Sierra Nevada Harvest

Brewed by Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Chico, California USA

THOUGHTS: Did not expect this to be this good. Very hoppy, but not real bitter. Went down easy. Well-balanced and smooth. Brilliant beer. TECHNICAL: Bottle, 12th Release. Poured a sparkling, medium to dark amber with a large to huge, off-white head that mostly diminished and left excellent lacing. The aroma was a little weak, but great. There was light to moderate caramel malt, and moderate to heavy grapefruit and orange hops. The flavor started out sweet and acidic and a little bitter; while the finish was bitter but not harsh with a fairly long duration. There was some caramel malt and a lot of orange and grapefruit hops. The orange goes from the sweet meat to the bitter rind. The medium body was fairly oily with tingly carbonation and a light alcoholic and slightly metallic finish.

2007 bottle - 11th edition - pours a nice amber color with a thick foamy white head...good retention and heavy soapy lacing. aroma is very earthy with notes of pine and spiciness...maybe a hint of grapefruit. flavor displays exactly what the commercial description claims with lots of pine and some spice and citrus. mouthfeel is thick and creamy...almost syrupy but not sticky. finsih lingers for a bit with grapefruit. nice beer.

Amber appearance with a thick off white head. Aroma is basically hops. Taste is more hops without being overly bitter. Under the hops is some spices and toffee flavors with a light malt balance. Overall, great beer if you like hops but not overbalanced like some strongly hopped beers.

Color is medium amber with a large off-white head. Aroma is of fresh hops, grass, caramel and grapefruit. Taste is of caramel, toffee, spices and hops.

Bottle (24-oz). Pours reddish-amber with a large foamy off-white head. Aroma is pine and grapefruit hops, slightly grassy and sweet. Aroma is woody hops, with some pine and grapefruit again; bitter and hop-dominated (malts way in the background) yet fairly complex flavor, with some nice spiciness. An enjoyable variation on the classic Sierra Nevada style.

a very delicious brew. tastes very fresh and light, but has a lot of body and flavor behind it. tastes sweet and rugged and maybe a little grassy, it is also quite bitter at the end as well, so people who don’t like bitter beers should avoid this one. A-

Bottle. Aroma has notes of citrus, wild grass, a little pine, caramel. Clear medium amber hue with an average sized foamy off white head that mostly diminished and left ok lace. Flavor is sweet, spicy and then turns very bitter. Palate is light medium bodied and lively. A solid IPA but there is a raw and wild spiceiness to the hops that make it feel unbalanced. I like the idea of using the freshest hops but I don’t think I could drink more than one and have no desire to try it again, and there in lies the problem.

Keep in mind this beer has been around for about three months and I just bought one this week. Pours clear copper with a huge fluffy creamy head. Plentiful lacings. Piney hop aroma. Taste is medium bitter citrus hops. More orange pinapple than grapefruit. Good amount of sweet malt backing. It might be I’ve had too many hoppy beers this evening but for me this was on the lower end of the IPA range taste wise. Excellent beer, well balanced. Session wise it is a bit high an abv for an all nighter.