As promised, the second half of the hop harvest review is the Sierra Nevada Estate Homegrown Ale. It is a pale ale with a 6.70% abv and clocks in around a sporty 10 American Dollars at many of the local stores. The presentation is one of the fanciest beers I have ever seen. The label is thick card stock with water marks throughout. Sierra Nevada did us a favor and dipped each bottle in wax to ensure longevity and reduce oxidation; additionally, waxed bottles just looks really bad ass!
Sierra Nevada planted a hop field near their brewery in Northern California in late 2004. Following the success of the hop field, in 2008 Sierra Nevada used the left over 26 acres for barley. End result: SN Estate Homegrown Ale! This is one of the few if any completely organic ales grown at the brewery.
Enough chit chat, lets crack this bad boy open. It pours a fluffy 4 finger head that looks like a cloud over the dark amber colored beer. The beer has excellent clarity and you can tell much care was used in crafting this brew.
The first smell uncovers fresh pine, big grapefruit, pineapple, citrus and mouth watering hops. The Estate drips with fragrance and for the third fresh hopped beer in a weekend this has the most complex nose.
The first sip uncovers some light bitterness but not offensive. The second gulp uncovers flavors of Light malts, honey and caramel. The flavors don’t end there. The nose predicted the following flavors perfectly to balance this pale ale: citrus, grapefruit, earthy hops, apple and topped off with light spice.
The mouthfeel was slightly thin for me but the carbonation was crisp to balance it out. Drinkability is superb. I would highly recommend checking this out if you have the opportunity. This beer is quality and an organic treat.
Cheers!
Ryan
