Sebago Hop Swap 2017

Each year since 2012, Sebago Brewing Company has brewed Hop Swap, an American-style IPA, with a new hop profile in order to introduce fans to the wonderful flavors and aromas that can come from hops. The profile for Hop Swap 2017 (ABV 6.7%, IBU 88), features Citra, Cashmere, Comet and Lemondrop hops. You can expect bold citrus and ripe melon aromas, accompanied by passion fruit and subtle mint.

Three of the featured hops, Lemondrop, Cashmere and Comet, have recently made appearances in Sebago’s limited edition Single Hop Pale Ale Series. Comet is a bittering hop used for its subtle and unique “wild American” aroma. Cashmere is a dual-purpose hop with a smooth bitterness, herbal aroma and flavors of citrus and melon. Lemondrop is a new experimental aroma hop that also contributes to the bold citrus scent and crisp body of this year’s edition. Joining these three are well-loved Citra aroma hops, known for their tropical fruit characteristics.

“Hop Swap is always brewed using the same recipe, but we swap out the hops annually,” says Sebago Brewmaster Tom Abercrombie. “Throughout the year, we feature different hop profiles in our brewpub-only limited edition beers. This gives us the ability to learn more about how the flavors and aromas interact with different hops. Then, for Hop Swap, we match hops from these experimental brews to our classic Hop Swap American IPA recipe, and can the results.”

I found it to be rather interesting given my lack of fondness for Hoppy IPAs.  Big and bright tropical fruit aromas. A bit of pine and some toasted malts are noticeable in the initial taste but finishes with Tropical fruits, citrus juice and zest, light bitterness with a tad of sweetness.  A subtle earthy pine and malt presence in the aroma.  Rather nice feel on the palate.

Stone Jindia Pale Ale (DIPA) debuts as ‘Imperial Seasonal’

[Press Release:]

(Escondido, CA) – Today, Stone Brewing Co. announces two seasonal additions to its 2017 lineup of offerings with the brand new Stone Jindia Pale Ale, and the return of the much loved Stone Pataskala Red X IPA.

Making its debut as a Stone Imperial Seasonal, Stone Jindia Pale Ale is a double IPA, instilled with ginger, juniper berries, lemon peel and lime peel. The botanicals mix miraculously well with a double dose of the most delectable hops.

Steve Gonzalez, Stone’s Senior Manager of Small Batch Brewing & Innovation, jumped at the chance to create this beer as he had experience in his former job making gin blends. And he absolutely nailed it. The beer has the hop-forward component of a great IPA and also the complexity of aroma and flavors derived from gin botanicals.

“Our co-founder, Greg Koch, came up with the idea of an IPA with gin botanicals after we had done the Stone & Sierra Nevada NxS IPA, which had a portion of the beer aged in gin barrels,” said Jeremy Moynier, Senior Innovation Brewing Manager. “Along with hops, we added ginger, juniper berries, lemon peel and lime peel to create a truly unique beer.”

Returning for a second year, Stone Pataskala Red X IPA, is a red IPA brewed with a unique malt called Red X from Germany-based BESTMALZ. The beer features a backstory as vibrant as its hop bill. This specialty seasonal red IPA was first brewed in September 2015 as a fundraising beer to support music and arts education programs in Pataskala, Ohio, where co-founder Greg Koch grew up. People loved it, so it was added to the 2016 beer lineup and the name stuck. Rarely used in hoppy beers, the special German malt variety is typically reserved for German amber lagers, Irish red ales and other mildly-hopped beers. But that’s not the Stone way.

“We loved this beer and knew we had to bring it back this year,” said Moynier. “It’s a challenging beer to brew on the big scale with the amount of hops and Red X malt that we use. But I think when you taste it you will know it’s worth the effort! It has a beautiful balance of hops and malt and definitely makes you want to have more than one pint!”

Mosaic, Amarillo and Cascade hops provide this red IPA with an upfront fruity and piney aroma, transcending into stone fruit flavor and pleasingly lingering bitterness. Brewed with late hop additions and generously dry-hopped, the 7.3 % ABV beer is incredibly hop-forward, yet balanced by very unique cereal notes and biscuit undertones from the Red X malt. When all the ingredients are combined, this IPA showcases the signature qualities of classic hoppy Stone beers: citrusy, herbal, balanced just right.

Beginning today, both will be will be available in 12-ounce six-packs to retailers and on draft at restaurants and bars where Stone beer is sold.

STONE JINDIA PALE ALE
QUICK FACTS

Name: Stone Jindia Pale Ale
Web: stonebrewing.com/Jindia
Stats: 8.7% ABV, 70 IBUs
Availability: Seasonal 12-ounce bottles in six-packs and draft, available now
Hop Varieties: Magnum, Cascade, Centennial
Distribution: AK, AL, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, HI, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT, WA, WI and Puerto Rico
International Distribution: Australia, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, Puerto Rico and Costa Rica
Find Beer: find.stonebrewing.com

TASTING NOTES

Appearance: Copper and deep gold.
Aroma: Fresh botanicals combine with a ton of citrus. Fresh fruit, lemon, juniper, ginger, spruce, and slight caramel can be found on the nose.
Taste: Flavors of citrus, berries, juniper, ginger, red fruit and hop resin. The flavor components blend together nicely leading to a hop backbone and a strong finish.
Palate: A complex beer with a strong mid-palate leading up to a smooth, warm finish.
Overall: A truly unique beer combining the attributes from a citrusy IPA, balanced with botanicals reminiscent of gin. The flavor components meld nicely in this big, but well-balanced, beer.

SUGGESTED PAIRINGS

A full-bodied beer with immense balance and a lot going on with the citrus, citrusy hops, spicy ginger and fruity juniper. Tons of pairing potential with this beer. Pair with hearty soups, stew, and salad, just about any type of fish served with a squeeze of lemon or lime, roasted and herbed meats, and fresh or dried red and dark fruits. With the citrus and ginger combo, this beer screams to be paired with sushi.

Klinger's Pubs

For all those Craft Beer lovers around Reading PA I have a hidden gem for you, actually 3 of them.  Check out the Klinger Pubs.  One in Fleetwood, one in Carsonia and a new one at the Reading Airport.  They feature great food at a great price, a relaxed atmosphere, and a friendly staff. Their goal is to make you feel at home, and they do one of the finest jobs of achieving that goal that you will ever see!!

KLINGER'S OF FLEETWOOD, opened in May 31st of this year in Fleetwood. This location boasts 30 Taps featuring local and specialty craft beer, craft cocktails, fresh local food including seafood, steak, sandwiches, sandwiches, salads, wings & more.

KLINGER'S AT THE AIRPORT, is now open and is located within the Reading Regional Airport Terminal in Bern Township. 12 Taps with 7 dedicated to local and specialty craft beer. Daily food specials and Happy Hour from 4 pm to 6 pm, and for aviation enthusiasts it boasts spectacular views of the runway, sitting practically right on its edge.

Both locations are loaded with TVs for the Sports fan and both have the friendliest staff you could ask for.  My only caveat is that some of the staff are not as knowledgeable on Craft Beer as one might like, however the beer menus are posted and constantly updated at their website so it is easy to educate yourself before you head out.

Why not make a trip of it and check out some of the breweries around such as Saucony Creek or Golden Avalanche in Kutztown or Chatty Monks and Oakbrook in Reading.  Or visit The Barley Mow in Reading featuring over 700 Craft Beers from upwards of 100 different breweries.

What's a Northeast IPA?

The beer is cloudy and has a tropical and fruity aroma. But one sip answers the skepticism when the senses are overwhelmed with flavor—grapefruit, peach, melon, tangerine. This cloudy IPA finishes smooth and creamy, with little to no bitterness.

The beer is exciting. Its appearance tricks you, and you wonder how the brewer managed to pack in this burst of flavor. It’s no coincidence that breweries, is tapping into an IPA craze that’s taking the country by storm.

In defiance of American drinkers’ long-lasting penchant for bland beer, hop-forward India pale ales continue to dominate craft beer. It remains the fastest-growing sector of the industry, and just as craft surprised a drinking public accustomed to boring beer, controversy surrounding the IPA now captivates craft.

The New England IPA (sometimes called Vermont IPA) has made a big splash in the United States, with some claiming it’s the way of the future—cloudy, smooth, and fruity, with an artfully refined bitterness. What’s interesting is that those who brew the style usually attribute its name to the press and beer enthusiasts, not to the breweries themselves.

Dave Carpenter, editor of Zymurgy® magazine, when asked about the New England IPA, touched on an interesting aspect. “The impassioned ‘brewer’s lore’ that surrounds the style [is most intriguing]. Some speak in whispers about origins of yeast strains and swear by internet videos that suggest stratospheric levels of water hardness, while others draw battle lines separating haze and clarity. It’s like a secret society or the New England mafia. If you can stand on the sidelines and watch, it’s pretty entertaining.”

With the likes of New England breweries such as Fiddlehead Brewing, Hill Farmstead Brewing, Other Half Brewing, and Tree House Brewing all pumping out cloudy, fruity IPAs, this new take on the style appears to have gained momentum beyond its region of origin and finds itself in a national discussion about the validity of the style and its hazy appearance.

Chill haze, hop haze, etc., aren’t anything new in beer. But the proliferation of a distinctly and intentionally hazed IPA category has been significant over the past year. Note that hazy IPAs go back well past a decade. Most origin stories head back to The Alchemist’s Heady Topper, which in turn leads to The Alchemist’s John Kimmich’s time brewing with Greg Noonan at Vermont Pub & Brewery (which was reportedly doing hazy IPA as far back as the mid-1990s). Many of the newest breweries pouring examples at this year’s Great American Beer Festival cited Trillium Brewing Co. and/or Tree House Brewing Co. as inspiration. Fittingly, these beers are also referred to as “Vermont-style IPAs” or “New-England-style IPAs.” A lot of folks are digging this creative space—and I took a broader view with the examples sampled, ranging from session up to imperial.

Some brewers get haze from yeast strains that don’t readily fall out of suspension, leaving a ghostly aura. Other breweries have indicated that they’re using higher-protein malt bills (oats, wheat, etc.—the same stuff that promotes foam retention) plus late hop additions, in some wizard-like fashion that keeps hop polyphenols in suspension. Many folks mention flour, though the reliable Tired Hands Brewing Co. seems to be the main player there via its Milkshake series. (There are at least as many methods as there are potential category names) Nearly everyone seems to be aiming for greater juiciness, which certainly mirrors the recent ascendance of fruit IPA that we dug into earlier in 2016.

There’s no lack of people who find the hazier-IPA trend off-putting, gritty and in some other way antithetical to something an IPA should be. They are not without good technical and/or historical reasons. But the likelihood of anyone accusing me of being a purist is pretty low. I enjoyed these and other recent examples I’ve tried. They’re smooth, packed with juicy hop character and orchestrated in a fashion that I wouldn’t at all mind revisiting.  While concerns of decreased shelf life (especially with the yeasty examples) and occasional gritty textures are warranted, there’s also genuine creative progress here. People are looking for hop juice. Brewers are looking to bring it.

Some additional nuances: Haze is ultimately fighting gravity—and it tends to eventually lose, such that a couple of these were already clearing up when I sampled them. Also: Even those brewers who’ve succumbed to hazing IPAs can disagree over how much haze is appropriate (and I’d be shocked were it any other way). It’ll be interesting to see what becomes the main method for invoking said haze. Yeast choice? High-protein mash? Hops aplenty will help.

More Noteworthy Releases: In addition to the folks mentioned above, you’ll find the hazy IPA at breweries like Monkish Brewing Co., Bissell Brothers, Other Half Brewing Co., Cerebral Brewing and The Virginia Beer Co. The lattermost is doing a series of yeast-hazy IPAs in its taproom, with plans to can. Aslin Beer Co., Block 15 Brewing Co. (for years now), Alvarado Street Brewery, Fiddlehead Brewing and Fieldwork Brewing Co. are offering hazy IPAs. Prison City Pub and Brewery in Auburn, New York, makes its Mass Riot with oats, wheat and the same yeast as Trillium. Yak & Yeti uses no oats but loads of dry-hopping for the tasty Sun Temple IPA. Even Boston Beer Co., maker of Samuel Adams Boston Lager, seems poised to join the haze parade, with its new Rebel Juiced IPA.

St. Benjamin Brewing

I had the pleasure of enjoying some of St. Benjamin's beers recently and if you are in Philadelphia with some time to kill I think you would find a visit to their Brewery to be a worthwhile use of your time :-).  Time and space prevents me from singing the praises of all their fine brews so let me just pick out 2 favorites to get you started,

Foul Weather Jack is a A Classic English Mild Ale named for a British Admiral. Every time this 18th century sailor went to sea he went in a doomed ship that sank due to beastly weather. The Foul Weather Jack is a dry, roasty, session beer with an easy drinking 4.5% alcohol.  Foul Weather Jack's mostly clear russet brown body is topped by a frothy head of light tan. The head retention is quite good, and the lacing spreads across the glass like torn sheets. The nose is limited in comparison to the flavor but both offer a range of caramel and nuttiness within the malt. It's subtly fruity with a suggestion of raisin. The limited bitterness perfectly balances the malt leading to a drying finish with hints of residual malt and fruit. Served via hand pump, the moderate carbonation level and medium light body leave it remarkably smooth across the palate. It's a unique and interesting beer with richness and depth despite its "English" nature, proving that not everything needs to be loaded with hops and strength to make it great. I can say that it clearly ranks well amongst the best of the style. Not to be missed ... It is equally satisfying on a hot summer day, or a cold rainy night at sea.  

Transcontinental is a California Common at 5.6%, a style not often seen attempted by East Coast Brewers.   Brewed in the style of the “steam” beers born in 19th-century California and still popular there today (think Anchor Steam). This copper colored ale has a full malt flavor with rye and spices which sets it apart from more true interpretations of the style but which lended itself more to my palate.  An interesting blend of ale malts and lager yeast. Malty flavors, subtle fruit esters, low bitterness, and a fresh finish.

Contrast this with what my dear friends at Baxter Brewing up in Lewiston ME attempted with Tarnation, their 5.3% interpretation of a California Common in which they came out more of a Red Lager.  Crisp and easy drinking for a Lager, Tarnation has a nice hop bite and a mellow sweetness on the finish, Fermented with an authentic San Francisco lager yeast, Tarnation is a crisp, clean beer that is eminently satisfying but somehow not quite what you'd expect from a Steam Beer.

Let me know anyone else's Steam Beers and what your thoughts are on the style itself.

Like A Motorcyc-ale

I recently had the pleasure of enjoying this rather unique brew from the (I think) up and coming Tidehouse Brewing in Halifax NS.   It is ostensibly billed as a Cascadian/Black IPA but don't let the style category fool you, this beer has lots going on.

It is listed as only 5.5% but they packed a good bit of complexity into that lower alcohol figure.  It pouirs dark and creamy with a decent head.  Initial taste in dank and earthiness but stick with it and the roastiness of the malt comes through nicely with some nice subtle hoppiness on the finish and just the slightest hint of bitterness.  Overall profile is an interesting one of a roast forward well hopped black ale. Kind of finds a happy middle ground between a hoppy Porter and India Black Ale.

I would highly recommend this!!!