Kashmir IPA

Yet another IPA for the record, Highland’s Kashmir IPA contends with the best of them. It pours with a decent head and a clear, golden-brown color. The aroma is thin but with an abundance of fresh hops.

This IPA goes down pretty smoothly, surprisingly, as I’m not too big on IPAs. In my opinion they’re best reserved for warm summer days in the shade. The aftertaste lingers for a good bit of time, where the potent hops conquer the sinuses and throat. This beer’s pretty dry, which I think lends to it being more drinkable than most IPAs.

I recommend this IPA for the hardcore as well as the fair-weathered IPA fan.

Southern Hemisphere Harvest Ale

I tried a half-pour of Sierra Nevada’s Southern Hemisphere Harvest Ale at Asheville’s Thirsty Monk, and they’re not kidding about the freshness of the hops. A bit too hoppy for me, this beer is much more like an IPA than a typical pale ale. It’s a special beer, though, blending seriously-fresh hops from New Zealand with Pacific hops.

At first there wasn’t much of an aroma, but after a few quick sips, the flavors came pouring out. It smelled like liquidized fresh hops. Really. It tasted like liquidized fresh hops. It wasn’t bad, but just way too hoppy.

The color is a nice golden, almost an amber. It is a refreshing beer, however, if you’re not a fan of IPAs, then you probably won’t like this beer all that much.

Dry hopping refers to putting hops into beer after fermentation. This means that the hops aren’t cooked during the boiling stage, when making wort. Some brewers worry about contamination, but apparently it’s not too much of a risk.

Beers like IPAs or pale ales are typically dry hopped, which lends to a more distinct, fresher taste of hops in the beer. The hops are placed directly into the fermentor after fermentation is pretty much complete, and they should rest for a couple weeks. I can see how this would really give the beer a very fresh hop flavor.

View some directions on dry hopping.

Starr Hill Northern Lights India Pale Ale

I had an opportunity to drink a couple of brews from Starr Hill Brewery, including the Northern Lights IPA (India Pale Ale) and the Dark Starr Stout (see this post on the stout).

The IPA was, well, just an every day IPA. I’m not a huge fan of IPAs; too hoppy and bitter, and the aftertaste lingers on for far too long.

The Northern Lights IPA, though, really wasn’t bad. It tasted salty, I think, but I couldn’t tell because the damn hops just overpowered everything! Each time I thought I could observe another flavor, nope! It was just hops, man. Lots of hops.

If you’re an IPA fan, then this IPA will probably do the job for you. It’s not bad, but it’s not incredible.

Bison Brewing Chocolate Stout

I started out with the Chocolate Stout, and it had a fairly weak smell to me. I smelled a bit of chocolate, but nothing that punched me in the face. It’s got a nice balance of chocolate, stout, and general beer flavor, but it just wasn’t quite punchy enough to remember.

Bison Brewing IPA

Now, granted that I’m not a huge IPA fan, Bison’s India Pale Ale was not so bad. It had a nice light color, it was clear, and the aroma was wholesome, organic, and grassy.

The taste was light, a nice hop flavor that wasn’t overbearing like normal IPAs. The aftertaste was a bit rough for me, though, a bit too lingering.

Barley wine

I didn’t like this, but that’s probably just my tastes. I don’t think I care too much for barley wine in general. So I guess I have no business talking about a barley wine.