Tree House (2021)

Especially important is that Von Trapp makes better lagers.

 

Their place was so obnoxiously packed when we were there in October I didn't want this to be true, alas it is.

 

Very Hazy is still my #1 even after 4 or 5 years from first drinking it. Picked some up yesterday and still tastes as good as I remember.

 

Von Trapp was probably the worst brewery service I've had in the last 5 years lol. Love their beer and the location, so will give them another chance at some point, but as someone who couldn't generally give a shit how the service is when I'm out I'm not sure I've been somewhere I felt less welcomed. No disagreement on their lagers being a better value than TH $ wise. I would say Free to Roam and Nomad are as good as anything I've had from them, though.

 

Not convinced that’s true anymore. I love Von Trapp, but the lagers I’ve had this year from treehouse have been excellent.

 

Did you have reservations? We got lucky on the way and snagged a table on a whim, but can't imagine walking in without one because it's a line out the door for bar seats and pretzels only apparently, and we didn't even know that. We'd have been hella mad too.

 

Nomad is incredible, needs more love!

 

Having Project Find the Limit 7 right now. I've only had one other in the series (5) but I think the idea is super interesting. For me, this one is potentially past the limit. It's extremely hoppy, not in an overly bitter sense, but it's really thick in a way that's outside the bounds of what I want even from a DIPA. It's getting a little better as it warms/I have more of it, but outside a real dud can of KJ last month it's my least favorite TH in a minute.

Tbh, it reminds me a ton of what Trillium has tasted like for the last few years. It's got an element of the Tree House house flavor that makes it a little better than those beers, but still it has too much of what I hate about NEIPAs than what I love about them. And I really love NEIPAs for the most part, I just don't really care for the ones that are a hop punch to the face.

Part of what makes Tree House my favorite IPA factory is that even the ridiculously hopped ones don't generally veer into that territory - I'm really a pale ale/single IPA fan first and foremost but Jjjuice Machine and Five (KJJJ) were two of my favorite beers of the year. So while this is still good to a point for me, and I'm sure some people will love it, I hope their future beers are informed more by the limit of where great and balanced is, not where over the top but still acceptable is.

(Fwiw, I thought 5 was good - not my favorite recent TH, but more because it was pretty par for the course Tree House than spectacularly great.)

 

Yeah, the Nomad love is real. Plus, Remote was fantastic too.

The comparison is a tough one. TH is mostly known for hazy stuff and von Trapp is almost exclusively lager. I think both breweries are great, but that TH is even in their ballpark is saying something (to me, at least).

 

I'm quite the curmudgeon when it comes to haze factories that produce lagers and automatically praised for it, but even I would say that Nomad was quite good. In fact, I think besides the Juice Project Citra + Citra, it was my favorite of all the beers I brought back from Tree House.

 

I agree. I thought the same about 7 and trillium, over hopped but much smoother than a trill dipa.

I recently had monkish for the first time, was disappointed, thought it tasted similar to trillium.

I also recently grabbed hfs Edward, Susan, and Abner (along with some bottles) and while they are consistently great, I think TH is fully in front of other breweries when it comes to ipas

not sure what it will take to get me back to trill

 

Anyone catch those 1.5L bottles of Julius/Haze?

Also looks like they put up VGggreen, man I wish I could head up. Still need them to drop VHhhazy again. Always preferred hazy to green

 

I was there yesterday, it was busy, I considered going back today when I saw the magnums, but decided against it. I’m planning on opening my 2021 bbt tonight anyways. Still slightly disappointed I didn’t go today rather than yesterday.

I tend to prefer very green to very hazy, and vggg, to vhhh, but they’re all absolutely top notch neipas

 

Stopped by Deerfield this morning after doing some shopping at Yankee Candle with my wife and picked up Sssappp, Sap, Very Gggreennn, a bottle of Metacognition, and a bottle of Memphis Flash. Cracked open a Sssappp when I got home, and holy shit this is ridiculous. A little bitter, a little fruity, all incredible. Even my wife loved it.

 

Let us know what you think of Metacognition. I found it okay but lackluster

 

Agreed. Same feeling I had when I had it on draft a few months ago.

 

Yeah, I certainly didn’t think it was on the level of say HF or Suarez, but it was ok. Would like a little more lemon/citrus funk

 

Is Metacognition going for an HF/Suarez thing or is it going for a Saison Dupont thing? I had assumed the latter, but if it's more farmhouse than saison I'm intrigued even if it's not quite there yet.

 

I had hoped for the former. You make a good point.