Celeia Hop Ale - Alexander Keith's (Canada)

Celeia Hop Ale - Alexander Keith's (Canada) 5.5%

Darkish gold in a glass. Not much of a head of foam, but maybe I coddled the pour too much.

The aroma is fairly subtle, I found it pilsner-like even before I read that these are a Slovenian hop which seems close enough to the Southern Germany and the Czech Republic for me. Hints of citrus (lemon) throughout the aroma and flavour. The hops flavour is quite peppery and has a touch of wood tones but it always remains in the background mingling with the borderline caramelized malt flavours. This ale is bitter but in a way that builds as you drink rather than hitting you all at once.

I like Alexander Keith's Hop Series Ales because each beer gives me an easy way to learn about one specific type of hop and usually the beers are fairly good too, in my opinion. The Celeia hops ale is a bit of a let down in the latter regard as the hops better suit a lager/pilsner style beer and the mouthfeel leaves a bit to be desired and coats the mouth a bit too heavily.

Alexander Keith's Saphir Hop Ale (Canada)

Alexander Keith's Saphir Hop Ale (Canada) 5.5%

Full gold with a finger of foam that settled fairly quickly. Herbal, floral, slightly citrusy (orange/tangerine) marmalade and sweet aroma. The taste is bitter but with continued citrus (more tangerine now), marmalade like sweetness. There is also some resin and a floral flavour that reminds me of some blossom, maybe honeysuckle? The aftertaste is drily, lightly bitter with more malt than hops flavour.

I am a fan of these One Hop beers because I like the opportunity to learn about one specific type of hops. This beer is also highly drinkable and pretty tasty.

Citra One Hop IPA - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 6.5%

Citra One Hop IPA - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 6.5%

Brassy gold colour in a glass. Lovely citra hop aroma of mango, passionfruit and papaya with some light vegetal touches; some tones of honey. Quite a bitter taste, a malty body, some hone and still mango as well as passionfruit a bit of a slightly metallic aftertaste that mellows after a few sips but reminds me of dandelion greens.

This hops provides a really neat hops character that dresses this American IPA up in exotic tropical fruit flavours. Citra One Hop IPA is the second of the One Hop IPA series by Garrison. I have already reviewed the first and I look forward to trying their next one as soon as it is released.

Comet One Hop IPA - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax)

Comet One Hop IPA - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 6.5%

A full gold/amber colour in a glass, just the colour of sap, with a nice off-white head. An aroma chock full of melon, a little celery and fresh cut grass, as well as some resin. Much more of the resin in the flavour as well as some citrus but still lots of melon. A hearty and sweet malt body balances this bitter and delightful hops forward beer. There is some grounding earthiness to the taste as well which is quite nice.

I first enjoyed and reviewed Comet IPA at the Seaport Beerfest in Halifax in August, 2012. The version there was billed as a Double IPA and did taste a little different and had a higher ABV. Plus it was delicious then so I thought a separate review of the bottled product was definitely worth it.

Not only is the taste enjoyable but it's the concept behind this limited release that I am most excited about. In my opinion, Garrison Brewing is practically providing a public service to the craft beer community by making a series of One Hop IPAs (this is the first). By using only one kind of hops drinkers can gain a familiarity with exactly how each varietal expresses itself. I, for one, am looking forward to the next one in this series. Stay tuned as I intend to review them all as they are released.