glass, drawn from a tap. It's color is quite dark apricot-amber, almost tan. There's a modest head that's tight knit and enduring. Even after sitting a while, it's not particularly aromatic. There's very little malt and only a little more vague fruit references. The mouthfeel is soft and of course, there's more to taste than to smell. But, this isn't close to a hop bomb, nor a malty IPA. What's there comes through at the finish in a combination of distant pine and fruit references. The body is supple and soft, with the alcohol nearly undetectable. That makes this one easy pint of beer to down quickly. The starch hop/balance is excellent. Too bad there wasn't a little more flavor from both.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#156, good stuff!