Styrian Gold
Bellwether Brewing Co.

a wet hop collaboration with the grain shed, who is another one of my local favorites here. i think they do use the styrian golding hop, which i am not sure i have ever seen in a wet hop context before. also, the base style inspires some thought, somewhere between a pale ale and a blonde or golden type, it has some body and is off dry, simple from a recipe standpoint but nuanced in the flavor, lots of minerals and earthiness, even before the hops. that must be the contribution of the grain shed here. i dont know these hops as well as many of the more common varietals in the region, and i found this unique and almost challenging as such. the hops have a light noble sort of spiciness to them, more apparent alpha than anticipated, some subtle brassy and even lightly metallic earthiness, an obvious green wetness, soft orange character, and a real botanical thing, almost a green tea layer, very intriguing over the simple grain base. not as oily and certifiably dank as many of its wet hop counterparts, mosaic and simcoe come to mind for that, but there is something special about this, a well restrained, a lot to like and appreciate, just in milder form. cool beer, neat collaboration between two of the best around spokane. unconventional use of this hop to be sure!

edit: in addition to having this on tap at bellwether, as reviewed above, i had it from a crowler from grain shed, listed at 5.6% abv, so maybe they brewed it there too. the malt seemed to stand out more in that format or edition, whichever it is, which is their thing, so makes sense, the hops compliment it well, and again strike me as unique in this sort of beer, never seen them as a wet hop before. lots of minerals, grassy character, and obvious freshness. a really cool beer, nice both times and a little bit different each time too. not sure the story on who made it or what, but its solid stuff!