Hop Butcher (2022)

I feel like there's a big difference between "I could do a 4-pack of their hazies every week or two" and "let's go to HB and spend 2 hours drinking through 8-10 similar IPAs."

Not that there isn't a market for that, but I *have* to think palate fatigue alone would imply that's a bad idea. I'm personally much more willing to try a weird (or atypical) beer in a taproom versus at a beer shop.

 

“Do you come here often?” Is only getting me weird looks.

You are drinking 4-5 beers an hour?!

 

I meant flights in that case, lol, I save that level of bac for hard alcohol.

 

Taproom list:
https://twitter.com/HopButcher/status/1590724503436394496?s=20&t=y_Zq_7_2fpxqlUisJhTmDQ

I haven't had Hop Butcher in years, do they still brew Galaxy Bowl? I thought that was a staple beer for them.

 

A legitimate question as a non-hop head:

What exactly does a "hazy IPA" mean to most people? If I knew nothing about Hop Butcher, I'd assume this is supposed to mean more NE style, but knowing Hop Butcher, seems like this just means more about the turbidity, rather than about the bitterness level. Also, NE style don't typically have that hop bite or onion notes *shrug*.

Seems like "hazy" has been slowly pushing out the term "NE style", which is only muddying up the clarity of descriptions (to me). Or, maybe Hazy, as a general term, really is better if so few are actually aiming for that much lower bitterness.

 

I found it humorous that this word appears SIX TIMES on Hop Butcher's draft board!!

Also, absolutely no dark beers? A single brown ale, porter, stout, quad, dunkel or ANYTHING would have been nice.

 

I agree but does this surprise you?

 

That menu board won’t last a year before it is replaced with something easier to change beers names on.

They’ve brewed it many times however it seems to have gone from a Galaxy flavored beer in its infancy to an onion flavored beer in its later years. I would imagine they would make it again unless they determine the quality of Galaxy hops they have access to is insufficiently poor.

I don’t believe HB is aiming for these beers to have the hop bite or onion notes. They are just releasing the cans when they are green to get them out the door rather than when they are mellowed at peak flavor. Will be very interesting to see what they do at the taproom in terms of putting beers on when they are green or waiting until the bite has died down.

 

That's what prompted me to ask. I was like, "uhh....I know these aren't all NE style soft, pillowy, super juicy low-bitter IPAs..."

 

The Supreme Court ruled that affirmative action does not apply to beer styles.

 

I think people confuse hop bite bitterness with true bitterness from Alpha Acids. Hop bite is a side-effect from having too much hop matter, adding polyphenols to the beer. This usually subsides in a few weeks and is not the intent of any brewer since it's an astringent flavor. Hop bitterness is much smoother when utilized correctly.

To me, Hazy and NEIPA are the same thing:
- low bitterness due to little or no bittering hops
- high whirlpool and dry hop loads
- ester-forward yeast
- full mouthfeel

Yes, there are some OG brewers in NE that brew bitter beers, but majority brew something similar to HB, a la Trillium, Root + Branch, Hill Farmstead etc.

 

Saw this in a Reddit thread yesterday - there was a 20 min wait earlier in the day and 40min - 1 hour later in the afternoon if anyone's thinking of going.

 

So, basically the same as when Half Acre had it.

 

Maybe once the things settle down at the taproom they'll offer some traditional brews.

 

Agreed, I hope they offer some crazy stuff in the taproom. I also agree that their releases tend to all meld into the same brew after a while. I did enjoy a lot of their "clear" IPA releases over the summer. How Giant is Giant was a great release and Sport Pep was good as well. I do think they're stouts are pretty underrated so I'm hoping they have some BA offerings as well.

Will definitely be taking a trip there at some point, but I'll wait for the hype to die down.

 

This is exactly why I stopped going to HA's taproom, even though I loved the place. It's too damn small for the amount of traffic they see. And before they opened up some of the warehouse/brewing space for their Benthic releases, those days were completely out of control.

 

For any kegerator owners, HB doing 1/6 barrels

 

Does Hop Butcher distro to Michigan? I looked on their website but couldn't find any info.

 

Picked up HBs Minted brew(missed it the last time around). Was curious to see if they could pull off a Frango inspired stout. For the most part it was good, imo it tasted more like a Andes Creme De Menthe then a Frango. Only issue was that it had a slight chemical aftertaste. Not sure if it was just the peppermint oil or something else. Probably wouldn't have it again but it was worth trying.

 

I was grateful to have tried this last year due to @galos11 , but it was one of the worst beers I have ever had. Usually with a beer that I do not enjoy, I can see what others do enjoy in that beer. Not this one. It was chemically (as you mentioned) and astringent. It was like synthetic liquid mint extract. I tried it several times over 2 hours and I couldn’t get more than a sip each time. It was a drain pour. I don’t know how many beers I have drank that little of.

Glad your experience was better, but I don’t know how anyone enjoys this.

 

Couldn’t agree more! Definitely one of the worst beers I had last year. And as you mentioned, all I tasted was synthetic liquid mint extract. There was nothing close to resemble a Frango chocolate mint about this beer.

 

HB says the upcoming Meet the Citras is in the running for their best beer of 2022. So put this one on the to do list this week

 

Not sure if zoning law limits the amount of space they could offer for their taproom, as their bottle / merchandise shop is almost the same size. Seems if the entire front of house was their taproom with a large refrigerator or two of four packs available at a host station similar to Revolution's Brewpub set up would be the most efficient use of their space, and allow an increase in accommodations on busy weekends / evenings.

I went this Sunday morning to avoid the crowds and there was a steady dozen or so patrons throughout my stay. I do like a few of their hazy beers, but typically not a big fan of that style. You can find enough variety in the styles offered to satisfy just about every craft beer fan.

I really enjoyed all three pints I tried, and was impressed they nailed styles you typically wouldn't associate with their brewery:

• HB Cricket Hill (ESB): More hoppy than a typical ESB, but well balanced (4.5/5.0)
• Roaring Table / HB Collab Far Out Cool Pool (WC Pilsner): Tangerine, Pineapple, Pine. Interesting take and one I digged. (4.5/5.0)
• HB For The World Destination Moon (DIPA) - Old school, citrus / pine, very dank. Surprised it had the lowest score of the three, as it was my favorite, but I tend to judge WCIPAs more harshly. Would have brought this home if I had room in my refrigerator (I do not). (4.25 / 5.0)

Tried the 10th Anniversary Beer at Spiteful after (A Decade of Spite) and it was very similar to the HB The World Destination Moon in terms of dankness, flavor and crushability.

Definitely recommend the new taproom, love that they have early hours throughout the week (like nearby Dovetail). I will be back.

 

Apologies for the thread tangent, but I'm kicking myself I had not known about the Spiteful anniversary beer when I was at HA on Saturday (was in the city to pick up my DW beer but stopped to pick up Nelson DDC, which ended up being a disappointment to me especially considering the price. So lose-lose I guess). Unfortunately, it does not appear they are distributing it. Sigh.

 

I admit I've not been a huge fan of HB and can likely count on one hand the number of beers I've had from them this year, but I quite enjoyed this beer. It certainly hits what I look for in the haze category (i.e., flavorful but not overly sweet) and being 6.5% to boot, well, nicely done HB. And thanks for sharing this comment else I would certainly have not picked it up. Only grabbed a single but may have to grab another, or even a 4 pk perhaps.

 

Been liking their "meet the" series. I'm a sucker for a good Citra IPA. If anyone has had this, how much does it differ from Snorkel Squad?

 

Gave a few cans of it to a couple of buddies and they were of the same opinion (ok but wouldn't try it again). I applaud the effort from HB to do something different. Sometimes it works, other times it doesn't.

There was a write up in last week's Chicago Tribune about Xmas brews and this one made the list for some reason.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/dini...0221202-jo4qnd732bfsriv3uzdfg2lf2u-story.html

 

I’d say there’s a little more hop bite on meet the Citras. Still wonderful though.

 

Read in their newsletter that HB is having a NYE tasting of sorts that includes a new BA brew. I've only had one HB barrel aged brew at a beer festival about 4 years ago and it was pretty good.

 

I had a couple at FOBAB that were pretty lackluster, but had one at their taproom recently that was pretty good. So I think they got their barrel game sorted out.

 

1 good barrel aged beer is a fluke. When they can put out 5 good ones we can say they have sorted out their barrel game.

 

I’m still waiting for one good stout.

 

Zing!

 

I may be in the minority, but I've always liked their stouts. Granted they don't have the rich legacy as say Goose Island, Rev, Half Acre or even P3. But brews like Fat Bear, Coffee Bear, Dirt Bath, Course Grind Hustle or Dark Black were pretty solid.

 

Fat Bear probably the single most Reese's PB Cup-like beer out there, despite many attempts. But I get it, they are pretty damn sweet, so not for everyone. I do like that they have a somewhat roasty backbone to the beer, so that it's not pure sugar.

Nonetheless, their FOBAB showings have made me less than enthusiastic about their BA beers, so it's an area that they're working on, I'm sure.

To add to the list, Dark Black was awesome too. Maple was pronounced, but the sea salt aspect broke through that sweetness again, so cool. Innovative in many ways, too, I haven't had any sea salt stouts at that point in time... It'd be cool if they threw ramped up and added some roast to Fat Bear and Dark Black bases and threw them in the barrel.

 

Agree that most of their recent stouts are sweet, which is not everyone's preference. I remember they released a stout way back in 2016-17 called The World's Colombian Exposition which was a coffee stout (may have been their first stout release). It wasn't as sweet compared to their recent offerings. I'm hoping that they bring something like that back next year.

Hoping with the new Taproom they can up their BA game going forward.

 

Absolutely, and more specifically, the small brewhouse that comes with the taproom. That's why we're seeing all these "taproom only" beers coming out now like Destination Moon (so crushed I missed this).

Their main production is at the old 3 Rabbits facility where they crank out the weekly distro releases, but the HA location is probably the location where they're making the Hefeweizen, lagers, one-offs. Hopefully this opens up a lot of room for stout experimentation too!

 

Was talking to a HB rep over of the summer when I was at a brew festival, and there is speculation that when the new tap room is up to speed and all the kinks ironed out they may be opening up a small outpost in the Bedford Park facility. If it ever happens it will probably be a few years off.