Hop & Barrel Brewing opened in downtown Hudson, Wisconsin last December, and I've been aching to check them out ever since. I've already missed out on several beers over these few months.One of the owners is my friend Brian Priefer, formerly a brewer at Inbound in Minneapolis, and before that American Sky, also of Hudson. I finally made it down there with my pal Jason last Sunday, and brought some crowlers home with me, after doing sample flights. Here's the first of the crowlers.
Mango Me Happy Blonde Ale. Blonde Ale infused with mango. 5% ABV, 24 IBU.
To the eye: clear, bright golden, slim white head.
In the nose: sweet, fruity, light bitterness at first. Nice. Delightful.
In the mouth: more sweetness, much malt, beautiful hoppiness. Utterly lovely. Mango reveals itself over the blonde ale and the malt base. It's tasty stuff and the drinkability is a non-issue. Crush-ability is off the charts.
Why did I pick this one, when I'm not that huge a lover of blonde ales? Well, I like all the beers, you know, I like to give them all a chance. There's more fun to come, as I check in on the others.
Jason and I sat at one of those barrel tables in the front room off of Main Street of Hudson, WI, and each had a flight of four. There was a larger room off to the side of the bar area, and it was full of people buying cactuses, because that's a thing, now. I didn't spend too much time in there. wWhen Brian arrived we got a tour of the brewing facilities. They're ready to go, these guys, set to unleash several styles of beers in cans at each side of the St. Croix, with illustrations by one of my faves, DWitt. Coming in a few weeks. Can't wait to get my mitts on those, but first, coming soon, those notes on the other crowlers.
No comments:
Post a Comment