Seneca 6 Wet Hopped Pale Ale
Gael Brewing Company

big thanks to my mom for saving and sharing this one with me, i had not heard of these guys before this beer, but we all really liked it, even if we are way past wet hop season now. its a cool brew, i thought maybe seneca 6 was a new hop, but some research reveals its a collection of breweries that collaborate in the finger lakes area, if anyone has more details on that, id love to know about it. the beer has a little bit of a copper color to it, kind of darker for an american pale, but it has old school grain balance which really works with the fresh hops. nice head on it too. some honey sort of sweetness from the grain is the first thing i smell and taste, a slightly english yeast almost, a breadiness to it with the malt, a pretty sturdy platform for the hops, which have neat nuance from noble spice to sorachi sort of lemon character, and even a sweet juicy watermelon note. its neat how dynamic the hop profile is and how well supported it is by the grain. i love how wet hops can show a different side of a varietal, and i wouldnt be surprised if something common was used here but just manifests itself in a new way for my palate, really cool. the wetness is obvious and the beer doesnt taste tired or dated hardly at all. surprisingly substantial for its low abv too, this was a little filling for me, but i love the balance and the depth, and think they did a nice job here overall using a lot of big flavors. i hope to check this place out when i am back east later this summer, this was a fun first impression!