Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere Harvest Ale
June 15th, 2008 beckelThe Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere Harvest Fresh Hop Ale is part of Sierra Nevada’s Hemisphere series. It consists of 3 beers that doing creative things with fresh hops. This beer was brewed with fresh hops from New Zealand that were used about one week after being harvested. Pours a beautiful deep amber, it is filtered but still displays a very rich color. Good few inch head is quite light in color. Smells very strongly of hops, a bit bitter with a little hint of sweetness in the end. Not surprising considering its 66 IBU. Flavor is incredibly hop filled, especially for a pale ale and the taste will linger in your mouth for quite some time. It is rather bitter but the mouthfeel is smooth and the malt balances out the flavor decently. At 6.7% this beer is surprisingly nonalcoholic for the strong flavor it portrays, it is obvious the freshness of the hops really has an effect on this beer. I would encourage anyone who enjoys hops to try this beer if for nothing more than to experience the hop profile. It is probably one of the most complex pale ale’s I have ever been able try, though with its price tag I don’t think I would drink it regularly.
