Nelson, Baby!
Alvarado Street Brewery

 

 

 

Great! It's hoppy, it's citrusy, and has great mouth feel. My main complaint is that its a bit tart, so it bites at your tongue. Although, from my score you can prob tell I didn't mind. Good beer, give it a taste.

Best enjoyed on the Carmel beach watching the sunset.

Type: 16-oz. can
Reviewed as: New England IPA
Glass: Pure Project 16-oz. brandy snifter glass
Price: $19.99 for a mixed 4-pack
From: Blind Lady Ale House in Normal Heights (San Diego), Calif.
Purchased: Nov. 25, 2020
Consumed: Dec. 18, 2020
Misc.: Canned on Nov. 10, 2020

Grabbed a mixed 4-pack of Alvarado Street at Blind Lady Ale House. Kind of surprised I save this one this long. Alvarado’s website called it a “Juicy IPA with 100% insanely aromatic Nelson Sauvin hops from Freestyle Farms in New Zealand. We've been waiting our entire career at ASB to make a beer with this much Nelson; to us, few hops have this much tropical fruit expression. If you're into sauvignon blanc wines from the Marlborough region in New Zealand, it's uncanny how similar the hop aroma profile echoes the famous "crushed gooseberry" character these wines are famous for.” One of my favorite hops from one of my favorite breweries.

Poured a medium gold hazy color with two fingers of frothy off-white head. Could see some bubble streams coming up along the sides of the glass. Almost perfect foamy layered lacing. Almost perfect retention. (Sight - 4.75)

Smelled Nelson, white grape, Sauvignon Blanc, gooseberry, white pepper, tangerine, orange rind and passion fruit. Even better out of the can. (Smell - 4.50)

Tasted almost as good as the nose. Got citrus, big Nelson, white grape, Sauvignon Blanc, bitter orange rind, tangerine, white pepper, gooseberry and passion fruit. (Taste - 4.25)

Medium body. Oily texture. Average-to-lively carbonation. Abrupt, spicy finish. (Feel - 4.25)

Just a world-class hazy IPA overall. Such good Nelson in this. (Overall - 4.50)

4.39 | 97 | A

 

The pour is so foamy it looks like a nitro brew, but it's just the white-yellow color. Totally opaque and as hazy as they come. But it does have a nice, persistent and sticky white foam in the tall Kölsch glass. Quite lush and sudsy on the tongue but turns harsh and unforgiving after some sipping.

Very aromatic and fruity tasting with apricot and orange peel. Some tangerine and a hot citrus pith finish. Endless astringent aftertaste erases the pleasure of the aromatics.

Actually quite drinkable for a few sips with an aroma even better than average New England style IPA. But before long the acidity finally removes the mucous lining from your throat. From the 16 oz can shipped from City Beer Store. "Canned on 11/10/2020" on the bottom.

Can poured into an Alvarado Street Brewery glass

A: Pours hazy golden amber with a frothy off white head that settles to a firm layer and laces nicely.

S: Rich juicy Nelson tropical fruit, gooseberry, white grape, stone fruit, citrus, a little herbal diesel, biscuity malt, and caramel sweetness.

T: Southern hemisphere tropical fruit, gooseberry, passion fruit, guava, mango, and a hint of lychee, stone fruit, peach and apricot, white grape, some juicy citrus, orange and lemon, subtle herbal diesel, biscuity malt, and caramel sweetness.

M: Medium body, moderate carbonation, soft on the palate.

O: Ridiculously juicy Nelson showcase.

Two weeks out, from a can.
Pours a hazy gold yellow with nice foaming. Orange creamsicle bursts on the nose, followed by a white wine grape. I get more of the grape and honeydew melon on the sip. Dry finish, touch of chalk.

Can from Lupulo Santa Cruz.
Slight

nelson is one of the best hops out there, at least one of my personal favorites and one of the most distinctive, and it always does so well in a single hop context. this is a huge dose of it, on the edge of extreme, and i really dig it. putting nelson in the hands of a brewery as capable as these guys is my dream, and they did not disappoint here. the beer is really milky and dull and dense looking, but if all that grain and sediment is a necessarily catalyst for these hops than so be it. its cool that the hops are as bold in the taste as they are in the nose, familiar huge white wine notes, but also with lemongrass, coconut flesh, meyer lemon, lemongrass, tangerine, kiwi, and green grape character, even subtle peach juice to it, both in aroma and taste, dynamite! its so juicy its almost dripping, and there is just a little dry wheat character in there too supporting and grounding it. its fresh as can be, intense like it rarely is, and really just a wonderful showcase of nelson hops, about as good as this single hop thing really gets as far as i am concerned. the finish is great, the hops just linger and slow fade, their absolute essence. if you have been living under a rock for the last few years and are still not hip to what nelson tastes like, do yourself a favor an source some of this!

 

 

 

 

 

This review is for the 7/31/20 batch!

Sweet white wine grape, orange/grapefruit citrus, and hoppy dank nose on this one! Great aromatics...just not as in your face and prominent as the last batch. Taste follows with a sweet and juicy, classic Nelson hop swallow. The citrus and hoppy dank bitter finish is there, but subtle and subdued until it starts to warms a bit. This batch feels a tad lighter-bodied this time around..more juicy than soft/murky like last time. Still outstanding!