Exp 07270 (Single Hop Series)
Hermitage Brewing

Served in a pint glass at yardhouse.

Nice look, caramely colored, slight white head
Smelled great, piney and dank
Taste? Malty upfront with piney hop taste when, wait a minute! What's this shit!? Garlic and onion? Thought maybe it was me so had a buddy try who said "what's with the garlic?"
Decent mouthfeel.

I just couldn't get over the garlic taste. Definitely an offensive flavor for drinking in my opinion.

Poured into a snifter.

L: Light caramel color with a heavy light beige head. Tight bubbles and a hefty amount of retention as it sits in my glass. Already excited as most IPA's I try tend to not have enough malt backbone to really carry the hops.

S: Smells like pine, caramel and onion with a lingering fruit quality somewhere between melon and grapefruit. The grapefruit citrus hits your nose very briefly but the melon tones to the smell are there all the way through. It's important to state the caramel malt and onion stand out the most in the nose.

T: Taste is sweet caramel and dank hops. Very earthy. Pleasantly sweet tones mixed with the light fruit flavor of the hops helps balance the earthy pine and root-like punch the hops have. . The malt backbone is my favorite part and I'm surprised people don't like maltier IPA's. (west coast doesn't mean it has to be west coast style)

F: Sticky as it lingers on my tongue. The finish has the most fruit flavor by far. I'm left with an impression of sweet malt and

O: This beer is something I'd be willing to drink again. I'm even curious as to how the hops will develop with the thick malt over some time. As always Hermitage did a great job of showcasing a hop that I haven't had before.

 

Dark upon first pour, cloudy amber from chill haze. Clears up as the temperature rises, though the color is still decidedly amber. Aroma and flavor are heavy on caramel malts, which give off a staleness somehow even though the bottle is fresh. The 7270 pops through a bit bringing some dankness that's a bit buried beneath the malt. A little sweet onion, grassiness, garlic. A pretty pungent hop, probably not great for a single hop beer to begin with, but the substantial malt backbone makes it especially unappealing.