Bison IPA Single Hop Series - Summit

Brewed by Bison Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Berkeley, California USA

I like what they are doing with this brew - a fine IPA showcasing a single hop species, albeit not my favorite. Starts with a great malt backbone characterized by mellow molassasy-caramel, heavy essence. Definite grapefruit presence. The Summit hops on centerstage here really do shine thru with a strong bitter, non-lingering bite. Great showing. I would love to try the Columbus Hop version but am not part of a trading network - can anyone hook me up?

The body is a hazy medium orange with a large slightly off white head. The aroma has about as much grapefruit as I have smelled in a beer. Not just hints, but this is very strong and fresh smelling. There is also a hint of caramel behind that, but not much. The taste is again mostly fresh grapefruit with a hint of iced tea. There is a hint of parsnips or some tuber with spice. There isn’t much else going on, but this definitely is a showcase for the hops. An interesting and good IPA, but a little too ine dimensional.

From a 22 oz. bomber bottle with no freshness date, blurbs on the right side of label and on the paper neck label, sampled at cellar temperature in a pint glass. Poured a slightly hazy golden hued copper with a large frothy, foamy white head, good retention, settled into a rocky, sudsy lacing. Aromas of tangerines, citric zest, light earth and pine resins, and a soft backing of sweet grainy malts. Good even carbonation and a crisp, dry, softly slick with a little hop roughness, smooth medium bodied mouthfeel. Pleasant tasting, but you do get the rough earthy bitterness one expects from a blending hop, tangerine sweet, hop resiny, spicy, a touch of citric rind, caramelized sugar and toasted grainy malts, the alcohol meshes with hop spiciness to provide a soft warmth in the palate, a little melon fruitiness, and a dry hoppy, grainy finish with the earthiness from the Summit hops lingering in the aftertaste. I enjoyed this, easy drinkability, well worth trying.

(Bottle) Pours a lightly cloudy copper body with a small white head. Aroma of apricot, tangerine, caramel, and onion. Flavor of hops and malt with earthiness characteristics and a smooth, somewhat dry, light bitterness in the finish.

22oz bomber, no date. Pours a clear copper orange with a 1 1/2 finger bone white head. Aroma of tangerine, light weed (marijuana), light soap, sweat, and a little caramel malts. Flavor was tangerine and everything else except the weed, and there was almost a burnt plastic quality but not quite. Bitterness was 6-7 on a 1-10 scale. Moderate soft carbonation with a light to medium body. I thought this one was pretty good and all my friends thought it was awesome.

This bottle is part of the Single Hop Series so I am assuming its the same I had the Columbus now the Summit. Nice dark burnt orange ,semi-murky beer, nice sized light tan head. Strong sherbert like hop aroma slight citric too. Fruity ,hoppy flavours, sweetish grapefruit, very drying at the end, sticky. Hints of caramel and something else..peppery, chives? Mouthfeel is alright, like the lingering bitterness. Over all a good IPA, I liked this slightly better than the Columbus.

Bottle from BevMo. Pours a medium/dark amber color. Slightly sweet aroma with a very dry spicy, almost onion-like scent. Very dry. Dominant flavor is a really dry pungent bitterness. Maybe not the best hop variety to go it alone with.

Draft. Rich copper beer with a nice off-white head. Fruity grapefruit aroma. Fruity, grapefruit, slight garlic flavor with malt backing. Lingering garlic - doesn’t have the big fruity summit flavor that the other IPAs did (this is the first that really hit me with the garlic flavor people mention). Medium bodied.