If you've followed along with my beer check-ins or my radio show, then you know I love hoppy beers, and while I admit that I'm definitely a Hop head, I'll also admit that I've never had a chance to check out The Hop-Heads Beer Club. This club is run by the fine people that also run The Rare Beer Club and this club is devoted to delivering U.S. and international hoppy beers.
The Hop-Heads Beer Club delivers twelve 12oz bottles or cans of hop-forward beers to your door every month. The box includes four of each of three different beers that are hand-selected by the club and the styles include IPAs, DIPA's, session IPAs, IPLs, pale ales and more. Each shipment also includes detailed tasting notes, beer profiles, brewery information and even food pairings.
For November 2020, the club selections are Foothills Brewing Hoppyum,as well as Zipline Brewing IPA and Zipline Brewing Alpha Modern IPA. These are three great examples of what you can expect from The Hop-Heads Beer Club and three examples of beers I can't wait to sample, so off we go…
Foothills Brewing Hoppyum
ABV: 6.25%
IBU: 78
Style: American IPA
Packaging: 12oz Bottles
Appearance: Bright orange amber
Aroma: Spruce tips, resinous pine & citrus
Mouthfeel: Full-bodied with dry finish
Taste: Grapefruit up front followed by resinous pine and tropical fruits
Overall: Foothills Brewing Hoppyum really typifies for me what Simcoe hops bring to a beer. The blend of flavors from grapefruit to spruce tips really work well with the North American malt base to create a really drinkable and satisfying IPA. Overall Hoppyum is a really great example of west-coast-style IPA meets classic east coast IPA and the resulting beer has a wonderful combination of flavors as well as a clean and slightly dry finish.
Zipline Brewing IPA
ABV: 6.5%
IBU: 60
Style: American IPA
Packaging: 12oz Bottles
Appearance: Clear copper
Aroma: Mango, tropical fruit and resinous
Mouthfeel: Medium & fluffy
Taste: Dank and resinous with mango, grapefruit and grassy flavors
Overall: Zipline Brewing IPA is a really nice mix of both citrus and resinous flavors. The aromas lead you down a very citrusy and tropical fruit path where you will find late flavors of resinous pine and grassy hops. Overall this was a surprisingly good IPA that has a lot to offer and I really think Zipline has hit on a really good hop blend and a really good beer.
Zipline Brewing Alpha Modern IPA
ABV: 4.9%
Style: Hazy Session IPA
Packaging: 12oz Bottles
Appearance: Hazy straw yellow
Aroma: Citrus and lightly herbal
Mouthfeel: Medium with light carbonation
Taste: Bright grapefruit and citrus followed by mango and biscuit malt.
Overall: Zipline Brewing Alpha Modern IPA has a really unique combination of hop flavors that change from first sip to last. The combination of citrus and grapefruit up front balances nicely with the biscuit malt flavors and the clean finish makes for a really drinkable beer. Overall this beer is juicy forward with just enough malt and bittering hops to balance it all out nicely and make for a really sessionable and enjoyable IPA.
All of these beer are available as the November selections for The Hop-Heads Beer Club so be sure to check out the club for yourself. Foothills Brewing Hoppyum, Zipline Brewing IPA and Zipline Brewing Alpha Modern IPA are great examples of what the club has to offer and what you can expect in future selections. Keep in mind you can also mix and match clubs with the Design Your Own Club program to pair amazing beers with amazing other club offerings like cheese, chocolate and even wine (for your or as a gift). And when you do join The Hop-Heads Beer Club, be sure to let us know what YOU think.
0 comments (click to read or post):
Post a Comment
Please leave a comment...I do moderate each comment so it may not appear immediately...and please be nice! You can also comment using Disqus (below) or even comment directly on Facebook (bottom).