Back to one of favourite breweries in Bristol – Unwin’s – for the showcase/taste-off of our 31st challenge Hail to the Chief.
Back in July Head Brewer/Owner Tom acquired and split five packets of experimental hops from Yakima Chief into 200g pouches. Each brewer then received two each, with the challenge to brew something using one or both. Now we were back with our beers.
The Hops
No two hop varieties are the same, but a lot of their descriptors are:
HBC 522 – Cascade-like
Alpha: 11.1%
Aroma: Citrus, Tropical, Woody, Floral, Herbal
HBC 630 – Berry, citrus
Alpha: 13.6%
Aroma: Berry, Citrus, Stone Fruit, Sweet Aromatic, Tropical
HBC 638 – Centennial-like
Alpha: 16.7%
Aroma: Citrus, Fruity, Sweet Aromatic
HBC 1019/Dolcita – Peach rings, tropical
Alpha: 11.9%
Aroma: Tropical, Sweet Aromatic, Woody, Citrus, Stone Fruit
HBC 1134 – Noble lager type
Alpha: 14.2%
Aroma: Citrus, Herbal, Sweet Aromatic, Woody
The Beers
First things first, as we wait for people to arrive, a visit to the bar was in order. Tom always has a great selection on, but a big shout out to Puzzle, a hazy pale using a new thiolized yeast Suava, Pigment a delicious Autumn Pils, Old News a rich dark ale and the beast of an American Barley Wine Big Cheese.
Once the last stragglers turned up it was time to crack into the first homebrew – starting with Dan’s incredibly light, very easy to drink Hop Pop, brewed with a mix of honey, caramelised honey and pale malts.
Next up, trying to have some semblance of order is Will’s Animals of Violence, a west coast pale that really showcased the peachy characters of Dolcita. Comparisons to Sierra Nevada’s pale were made and it was absolutely delicious.
Into our first lager with Pupperoni Pils, Paul’s 5.5% Italian Pils, single hopped with HBC1134 to give it a very European feel using a punchy American hop.
Sticking with HBC1134, next up was Rob’s very easy to drink delicious Cali Common, coming in at 5.6%, crystal clear and a rich amber in colour, it was delicious.
Crossing over into our first hoppy beer we had Ian’s Identity Crisis IPL, a Dark India Pale Lager, with the nice rich bready body of a Munich Dunkel with the powerful hopping of an IPA – it was a treat!
Pete couldn’t make it to Unwin’s but sent along his American IPA Binary Vascular System, inspired by Bell’s Two Hearted. The HBC638 definitely has Centennial like qualities and produced a delicious, proper westie.
Beer number 7 was Mark’s crystal clear, Cold IPA Senorita Dolcita. It was an absolutely delicious beer, that kept you going back for more even after you realised the 6.8% ABV that was hiding behind the hop character. A personal favourite of mine.
Now we were in the big beer territory with Rowan’s DIPA Peachy Bitter Little Number That Over Attenuated. To say it was peachy was an understatement, absolutely delicious, clean and powerful as we have come to expect from Rowan, combined with Dolcita what a powerhouse!
Finally, we were treated to Dan’s Time-Compressed Adambier Sam Beckett. An 8.3% experimental smoked dark beer with sour twist thanks to the red grape concentrate and Philly Sour yeast.
The Beers at a Glance
| Brewer | Beer Style | Beer Name | ABV | Hops Used |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dan | Soft Drink Inspired Session Beer | Hop Pop | 3.9% | Dolcita |
| Will | West Coast Pale | Animals of Violence | 5.1% | HBC638 and Dolcita |
| Paul | Italian Pils | Pupperoni Pils | 5.5% | HBC1134 |
| Rob | Cali Common | 5.6% | HBC1134 | |
| Ian | Dark IPL | Identity Crisis IPL | 5.7% | HBC630 & HBC1134 |
| Peter | American IPA | Binary Vascular System | 5.9% | HBC638 |
| Mark | Cold IPA | Senorita Dolcita | 6.8% | Dolcita |
| Rowan | Westy DIPA | Peachy Bitter Little Number That Over Attenuated | 8.3% | HBC522 & Dolcita |
| Dan | Time-Compressed Adambier | Sam Beckett | 8.0% | HBC630 |
Once again, an incredibly high quality of beer, really showing off the use of these experimental hop varieties.
Join us on Thursday 26th November for our next meet-up. Check the Events page for the venue
