Tioga-Sequoia Brewing News

Personally, I'd say do not go to frank's. Bevmo for bottle selection, just check dates. But definitely stop in at pita kabob downtown on court street, easily best draft selection in town, and some great bottles to go too.

 

I really hate to do this...but steer clear of tdh mosaic. Its really bad; I'm very dissapointed. I personally think they fucked the batch up ( Like the first Tecumseh and the citrus ipa) but they won't admit it. I was there last night with 2 other ppl, and all agreed that there is a huge molasses taste in the beer. Just like the citrus ipa. The new Tecumseh also wasn't as good as the spring batch. Not sure what's going on over there

 

Maybe it is something with Mosaic Hops that you don't like? Citrus IPA had it and this new batch of Tecumseh has it in the dry hop.

So far you are the only person I know of that has complained.

 

I love mosaic hops. Its one of my favorite hops. You guys are the only people who have made mosaic taste like molasses. All 3 of us got molasses and agreed it wasn't representative of mosaic.

As for Tecumseh. Batch 1 wasnt good at all, more so because it was malty. I pointed it out at the time and was summarily dismissed. When batch 2 came out, you guys finally admitted their were some flaws in batch 1. Batch 2 was really good. Not quite elite, but certainly very far above average. Now batch 3. Not as bad as batch 1, but certainly not batch 2. I got a slight molasses taste in the Tecumseh.

I hate to tell a brewer "you don't know how to brew"... But I wonder if you guys have really mastered using this particular hop (or others as evidenced by the hit or miss nature of the tdh line). I have to think you guys know more than I do. Is it possible the hop itself is flawed? I've heard of bad crops of hops.

I think a fair bench mark for your TDH line is the Noble Shower series. Tdh Nelson and Simcoe were as good as Nobles offerings. Others have come up short. I know they aren't the exact same style, but I think its fair.

 

When I had the Citrus IPA a while back it was absolutely horrid. Had just an awful flavor to it. I had a 3-4 drinks and had to throw the whole damn thing out. Walked back to the bar and got a DDH Gen Sherm. I wasn't the only one to think this, my dad was with me and thought it was just as bad. I can't speak on the latest Tecumseh, as I haven't had it.

 

I know there has been quite a few people noticing these things. Its not like people don't talk at the beer garden, bars, social sites etc. It gets very frustrating because with the shit batches that they have turned out, they wont admit it. "Everyone else thought it tasted amazing". Just because the average Fresnan has less of a craft pallete than probably any where else in the state, doesn't mean people don't notice subpar batches.

I just did a trade with a buddy outside Philadelphia. He's never had TS but mosaic is his favorite hop. I told him it hasn't been the best in tdh series but he still wanted one. His box will be arriving to him on Saturday. We shall see what someone from the outside looking in says.

 

And I don't mean to bash you guys.. But I expect better. I'm approaching 700 ipa's I've had and TDH simcoe was top 5. I drank 4 2L growlers of TDH Nelson in one night with buddy. Going back and forth between the growlers and 4 Alpine bombers. We both agreed; there was no difference in quality. Don't brew stuff that good, and then brew pour outs. (I too had to pour out my citrus ipa)

 

@IpaBeerDrinkers

The main issue I want to address is your opinion of consistency or in some a cases just a so called poorly made beer.

Yes Tecumseh b1 was our first high gravity beer made on our brew system. Dialing in the system for high gravity beer was a definite challenge that we went through. Yes batch two, in most opinions was better than batch 1. And yes they were significantly different. The same can be said for b1 Smoke Chaser and Midnight Lightning etc. We made tweaks to all of them. Everything we've done since batch 1 of every beer we ever made has been tweaked for the better... Now undrinkable, horrible, drain pours on the first try? I don't think so. We would never put something out to market that we thought was that bad.

Tecumseh b2 and b3
The only real difference between the two is an additional dry hop of Mosaic added. Not sure if that is the reason why you didn't care for it much, but maybe.

Citrus IPA has been one of the most criticized beers we have ever made. The fact of the matter is most beers that are polarizing in nature will always be that way. This was something we wanted to experiment with and was definitely riding the line of risky, but again certainly not undrinkable. Will we ever make it again? Probably not. Too many home runs since than to circle back to something that wasn't popular.

TDH series - This is somewhat different than most Single Hop Featured IPAs, because it literally is Sherman IPA and all its original hops, dry hopped with different varieties. There is definitely bound to be some some misses along with some Home runs. We tried to get most of our smaller batches in last year so we can decide which ones were hits and redo as well as put in a bottle. Mosaic was a hit last year for the most part and well quite frankly is one of my favorite hops . Hence, why we redid it and put it in a bottle.

Finally,

I enjoy most criticism and I am never afraid to answer any questions regarding our brewery. Also, I would prefer honest opinions over superficial praise any day. It is what keeps us honest and headed in the right direction in the craft beer scene. That doesn't mean everyone with an opinion is right, but it does count for something in my book. I think most of the locals see that we are evolving year to year and for the most part for the better. I want to continue that believe as well as continue to put out more home runs that increase the reputation of beer that comes out of Fresno or the whole San Joaquin Valley.

If any of you ever have any questions or concerns regarding TS please feel free to PM me here or email me directly [email protected]

 

@thebeerprophet when will we see Autumn brown ale hit the shelves? Its gonna be 88degrees here tomorrow which means time for fall beers.

 

I appreciate your response. It makes me feel better about trying stuff if you guys are aware that growing pains have allowed for some misses along the way. You guys DO seem to have stouts dialed in. That is really the only other style I drink other than hoppy stuff. I was getting worried that you guys didn't really care about the hoppy stuff.

As for the IPAs, IMHO I'd drop Citrus IPA. I though tdh-zythos was a miss. (Actually it was slightly above average, but a miss for the series). I'm calling mosaic a miss, BUT I only had draft. I'll try a bottle. The rest have been good to great in the tdh line. Please dear God brew nelson again, I know Nelson hops are hard to get. I'm sure simcoe will be back because its a common hop for you guys.

Xpa is a fantastic year round pale. I don't think it needs change, but boy if you started featuring hops on that dry hop, you guys might hurt some feelings in the pale market.

I know there is likely a special and nostalgic connection to Gen Sherman, but almost every single person I know stopped drinking it when ddh came out. I would venture to say that you guys could stop making Gen Sherman bombers.

All this is my opinion and I'm pretty much a hop ****.

 

Was thinking about this today. Autumnus really impressed me last year. I remember it being a Sunday afternoon football beer, hence the correlation to Fall.

 

Autumnus will be back, but won't hit until early October. Cheers guys!

 

Are you guys going to do another PB Autumnus? I really enjoyed that when I had it on tap... forgot where

 

Is rush hour bottled this year?

 

It should be. Its more of a rotating beer I believe. It might be like bi-annual

 

I would definitely agree with that statement. I just opened a batch 1 Smoke Chaser yesterday and it's aging very well. Hops are decaying well and the smoke still shines through. Got one more in the cellar I'll probably open in another few years now that I know it's in its funky pubescent state of maturation.

TS from where it was a several years ago to where it is now are lightyears apart. The new Mt Whitney recipe being an XPA is fantastic compared to the older APA version. Sugar Pine has always been great. Can't say I miss Peak Pilsner. Their more-recent releases like Rush Hour, Smoke Chaser and Midnight Lightning are awesome. I bought a barrel-aged Smoke Chaser a few weeks ago and tucked it away in the cellar. Might pick up a barrel-aged Midnight Lightning and do the same. I wasn't particularly partial to Midnight Rush or batch 1 of Catacomb Brew (blueberry), but they were far cry from drain pours.

The thing that bothers me the most about TS is the inconsistency in branding. It's a lot tighter these days and i love the newer label Mt Whitney sports, but 99 Golden Ale, General Sherman and Joaquin Murrieta are definitely due for a refresh. You can barely even tell Joaquin Murrieta is a TS beer! I'd love it to mirror the Tecumseh label. I am glad to hear TS is dating bottles now. That's a much-needed improvement!

I've been a fan for a while now and am always rooting for you guys. Keep up the good work!

 

When did TS start dating bottles? And where is it? ( that's been a complaint of mine?

 

One thing is for certain about Tioga Sequoia, they bring a wide mix of differing opinions. I do wish the consistency was higher, but that can be said for a ton of breweries. Last year I was in love with the DDH Sherman, but after a few mediocre batches I stopped buying. I think the latest batch of Rush Hour is great, while others have told me they think it's not a great batch. I was absolutely NOT a fan of the Citra DHS, and I love Citra hops. I tried Tecumseh batch one, and have yet to give it another shot. Sounds like I need to. Honestly, been absolutely loving the Whitney XPA! That beer is very tasty and seems to be fairly consistent. I like to buy local, and I'll continue to support them, but I'm definitely not a homer. I like that they mix it up and try new things, keep it up!

 

I also stopped buying ddh around winter. I was starting to get more grapefruit rind in it, and although thats en vogue, that's not why I liked ddh to begin with.

I honestly think Xpa has been their most consistent to date. Never once have I gotten anything but a superb pale. And I drink it often