HOPSpodge Pale Ale
Cloud 9 Brewery

this is their fresh hop pale ale if i have it correct, and its a nice beer, clean and simple but bursting with hops, perhaps a little more assertive than their nsn ipa, this seems to coat the palate with all the wet hop oils and resins, but its neither bitter nor sweet throughout, and its an easy and well refined brew. not quite clear in the glass with a little bit of color to it and a lot of web lacing as it drinks down. the hops have notes of pineapple, grapefruit, and lemon curd, maybe some simcoe sort of woodsy pine complexion too, but its fruity first when i smell and taste it. lots to like here, good balance with a little crystal malt in the mix, a real drippy dankness about it, but enough clean citrus to make it bright. medium body, clean fermentation, and just enough bitterness at the end. there is a nice orange zest and mango recall on the swallow. good beer, all of the beer in here is solid, i dont know why they dont get more credit locally. i was impressed with all we drank here in out most recent visit this week. seems like nobody ever talks about them, but really i reckon they are making some of the best beer in boise right now. this is delicious.

edit: less impressive three years later, holds almost no head, lacks the dank intensity, and to me almost is so light on hops that the malt hits first. i love the project, using locally grown hops from their neighbors in the hood, but they need a lot more of them i think for this to pop like it used to. seems citra forward, overly malty for what it is, and although good and fresh tasting, i need a little more from the hops overall in a wet hop beer, lowering scores slightly, acknowledging this is almost december, and this was almost assuredly brewed awhile ago and near the end of its useful life...

Had this on a trip up into Idaho for a Tom Petty show in 2014. Never heard of this brewery so I figured I should check it out. Golden in color, slightly darker srm than average for a pale ale, white head, 1/2"average retention. Aroma was barely perceptible for hops, Cascade prolly, no off aroma or anything, just not much going on, questionable, if any, dry hopping. Like a relic from the past.

Taste has a little malt thing going for it, typical PacNW caramel/crystal malt and alpha acid hops. Another one of those time machine ipas. Search for the grapefruit bitterness. I guess if you're a non hoppy ipa guy, this might float your boat, otherwise I dunno how something like this could be satisfying, even if it has no off flavors or poor brewing. Nonetheless, it was the pregame for a Tom Petty show, so it has that kitsch value I guess for me.

On tap at the brewpub. One of Cloud 9s better outings. Nice and light ale with some citrus essence, orange amber with small silky head. Creamy mouthfeel, short finish.

RB

Hopspodge pale... Clear dark golden, short lived head but shows pretty good lacing.. Toasty pale malt is prevalent with a little yeasty fruitiness... Hops are there, but a little nondescript for my palate. I get they are leaning this one toward the malty end of the spectrum, but even then it is a bit sweet and needs more bitterness and a more aggressive hop flavor to balance IMO.. After all, we are in the PNW.

3.75/3/3/3.25/3