Sierra Nevada Estate Brewers Harvest Ale

Brewed by Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Chico, California USA

Since the hop season was last year I can assume this beer is about five months old. Pours clear amber with a big inch of of white fluffy head. Very nicely laced. Aroma is citrus and caramel. Taste is full citrus bitter hops with a bit of leather and a very supportive caramel malt backbone. Mouthfeel is full and a bit wine like. Drinkability is very good for an IPA. Slightly sweet for the style but hops probably have faded a bit due to age.

Clear dark amber with a beige creamy head that lingers with a froth on top and leaves plenty of lacing. Piny hops, lemons, grass, and a malty sweet backbone to the aroma. Flavor is hoppy bitter, sweet malt, with light alcohol noticeable in the finish. A bit sticky sweet.

bottle. average rocky/fizzy tan head that didn’t last too long into cloudy orange body (minimal lacing was present). aromas of mod citrus and resit hops and moderate caramel and some earthiness. flavors: initially lt - mod bittersweet into mod bitter. long finish duration. sticky mouthfeel. damn fine IPA

Pours a hazy, chestnut-amber color with an eggshell, average, pillowy, frothy head which leaves a lasting, small, rocky layer and leaves some drippy lace. Nose is interesting with almond and rich caramel malt backbone to match earthy, lightly spicy notes, and hints at pine resins and rustic notes. Flavor is similar but more hoppy; hops are certainly still very earthy, and more resinous with pine needle notes. Other notes of light rustic, faint grapefruit, light almonds, and faint caramel with a moderate bitterness. Palate is nearly lively, lightly oily, somewhat velvety, and medium. Finishes drying a bit with bitterness growing leaving rustic notes, resins, and a touch of spice. A fairly nice wet hopped, IPA-APA hybrid. The earthy notes dominate, which is certainly interesting and refreshing for the style. The malt backbone is great in the nose and the oily flavors were mild compared to some wet- or dry-hopped which is nice. Good not great.

Golden color with a nice herbal hop aroma. Flavor has some nice hop freshness with a bitter & oily feel. Good, though certainly inferior to their regular Harvest Ale.

8 fl oz bottle from Utobeer at the rather steep asking price of 7 quid so it had better be good. Orange amber colour, completely clear with thin off white head. Vegetal hop aroma which is ok, but not beautifully hoppy as I had expected. Quite carbonated in mouth that leads to a certain thinness in the mouth.. Bit of fullness in the swallow, but the malts are a bit muted, some caramel and toffee, but not overly exciting or assertive. The finish is the best aspect of this beer. Good peppery fresh hop. I suppose I was expecting more of a hop bomb. The finish really is quite good. But the aroma and mouthfeel could be better. Given the price I could have bought a Stone Ruination IPA and an Oakham’s Bishop’s Farewell and I know which option I would have gone for. So overall a very pleasant hoppy beer, but it doesn’t really shine.

Very resinous, medium bodied, almost slick IPA. This is a wet-hopped beer, and has the piney, woody and orangey flavors that go with it. Rather sweet malt profile, caramel, slight apples from the esters, and a considerably sugary finish to go with the bitterness. Had it from a keg at GABF, much better than from the bottles I’ve had.

Deep copper pour with an off white head. Great hop aroma of citrus and floral hops along with some sweet malt. Citrus hops in the taste with caramel malt and some piney bitterness in the finish.