High Country HiLux
Alvarado Street Brewery
- From:
- Alvarado Street Brewery
- California, United States
- Style:
- Hazy Imperial IPA
- ABV:
- 8.1%
- Score:
- +7 ratings needed
- Avg:
- 4.35 | pDev: 2.53%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 2
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Aug 05, 2025
- Added:
- Feb 06, 2025
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 0
NO SCORE
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45°28’9”S. This latitude, as it crosses Southland New Zealand, is the home of the McNamee family and their hop farm, Garston Hops. You’ve heard us speak about the lore of this farm and the truly distinctive terroir it possesses many times in the past and this week, we are proud to introduce you to yet another, exclusively Garston hopped beer: High Country HiLux.
This Hazy IPA was brewed in honor of the life affirming 4x4 trip we had with James McNamee and some hardened Southland locals through the lower farmlands up into the rugged landscape of the Southland High County back in March of 2024. We journeyed from the lower farmlands up into the rugged landscapes of the high country, inspired not only by the breathtaking scenery but also by the true king of the Southern Hemisphere: the Toyota HiLux. Specifically the gnarly 1980s, 4th generation that you see in the photos above. Just rad.
Nestled in the Southern Alps of New Zealand, the Garston area produces hops that are deeply influenced by its geography, resulting in flavors and prompting biotransformation within beer that is unlike anything we’ve encountered before. High Country HiLux is loaded with prime Nelson Sauvin, Rakau, and Motueka - hops grown 7,125.81 miles away (as the crow flies) from the doors of our Monterey Brewpub to the very fields where they were harvested. Smooth and silky, this batch suddenly ascends you over peaks of passionfruit infused Sauv Blanc, melon, dark berries, and sticky flowers.
This Hazy IPA was brewed in honor of the life affirming 4x4 trip we had with James McNamee and some hardened Southland locals through the lower farmlands up into the rugged landscape of the Southland High County back in March of 2024. We journeyed from the lower farmlands up into the rugged landscapes of the high country, inspired not only by the breathtaking scenery but also by the true king of the Southern Hemisphere: the Toyota HiLux. Specifically the gnarly 1980s, 4th generation that you see in the photos above. Just rad.
Nestled in the Southern Alps of New Zealand, the Garston area produces hops that are deeply influenced by its geography, resulting in flavors and prompting biotransformation within beer that is unlike anything we’ve encountered before. High Country HiLux is loaded with prime Nelson Sauvin, Rakau, and Motueka - hops grown 7,125.81 miles away (as the crow flies) from the doors of our Monterey Brewpub to the very fields where they were harvested. Smooth and silky, this batch suddenly ascends you over peaks of passionfruit infused Sauv Blanc, melon, dark berries, and sticky flowers.
Recent ratings and reviews.
Reviewed by RyanK252 from California
4.28/5 rDev -1.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
4.28/5 rDev -1.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Can poured into an Alvarado Street Brewery Willi Beecher glass
A: Pours hazy golden yellow with a frothy cream white head that settles to a light layer and laces nicely.
S: Bright citrus, followed by a big time mix of exotic, tropical, and stone fruit, a touch of pine, floral hints, subtle grassy notes, biscuity malt, and caramel sweetness.
T: Almost over ripe mix of exotic, tropical, and stone fruit, pineapple juice, apricot, peach, Asian pear, gooseberry, white grape, golden plum, guava, mango, and passion fruit, plus hints of blackberries and lychee, bright citrus, lemon lime and tangerine, a touch of pine, faint grassy earthy notes, biscuity malt, and caramel sweetness.
M: A little on the fuller side of medium body, moderate carbonation, soft on the palate, super smooth.
O: This one was wild. Ridiculously smooth with so many different fruity notes packed into there, it ended up giving kinda Fruity Pebbles vibes at times, in a good way. On a related note, it sits a bit on the sweeter side, but that does let all those fruity notes sing. I think just a couple more citrussy IBUs to balance things would take this to the next level.
Aug 05, 2025A: Pours hazy golden yellow with a frothy cream white head that settles to a light layer and laces nicely.
S: Bright citrus, followed by a big time mix of exotic, tropical, and stone fruit, a touch of pine, floral hints, subtle grassy notes, biscuity malt, and caramel sweetness.
T: Almost over ripe mix of exotic, tropical, and stone fruit, pineapple juice, apricot, peach, Asian pear, gooseberry, white grape, golden plum, guava, mango, and passion fruit, plus hints of blackberries and lychee, bright citrus, lemon lime and tangerine, a touch of pine, faint grassy earthy notes, biscuity malt, and caramel sweetness.
M: A little on the fuller side of medium body, moderate carbonation, soft on the palate, super smooth.
O: This one was wild. Ridiculously smooth with so many different fruity notes packed into there, it ended up giving kinda Fruity Pebbles vibes at times, in a good way. On a related note, it sits a bit on the sweeter side, but that does let all those fruity notes sing. I think just a couple more citrussy IBUs to balance things would take this to the next level.
Reviewed by BigGold from Mississippi
4.26/5 rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
4.26/5 rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Had High Country HiLux poured from pint can, bottom stamped "CANNED ON: 04/24/2025" and "HIGH COUNTRY HOPS," imported from Cali' to 'sippi by my little bro', into Willi Becher.
Pours hazy light-gold grapefruit juice, with 1/2-finger near-white head, which soon dissipates to a thin ring and partial film, leaving splotchy lace down the glass. Funky and tart stone fruit aromas off pour, with some bitter Noble herbals, then pear aroma, and as warms mostly white wine grape aroma. On tasting, begins biting lime and big sweet pear, over a lasting, white wine-like but very drying body, which carries a little of the lime and all of the pear and some other sweet stone fruits into a crisp but only mildly bitter herbal finish.
For this beer, as compared to Alvarado's surprisingly highly-regarded Double Cone, the Nelson base nicely supports the other hops, here Rakau for stone fruit and Moutueka for limes.
Jul 06, 2025Pours hazy light-gold grapefruit juice, with 1/2-finger near-white head, which soon dissipates to a thin ring and partial film, leaving splotchy lace down the glass. Funky and tart stone fruit aromas off pour, with some bitter Noble herbals, then pear aroma, and as warms mostly white wine grape aroma. On tasting, begins biting lime and big sweet pear, over a lasting, white wine-like but very drying body, which carries a little of the lime and all of the pear and some other sweet stone fruits into a crisp but only mildly bitter herbal finish.
For this beer, as compared to Alvarado's surprisingly highly-regarded Double Cone, the Nelson base nicely supports the other hops, here Rakau for stone fruit and Moutueka for limes.
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