New Belgium Lips of Faith - Fresh Hop

Brewed by New Belgium Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Fort Collins, Colorado USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

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Pours a light clear golden with an eggshell foamy head. The beer has excellent head retention and Guiness-like lace rings as it is consumed. The bouquet is dominated by fresh cascade hop flowers. The lovely resiny hop aroma is reminiscent of every home brewer’s favorite part of the brewing process--opening those packets of hop pellets or flowers. The mouthfeel is fantastic. That perfect combination of cotton on the front of the tongue and light carbonation burn on the back. Alternative pine, ripe fruit, and tart citrus. It finishes with a perfumy hoppiness that is less intrusive on the palate than many in this style. In fact, this beer looks and drinks like an APA. Its flavor is just a little thin for my liking.

Bottle shared by Marcus. Aroma is hop sweetness. Taste is fresh sweet hop taste. Lots of malt to balanced it out

December 28th, 2011 - New Belgium’s Fresh Hops is marked as the product of absolute industrial efficiency. In a turnaround that would impress even the snootiest farm-to-table Brooklyn hipster, New Belgium boasts a field-to-bottle period of less than 24 hours, maximizing the likelihood of making the LoF Fresh Hop the rawest, most resinous IPA in my beer stash. Although "fresher", the aroma already hints at this beers family relationship with Ranger, featuring a sweeter and sharply pine hop smell, like a hike through young pine growth. The flavor is relatively mild, (though the lacing creates a fiercely stubborn mustache), featuring fruity sugars in the beginning, including hops and floral elements. The Fresh Hop is both refreshing and bright, and cleanses the palate with a robust carbonation. This delivers a clean, summer, mountain flavor with a healthy botanical touch, and a sweetness and hops balance that I enjoy more than Ranger IPA. Too bad it isn’t as affordable as Ranger.

Bronzed, silken head, thin but nice. Floral bitter nose. Body is quite acerbic and plays bitter sour notes on the palate. Finish is warm with fresh grainy tannins.

Bottle. Pours a dark golden amber color with a medium sized white head. The aroma is green hops, pine, light fruits and some moderately sweet caramel. The flavor is piney hops, light fruity, caramel, lightly toasted malts. Decent enough.

Bomber from Cedar Bluff Discount Wine in Knoxville. Yellow-gold pour with a medium off-white and good retention. Aroma is pine, orange peel, sweet malts. Tastes are earthy hops, salt and peppery spice, grapefruit, toasty, pine, resiny. Bitterness is up front and then the toasty malts. Thin to medium palate.

Bottle shared by jayhawk73. Thanks Jeff. The beer appears transparent and golden hued. A thick white cap rests atop the beer, leaving some decent lacing on the tulip. The aroma brings some pleasant hop aromas, subtle earthiness, light pine. Good flavor. Hop forward and pretty fresh. Easy to drink. The finish offers a light yet lasting bitterness. Carbonation level is a bit low. I would like the aroma and flavor to be bolder and more aggressive. This one has potential, but lacks that in your face quality that makes fresh hop brews so delectable. Overall, pretty good. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 12-15-2011

22oz bottle $5.99 Bright orange color, great head, looks good. Smells herbal as well as citrusy, good. Taste is a bit if citrus but I mostly get melon rind, green hoppiness, a bit vegetal but good. I’ve already been through three bottles in less than a week, good stuff. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 11-08-2011 21:17:47

In short: A straightforward old-school, clean, medium dry, golden-blonde IPA with citrusy/grassy hopping. Very satisfyingly
How: Bottle 22oz. Consumed probably fresh, a few weeks after purchase, bottle forwarded to me by mcberko, thanks a lot Matt
The look: Mostly clear golden blond body topped by a large white head with good retention
In long: Nose is typical citrusy and grassy hops with a focus on grapefruits and sundried yellowed grass. Nothing original here but with all the new breeds of hops popping up left right and center it is surprisingly refreshing to go back to the good old fashion hops and with no Citra, Nelson Sauvin and friends. Taste is equally straight to the point. A clean low sweetness malt bill that is somewhere between a baguette and crisp crackers, a tiny bit of honey and some residual sugars, a good amount of grapefruity and dry yellowed grass hops. Bitterness level is medium and it leads to a relatively dry finish. Well levelled medium carbonation. It clocks at 7% but I’d session it all night, this is very easy to drink. Nothing original here, but the execution is flawless. I really like this beer, and once I was finished drinking the beer I hugged the bottle and I told it I really liked the moment we spent together, and if only I could have a dollar for every time I had a discussion with a bottle of beer I could pay the psychiatric help I obviously need.

Wonderful hop aroma. Pine like hop flavor. Clean hop bite. Golden color reflects good malt character. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone