New Zealand's Bountiful Harvest

Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere Harvest Ale

1^st Release
6.8 percent ABV
Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, Chico, Calif.
Sampled: May 26, 2008

The hop shortage of the past few years is only the beginning – to hear scientists tell it, global warming has it in for beer lovers.

Sierra Nevada seems to shrug and go about its business, finding hops where no one bothered to look before.

Last fall’s Harvest Ale was a revelation in brewing, demonstrating how different an ale could result from fresh-off-the-vine hops.

The southern hemisphere version, made from hops rapidly imported from New Zealand, pushes the boundaries even further.

Results from the New Zealand hop harvest might sacrifice a little immediacy due to the origin of the hops, but it results in a more drinkable product.

The nose offers an immense improvement – it blossoms into perfume and a lilac floweriness I didn’t expect.

More grassy and imbued with a strong citrus flavor, the southern hemisphere hop harvest lacks the sometimes off-putting oiliness that the American version produced. These hops hit hard with their bitter citrus, which is quit unlike almost any ale I’ve tasted. The freshness lets them punch harder, and dialing down the oiliness makes the fresh hop flavor more palatable.

At 6.8 percent, it’s a little strong for a session ale, but the harvest doesn’t happen every day, so enjoy it all you can while it graces the shelves, then mourn its disappearance for another year.

There is a silver lining – beyond the original Hop Harvest Ale. Sierra Nevada plans to grow its own hops in Chico, and we can wonder pleasantly about the fresh hop beer that might emerge from those fledgling vines.

Rating: 9/10

Under a Hoppy Spell: Wychcraft

Wychwood Brewery, Oxfordshire, England
“The four elements combined to create truly Magical brew.”
500 mL capped bottle
4.5% ABV
Sampled: May 17, 2008

Full disclosure: If asked to pick, Wychwood would probably top Samuel Smith’s as my favorite English brewer
The flying witch impressed on the bottle was all I needed to see at the Jax Package Store in Cumming, Ga.

In other hands, the Halloweenish, haunted themes of their beers might seem gimmicky. But Wychwood’s ales would taste just as lovely with any other name.

From first sniff to last sip, Wychcraft constantly reveals new facets.

Mellow, complex nose flows forth with caramel and bubblegum backed up by an herbal, oily grassiness – don’t worry, that’s good. It’s a telltale sign that Wychwood didn’t skimp on the hops in its brew kettles. Every sip nearly overwhelms in its freshness.

With that freshly hopped character, Wychcraft recalls the Sierra Nevada Harvest Ale – albeit a decidedly English version, as the biscuit dryness attests.

On the finish, it strikes with sharply burnt citrus, then mingles with some mild red fruitiness before giving way to an effervescent bitterness I’ve not encountered before.

Modestly advertised as “Thrice Hopped and Golden,” it easily hits all those marks and surpasses nearly all other brews promoting staggering hop contents.

In an age of extreme brews, with every brewer attempting to out-hop each other, most of Wychwood’s beers fall into the session beer alcohol range.

With Wychcraft, they once again prove they can turn out a layered, hoppy ale that rivals the best produced in the U.K.
Rating: 9/10

Sloebering Garde Dog at the Red Castle

Titles are often elusive, so we'll mold the three together just this once.

Sloeber
Oudengarde, Belgium
Sampled: April 27, 2008

Finally, a beer that won’t make you feel badly for getting Sloebering drunk – or making bad puns.
Awful jokes aside, this golden ale punches early, throwing out a rough-edged passion fruit nose.
Moreso than other Belgium goldens, Sloeber moves into Saison territory with grainy overtones and a spicy wave that strikes just prior to the finish.
Bitterness kicks up as it closes, yet fades more quickly than the dry foamy head. Despite the old cliché, there’s no need for apple-orange comparisons – both crop up in Sloeber and delicately co-exist.
While there are plenty of Duvel clones from Belgium – most American microbrews can’t even touch the clones – Sloeber bucks the trend. Through its scuffs, scars and odd mix of fruits, this ale definitely walks a different path.
Not that I would expect any beer called “Sloeber” – which means something close to “joker” in Flemish – to come off as bland and antiseptic.
The only joke with this golden ale falls on the beer drinker who writes it off without every imbibing.
Rating: 7.5/10



Kasteel Rouge
Belgian Ale with Cherries and Cherry Juice Added
Castle Brewery, Van Honsebrouck, Belgium
8 percent ABV
Sampled: April 27, 2008

Uh-oh, all these cherry infusions give Kasteel Rouge a nose not dissimilar from the aroma released by cherry throat lozenges. Medicinal tastes arise in some beers, but the flavors of illness should be taboo.
The head bubbles and thins rapidly above a brilliant ruby body – not unlike a lambic. Let’s call that strike two.
In flavor, however, Kasteel Rouge balances out and comes through in the clutch. The cherry dominates, but as an overlay on the ale below it. The lip-puckering intensity of a lambic is totally absent, to great effect.
For someone who doesn’t appreciate cherries in his beer, this is an unbelievably smooth ride. With an 8 percent alcohol content, it comes on more like a liqueur than a lambic or the horrific Melbourne Cherry Ale (it’s really that bad, and Winking Lizard forced me to drink it twice to earn jackets). An echo of oak backs up the cherry; it might be a remnant of the aging process, but never goes to the overbearing lengths caused by the American oak-aging craze.
Although Kasteel recommends 43 degrees Fahrenheit as a serving temperature, let it warm further – nuances that get glossed over poke through. The comfortable tartness that rises in the finish is nowhere to be found when tasted colder.
Hardly an everyday ale, I might try serving it as an dessert drink at my next dinner party – should I ever host one again.
Rating: 6.5/10


Flying Dog Garde Dog Bier de Garde
Flying Dog Brewery, Aspen, Colo.
Contract-brewed in Frederick, Md.
5.5 ABV
Sampled: May 1, 2008

In typical Flying Dog fashion, the beer synopsis spends more time hurling stereotypical insults the French than describing
In atypical fashion, this stab at Biere de Garde delighted me.
For all the raves it draws in some beer-loving circles, Flying Dog is a strictly hit-or-miss affair with me. Case in point - I didn’t rate it here, but early last week I sample Kerberos, its Belgian Tripel-style Ale. That limp knockoff rated a 4/10.

Garde Dog ably cleansed my palate.
The specter of a bad saison/farmhouse/Biere de Garde (all three are regional variants) worried me, and vanished upon my first whiff.
The nose comes on strong with tangerine, honey, orange and an ever-so-slight floweriness among the citrus. They run on, but a distinct berry flavor comes into play without changing the beer’s overall complexion.
Garde Dog is the rare beer that tastes stronger than its actual ABV (5.5 percent). Infused with flavors of spring, don't dare serve it ice cold or all those textures will be submerged.
A comfortable bitterness emerges before it slides into a fine medicinal finish augmented by the honey focus.
This is my frustration with Flying Dog; they fire off a great brew (Woody Creek Belgian-Style White) among a lineup of misfires.
With its spring seasonal, their aim is true.
Rating: 7/10