Hop Butcher (2022)

I look forward to your review. I can’t do IPAs with vanilla

 

ccccClear IPA is very nice

 

Indeed it is. Probably my favorite from them in a really long time.

 

The criticism of him has never been right/wrong, it's that almost every single one of his posts here is hyping up how good every HB release is, and speculation he was somehow affiliated with the brewery. Getting info about the brewery right wouldn't exactly dispel that notion.

 

I love seeing more west coast IPA's from these guys, they do them right without tons of caramel malts.

Has anyone noticed a quality change in their hazies though? They haven't been coming off as juicy or hop-saturated recently. Maybe it's due to them moving their operations or something.

 

Last few haze-ers I've had were yeast-y...like IPA / Saison hybrids.

Which has popped up as an issue (for me, at least) periodically with them over the years.

 

I don’t understand why you’d find a comparison between hazy ipa and saison in 2022. That could have been a legitimate talking point 5 years ago. when HB (and everybody else) was experimenting with different yeasts, some of which could throw Belgian like esters.

that said; i know HB eliminated the problematic yeast from their program years ago. (Mikerphone did too, it’s why special sauce has been less frequent, because that series relied on a yeast both breweries sourced from the west coast and was not fermenting consistently)

the yeast HB uses now (English ale strain) presents stonefruit flavors, not Belgian flavors. (Peaches, not bananas)

 

Yeah, they used to use Imperial A24, but I'm wondering what was so problematic about it? It's a blend of two yeasts, one of which is a diastaticus strain (with the saison gene not active), but it was absolutely delicious. It used to throw those crazy pina colada esters, which I really miss.

 

I would like to learn more about yeast and predictability. I remember learning on these forums that the FR/FFF collab, stay lit, was a bit of a happy accident because the yeast “underperformed.”

i just looked at the last 6-7 HB releases and picked up fully saturated DDC, Lagunitas Waldos, dovetail Kolsch, BA Darkness, and Pollyanna/Goldfinger’s Zwickelbier / Kellerbier Binny’s collab instead (what, I’m having people over. Don’t judge me! [cries softly into my beer]) so maybe I’m officially off the HB bandwagon?

 

I found the comparison from taste of the last few beers I've had from them. "Legitimate" or not, that's why. Hope you can "understand" now.

 

A blend of two strains like they mixed the pack with 50% of a and 50% of b or via cross breeding a and b?

 

I use Untappd mainly to keep track of what I've tried. Had a HB Chicago Henge recently and went to log it in Untappd. The descriptions people are using for it are stone fruit, peaches, apricot and grapes. I think I saw somebody describing it as a saison last week there too.

Obviously many untappd users aren't exactly connoisseurs but the descriptions are coming from somewhere. I'm not sure why. I thought Chicago Henge was a petty good NEIPA.

 

Just realizing how long it’s been since I bought any Hop Butcher. Part of that is due to drinking less, part due to buying more tried and true flagships (NvU, Son of Juice, ZD, etc). These days it seems like my IPA dollars are going to Phase Three, Hidden Hand, or the occasional local one-off. That said, I’m sure I’ll stop at their new place when visiting my buddy in Lincoln Square.

 

Yeah. I loved the HB stuff, but I’ve been off it since summer as i feel awful after drinking them now. I blame HB for developing a hop sensitivity.

 

I don't think they mixed it themselves, here's the yeast:
https://www.imperialyeast.com/organic-yeast-strains/yeast-types/ale/dry-hop/

 

Wow. And that would be the problem. Trying to get consistency when using two different yeasts sounds like a balancing act where depending on conditions one may work faster than the other creating different flavors.

 

Have had limited distro in Minneapolis for about a year now, Have not had one i would buy again.

 

Having my 2nd Tavern King and it’s probably my favorite new HB hazy in the last year.