Creek Hoppin'
Trail's End Brewing

Remember the brewery more than the beer. Good solid beer but nothing out of the ordinary. Had 4 or 5 years ago.

 

this is reasonably well made beer, and its even somewhat distinctive in its construction, but it was not the hoppy stuff that stood out to me here, solid as some of them were. these guys are doing a lot of things really well, even exemplary well in some instances (old world german styles!), so these didnt quite rise to the top for me. this one is cool though, a touch old school with some sturdy crystal malt in it and a pretty high ibu count i have to imagine. a burnt orange color to this, near clear, with an airy inch of off white head, lasting and weightless on top of the beer. it has a little nutty thing to the malt, a toasted even slightly caramelized character there, but its not heavy, its balancing, foundational, just right for the familiar northwestern hop intensity this brings, pine sap and bitter citrus pith up front, a dank and sticky west coast middle, and a cascade type spiciness on the finish with the increasing bitterness, long hoppy linger, robust without being forced, this isnt green, its not massively dry hopped either, there is some fresh citrus pop, the spruce botanical layer, and the bitterness, very nice on top of the fresh cereal grain base, not trying to be overly fruity or modern, this is more in the timeless slice of the ipa style range to me, and i like it. there is however something a little weird in the ferment, not metallic but perhaps a sign of a slightly stressed yeast in this, and it gives a slightly amateurish vibe tot the whole thing, and it makes the linger a little weird. overall though tasty, well constructed, and close to being relevant in the area. these guys are on the precipice of greatness with a lot of their beers, this one is just a few tweaks away still...