Fresh Hop Crystal Zwickle
Crux Fermentation Project

12oz can

Pours about a finger of white head into my tulip. The body is a dark orange in color, with a small amount of bubbles coming up. Visibility is somewhat low, it's not cloudy, but it's dark enough that I can't see much. It looks ok so far.

The nose is quite vegetal. Which I have found true in some fresh hop beers. Somewhat zesty, some citrus, pine, pretty herbal. It smells in the ballpark of other fresh hop beers I've had. Maybe a tad less fresh and a tad more vegetal. It's pretty complex for having a pretty average sized aroma. I'm not crazy about it, but it smells fine.

The flavor is similar, very herbal, citrusy, and zesty. Not too much vegetable flavor, which is good. Yeah, this is much better than the aroma. It's still complex, but it's all good flavors, and those flavors are pretty full. It's pretty crisp, not very sweet at all. Really nice beer here.

The carbonation is medium, with no real lingering bitterness. It's crisp, I suppose a little sweetness, but as said before - nothing much. The body isn't paper thin, but certainly light, it fits the beer well. This is a perfectly fine mouthfeel for this beer.

The drinkability is very high here. It's tasty, and light. No problem putting this back.

Overall this is a nice beer. It's flavorful, and pretty complex. Not to mention crisp and pretty clean. Other than the vegetal nose, there is nothing wrong here.

The appearance turned out ok. I don't seem to get good lacing from tulip glasses. The lacing was minute. The head was small and didn't make too much noise. Overall, eh.

 

 

 

 

 

500ml bottle, fresh from the brewery, poured into a Crux snifter glass. Enjoyed 10.18.16, reviewed from Tasting Journal.

The beer pours a nice copper color, very clear, a small amount of bubbles rise to the top of the glass where a very foamy white head sits, about two fingers tall with wonderful retention and lace. The aroma is very soft and simple, mild noble hops, green and earthy, very clean, grassy and crisp with a soft and sweet malt backbone, pale cereal grains lead to stronger more bready pale grains. The flavors follow the nose well, grassy green hops, light pine, hardly any bitterness with some sweeter grains, pale and light though quite bready. Very nice counterbalance to the hops, which while flavorful, are quite tame and very clean. The mouthfeel is good, crisp medium body that coats very well, active carbonation but generally smooth with a dry finish.

Verdict: A nice fresh hop beer from Crux, really simple, pleasant, well balanced and refreshing. This shows that not all fresh hop beers have to be palate destroyers, but that subtlety and simplicity can be equally rewarding.

 

500 ml bottle. Pours copper color, finger white head with good retention, coating lace. Weedy, grassy/stemmy aroma. Fresh hop taste for sure, Dank, grassy, vegetal flavors. Soft medium slick feel, dry finish. Very good fresh hop brew.

 

 

 

 

Getting used to great solid brews from Crux and this tasty fresh hop ale fills that bill. Subtle flavor of fresh hops; bready and crisp. Very clean, dry finish. Bottled just over one month ago, which no doubt contributes to its stellar quality.

This is a solid beer. Aroma was fine, nothing overtly surprising or catchy, but the taste and feel were quite smooth and balanced. You got the hop presence of a fresh hop with a more light and crisp taste and feel of the German lager style it's modeled from. A very nice surprise, and a good sessionable beer to start with. Would have again to whet my whistle.

 

 

Poured into a Seattle Beer Week pint glass. Pours a medium coppery amber with a persistent half finger white head with heavy lacing. Aroma of bready, lightly biscuit malt, orange family citrus, light tropical fruit, citrus and dank hops. Flavor of bready malt, light tropical and orange citrus, apple juice with a grassy, fruit and citrus hop bitterness developing. Medium bodied with a very nice light creaminess and mouth feel. The malt body does have a light biscuit graininess expected from a zwickel, but there is a slight Belgian character to the yeast, so rather untraditional. The hops are light, but well balanced and flavorful. There is a really nice creamy mouth feel and body to this that reminds me of oats, but there is no mention of oats in the ingredients. I don't know what this is, but the malt body is great and the hops are fresh and flavorful. Nicely done and refreshing. I'm not a "session ale" drinker, but I could imagine drinking this all day. This is a brewery that doesn't let me down.