Southern Tier Hoppe

Sampled at From The Vine beer tasting Oct 19th, 2007: This beer is a lightly hazed amber-gold color with a compact off-white head that dissipates steadily. Stickly rings of lacing on the glass. Citrusy hops is dominant in the nose, with a light bready malt behind. Crisp, medium body with a bright citrus hops flavor, alongside herbs and caramel malt too. The finish is nicely bitter and lingering hops. Enjoyable all around.

Pours orange with a small dense off-white head. The aroma has lots of bready malt, oxidation, caramel, coconut and light caramel. It has a medium body that’s a bit grainy feeling that’s lightly harsh with some minor prickly carbonation. The taste is very tropical with lots of coconut, coconut milk and traces of pineapple. There is some sharp abv, but nowhere near the obviousness of many 10% beers. The finish shows more oxidation. A decent beer. <P> Rerate notes: Whoo hoo - a fresh bottle. Aroma is beautiful with lots of grapefruit hoppiness, some pine, caramel and some resiny aspects. Mouthfeel is similar with more resiny aspects. The taste is a lots sharper with lots of tons of dry grapefruit, pinecones and woodiness (not oxidation though). Very nicely constructed beer.

Pours a slightly cloudy golden color with a thin white head. Aroma and flavor of spicy hops, malt and some fruityness, The body is medium with a creamy texture and soft carbonation.

Very lightly hazed golden color with a full head of big off-white bubbles. Small isles of lace. Strong hoppy aroma. Heavy scents of grapefruit and cedar. For me its just too much hops and not much of anything else in the scent. Plus the woody aspect is not that appealing to me. Cedar comes out in the flavors as well. Slight hint of malt sweetness followed by the hit in the mouth of a cedar plank. Hot and spicy in the finish with alcohol and white pepper. Seems raw and unbalanced. If this was in an 8 ounce bottle I may think more of it, but to slug it out with this bomber is too much work.

Bright golden amber appearance with a medium size, off white head and decent lacing. Spicy, floral, herbal hop aroma gradually replaced by more familiar notes of citrus and resin. Full bodied, nicely carbonated mouthfeel. Taste is firmly controlled by the huge hop profile with only a passing nod to the moderate malt presence. Some interaction between bitterness and sweetness followed by a mild alcohol burn. Durable, long lasting, spicy finish.

22 oz bottle. Pours cloudy golden with a bubbly white head, leaves nice lacing on the glass. Aroma is nice, hoppy, some subtle peachiness, balanced... a lot of malty caramel sweetness in there, too. Tastes like biting into a mango infused with hops. Definitely tastes good, but it’s a little strange. Maybe it’s the aftertaste (unexpectedly bitter/dry)? Maybe the way it feels in the mouth is throwing me off a little... it’s very thick and rich, but then it’s a little powdery/grainy too. To the point where my lips and the roof of my mouth feel a wee bit powdery after taking a big gulp. Huh. Odd beer, nice try for Southern Tier, but I’m not a big fan of this one.

Bomber. Pours hazy, light golden yellow color with an immensely creamy white head that leaves tremendous sheets of lace down the entire glass. Aroma is strong, malty, hoppy, wheat, balanced. Candy. Hops are somewhat piney and earthy. Sweet. There is a strange taste in here I cannot put my finger on. A sharp, cloying sweetness that is unusual in a way that other cloying sweetnesses are not. Cotton candy? Bad fruit? Alcohol? Kind of like eating the white part in an orange peel. I do not know. But it’s distracting. This distraction is not evident in any way in the aroma. Other flavors present are a mild bitterness, citrus, orange. Medium bodied. As I drink more the bad flavor disappears. Either it improves as it warms up, my palate is shot from the bitterness, or I am drunk. Maybe all three. All in all this was pretty good.

Orange gold color. Modest hops in both aroma and taste. Hops contribute some citrus, but not much bitterness.