New Glarus Hop Hearty Ale

Took me a long time to try this beer because I have spent my life hating spotted cow, belgian red (yes, belgian red), and the offensively bland Naked lager, but this was a life altering beer. Its a true masterpiece of the IPA style.

Bottle sampled with Stegosaurus. Pours amber with a big beige head. Aroma of hops, sweet malts, and citrus. The flavor is sweet malts, mild bitterness, and citrus. Great beer.

12 oz bottle

This is one of the better IPAs I have run across. Ironically it is just under my nose but it has taken almost a year to give it a try. This is another very well made product from the Careys. In fact, I like it even more than the Unplugged Imperial IPA which is not too shabby itself. The best part is that this is $6.99 for a 6 pack. That’s a bargain for something this good.

Aroma / Appearance - After an aggressive pour there was a huge billowing foamy head. It eventually settled down from an inch of liquid to an inch of head. The body had some mild carbonation and was the color of maple syrup. The nose had a definite grassy note that was a combination of spruce needles, cedar chips and berries.

Flavor / Palate - A resiny feel coated my mouth after the first sip. Acting as a base, it sat there while caramel, raisins, honey, cream soda and movie popcorn played across my palate. As it warmed, the hops began to balance against the malts. The aftertaste was mostly malts. Unlike a west coast IPA which is a test of how many hops can be packed into a bottle, this is very well balanced. The creamy mouthfeel leaves a slight bitter taste on the tongue.

Moderate malt flavor, with strong floral hop flavor, lively carbonation, bitter hop aftertaste, medium to full body, Overall this is one of my favorite IPA’s. The strong flavor of the hops is just right, not overdone or underdone. If you like a full bodied, strongly hopped IPA, this is one to try.

12oz bottle-An amber color with a head that dissipates into a nice ring. Aroma of hops followed by malt. Taste of big malt and more big malt with a little citrus. A well balanced beer.

Light orange body and off-white foamy head. Malty and faint hop aroma. Light though creamy mouthfeel. Easy drink, bitterness enwrapped in malt, decent balance. Not too complex. Above average brew, Fairly average for its style and will underperform for the hopheads..

Sep. BierMeister meeting. Reddish, copper color. Not bottle conditioned. Piney, floral, spicy, citrus aroma. The aroma is really nice. Initial taste is huge malt, brown sugar, caramel followed by mild citrus, floral, and spice. Malt dominated IPA. The hops bitterness mainly just balances it out. Too malt dominated for an American IPA, more like an English IPA with American hops. Nice but New Glarus is usually pretty mild in hops bitterness and flavor.

(bottle) deep copper amber with small off white head. Rich floral hops aroma. Flavor is floral and citrus hops. Another nice beer from New Glarus.