Sierra Nevada on the left, Deschutes on the right.
First, the “Celebration.” The Celebration poured with medium carbonation and as you can see above a nice dark amber color. I found the nose reminded me of a rainy garden with some meaty undertones. The Celebration is subtitled as a “Fresh Hop Ale,” and I found that while the flavor of the hops in the beer wasn’t pronounced upon first sip, it kicked in quite strongly at the finish. In the middle I tasted lemon and orange citrus. While I enjoyed the Celebration, I personally found that the mouth-feel was a little unbalanced, and didn’t enjoy the harshness at the end. I’m a big fan of IPAs, of bitter beers, but there was something about the harshness at the end that I didn’t enjoy.
Next up is Deschutes’ “Jubilale.” If you hurry, you might still find some of this at your local grocer or beer store, but Deschutes stops production in December (it’s apparently available starting in October but I didn’t see it in my local store til December). The Jubilale is 6.7% ABV, and pours a deep mahogany color with a nice foamy head. It has a pleasant mineral nose. This beer starts out sweet, with flavors of malt and caramel, then the alcohol takes over and you’ll enjoy stone and oak flavor, finally there’s a pleasant and mild hoppiness at the end. I quite enjoyed the Jubilale and think it would stand up strongly and pair well with the heartier cuisine of wintertime.
Honestly, I find that Sierra Nevada is sort of ground-zero for the folks who think that more hops automatically equals better beer. Their beers are not known for their subtlety or balance. That said, I think it has been a great learning experience for me to see what different hop varietals taste like. But if I want to be putting that much pinecone flavor into my mouth on a regular basis, I'd just as soon order gin.
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