You’re My Only Hop
Level Beer - 1 Brewery & Beer Garden

Look: Dark yellow and nearly clear in the glass and my pour generates a vast white head that slowly settles to a pillow, leaving great lacing behind on the rim

Aroma: Pink grapefruit, blueberries, guava, pine, passionfruit, mandarins, wafts of peach, strawberries, and bready malt

Taste: Opens up with a blast of grapefruit-led citrus fruit and rind and resinous pine that hit hard and quickly develop depth. Layers of tropical fruit and berries come next and pile on the citrus/pine combo in the middle before both groups play nice and really settle in as the journey closes along with a nice bite

Mouthfeel: Full, lightly slick, medium-high carbonation, and medium strength dryness on the finish

Overall: This is some good stuff. Between the can art (and yeah, I know it doesn’t affect the beer inside) and the experimental hop varietal that I knew nothing about, I took the plunge, looking to be adventurous, and it paid off. This is a tasty WCIPA with HBC-586, which to me brings a unique mix to the table, reminding me of Mosaic’s profile a lot (pine, citrus, berries, tropical fruit) and the beer comes together nicely overall. Definitely worth checking out

Clear amber brew with ample head leaving swirls of foam in the chalice. Inviting aroma of berries and cedar. Hints of green apricot and some grain. Pleasantly spritzy on the tongue with a light body. Plenty of malt and not much sweetness. The aftertaste is rather bitter but the fruity taste of green plums lingers. The HBC-586 is quite a bold hop but not overly bitter. Overall this is a highly drinkable yet hoppy brew. From the 16 oz can purchased at the Community Coop in Mt. Vernon. Dated 04/15/24.