Hill Farmstead hype

Off topic but I'm gonna guess Lawson's is the third brewery referred to.

 

Lawson's I presume...
EDIT: [sniped]

 

Lawson's Finest Liquids .... IMO the most difficult beer to find in Vermont

 

i once saw a hill farmstead keg on tap at alpine; i wonder if the brewers will ever pull a collaboration together.

 

Living here in Oregon as well I think I can understand your question better than most. With so many breweries in the area the competition for "best brewery" is fierce and the pretenders are easily weeded out. Not as easy to do in a smaller market with less breweries. However, having only had a single HF beer (Anna and it was very good) I have to go off of others' reviews to gauge how good their beers actually are. BA's with lots of reviews, heavy trading habits, and no reason to hype a non-local (to them) have said that beers across a range of styles from HF are among the best in the country. That's the point I believe. NOBODY is making great beers in every genre. If they were here in Portland and their saisons were the caliber of Upright or Logsdon, their pales/IPA's were Boneyard, and their barrel aged stuff was on par with HotD or even Block 15, then I could see them instantly getting the attention of every beer enthusiast in Portland. Would they be all the rage in the trade forums? Worse since there's only 1.6 traders in PDX anyway.

 

As I'm drinking a growler of Everett I will add my two cents....
This is my first beer from HF, and the best way I can begin to describe it is, this is the best porter I have ever had. My wife, who has usually tasted at least a sip of the hundreds of beers I have put in front of her has never replied with more than "not too bad", uttered "holy shit this is good. You have enough for me right?" My growler is now nearly finished.
Does one beer determine whether or not it deserves the hype it gets in my eyes? No. But if you look at the reviews of their other beers, they are along the same lines.

I have a 750 of society 4 that will be consumed tomorrow and I have no doubt it will meet the bar that has been set by everett.

 

An Exponential Abner!!

And then a collaboration with Kern River would be the logical next step: Double Double Citra!

 

HF would have a lot of hype in a more populated area since they would be more accessible to beer geeks. They are special in a why that they've garnered lots of attention but the brewery is in such a remote location that it discourages just enough people to stop the masses from beating down their doors every week. I do wonder if they ever doubled their capacity, would the beer still be as good?

I don't feel like their beer is trading out of whack. The beer is stellar, demand is high and bottle counts are low. Maybe some of you are not used to that phenomena with beers like CBS dominating the trade scene.

 

Talk to us when you've had more than two. I've had at least a dozen different Hill Farmstead beers (in multiple styles beyond the hoppy beers that get the most attention) and almost all of them were amazing or world class. The few that weren't, were still very good. They operate on another level. Perhaps some of the "mystique" is due to it's remote location and limited distribution, but they deserve the accolades.

 

Haven't had Birth of Tragedy, but, you inspired me…
Abner
Anna
Art
Arthur
Bière de Norma
Civil Disobedience #1
Civil Disobedience #2
Civil Disobedience #3
Damon
Daybreak
Double Citra
Double Galaxy
E.
Edward
Everett
Fear & Trembling (Bourbon)
Fear & Trembling (Cabernet/Bourbon)
Flora
George
Harlan
Jim
Mimosa
Society & Solitude #1
Society & Solitude #3
Society & Solitude #4
Twilight of the Idols
What Is Enlightenment?
…that's a list of all the HF beers I've had (forgetting an IPA or two / I should be trying Ann, CD4 & Jimmy soon enough [I ♥ JD!]) - bottles, growlers, on-tap…some I've had multiple times, &c. And so far haven't had any in a tasting environment*. In other words - every one of the 750s, &c. Emily and I split together, judging the contents as honestly and intimately as humanely possible. Not trying to be ostentatious, obviously, but…for me to look at the list is actually amazing** - only a couple of B+'s (e.g. George - I'm not really a fan of plain ol' brown ales…having said that - I can't recall ever having one that was actually better?), the rest in the A-range. THE greatest IPAs, THE greatest saisons… The execution and versatility is…UNREAL. While Kuhnhenn will always be my "favorite" brewery I don't hesitate at all in saying Hill Farmstead is the "greatest." And they'll only get greater!

OP - Boy, this thread backfired, huh???

*IMO this is very significant - if I had only received 2 oz. of Mimosa at a tasting I'd freak out. Splitting a 750 two ways (an acid test all beers should be able to pass), though…cumbersome to say the least.
**Two are in my top-5! EVER! (Bière de Norma & Double Galaxy [could JUST AS EASILY be - S&S#3, et al.)

 

everything i've had from them has been stellar. when i move back east i will be driving there at least a couple of times every year.

 

I hate the term "hype". There is a lot of "talk" about Hill Farmstead simply because they make great beer. It's as simple as that.

 

While I haven't found many of the HF Saisons or Barrel Aged Beers to be as "World Class" as the vast majority of hoppy beers (and Everett which is fantastic!) they make, I certainly wouldn't call them mediocre or average either. I will say I wasn't a huge fan of BOT or BA Everett, however I thought some of the original Fear and Trembling offerings were outstanding. I also wouldn't pass final judgement on HF's potential for making Saisons or Barrel Aged Beers solely on the ones they have released thus far. HF is already a fantastic brewery and I'm confident that the quality of the products they make will continue to improve over time. Believe the hype says this non-Vermonter who has had the pleasure to visit the brewery many times and enjoy plenty of their beers.

 

I've only had one HF beer and wasn't exactly blown away. I don't make it over to VT as much as I'd like but had the chance to try Edward on tap last time I was in Burlington. Damn good beer but nothing to go crazy over. Before than and ever since I've been telling myself I need to make it over to the farm sometime to really see what its all about. This thread may have just given me the kick in the ass needed to finally do it next weekend. My credit card has been sitting in my wallet begging for more abuse anyway.

 

Hit an ATM before going to the Farm. My beautiful girlfriend and I forgot it was cash only and the closest ATM we found is roughly 10 mi away. Kind of a kick in the pants after driving 5+ hrs from Cape Cod.

 

Saw that on their website just after I posted that. That will keep me in line at least. It's a lot easier to spend more when you can put it on the CC and pay later.

 

We're fortunate to have periodic blasts of Hill Farmstead brews in the Philly region. I've taken advantage of this and have tried quite a few. Standouts for me have been Abner and Double Citra. They've all been good though and worth seeking out.

 

They can't connect a damn card reader to a phone line?

 

If you're in a pinch and need some cash, there is a closer ATM at Willey's General Store in Greensboro (about 2-3 miles away).

You will need more cash...

 

I've had What is Enlightenmnet, Edward, Double Citra, and SS4. All are some of the best beers ive ever had. I could drink a growler of Edward every night and id be a happy camper. The pale ales they are crafting up there are phenomenal. I haven't had any of the other offerings, but look forward to trying some soon.