On Mikkeller Single Hop: Simcoe

Simcoe is the name of the game today. My third in a series of reviews of Mikkeller's Single Hop Series (one and two here) showcases the Simcoe registered trademark hop.  Simcoe® can be a hard hop to get. Select Botanicals Group, LLC, the owners of the Simcoe® varietal, have only licensed three farms to grow the hop, all in Washington.

Simcoe starts with spices (pepper), earthiness, and some pine. A bit odd considering the citrus power of Simcoe hops, but the age may be a factor in this. I can't read the code date on the cap, but Rate Beer lists this as a retired style (get it while you can).

The color is dark redish-orange. Reminds me of the color of 70s carpet or upholstery. Moderate head retention leaves thin wisps of bubbles across the surface. In the mouth, caramel malt and piney hops give way to some citrus before mild alcohol finishes the show. The beer is medium bodied with medium-high carbonation. A bit oily.

Overall, this is the best of the single hop series I’ve had so far, but I do wish I had it fresher.

Single hop series reviews:

Sorachi Ace

Nelson Sauvin

On Mikkeller Single Hop Sorachi Ace

Next up in my Mikkeller Single Hop Series tastings is Sorachi Ace. This is my second exposure to Sorachi Ace; the first being with Brooklyn Brewing's Sorachi Ace. Common to saisons and IPAs, this relatively new hop from Japan is probably known most for its intense lemony aromas. With alpha acids over 10% it can easily be over bitter, but I think Mikkeller has done a good job to keep it in check. 

 The beer pours a cloudy, burnt orange color beneath a shallow carpet of white foam. Lemon and honey infiltrate the nose with a bit of warm biscuits. Not unlike a crumpet with lemon curd. 

Alcohol gives way to flavors of lemon and a bit of grass. Strangely, malt flavors are more apparent in the aroma than the flavor. Hints of grapefruit linger in the finish. This beer is medium bodied and exhibits lively carbonation with generally good balance that tilts to the malt side for an IPA. 

Lingering sweetness borders on cloying but doesn’t quite cross that line. This is my second exposure to Sorachi Ace hops, and the flavor is growing on me. I see this beer pairing well with whitefish or sushi.

Single hop series reviews:

Nelson Sauvin
Simcoe

On Mikkeller Nelson Sauvin Single Hop IPA

Mikkeller out of Denmark has been performing a great service to aspiring beer afficianatos for quite some time now with their Single Hop Series.  This will be the first in at least 4 posts on Mikkeller's single hop series.  The idea, for those of you unfamiliar with Mikkeller's devotion to this project, is to brew the same exact beer and only change the hops.  From the label:

"For each version, the single hop  variety was used in the same weight for bittering, aroma, flavor, and for dry hopping.  All 18 varieties of single hop ales in this series were brewed the same week, from the same batches of malt, using the same yeast and fermentation temperatures." 

This differs from the Sam Adams Deconstructed project because the Deconstructed series of IPAs highlights the best of each of the hops in the Latitude 48 beer.  To highlight each beer, they do not necessarily use the same hoping rates for each of the different varieties, but instead make changes to best suit the individual hops.  While this likely creates a more appealing beer as a whole, it somehwhat diminishes the controlled study of a single hop beer series.

With the Single Hop Series we have a great library to evaluate the character of individual hops.  Additionally, the Single Hop Series can be used to evaluate malt character.  By evaluating not what changes, but what stays the same, it is possible to tease out malt qualities.

Nelson Sauvin starts with an unidentifiable berry candy aroma. Apple bars and  bit of funk bring up the rear. Appearance is a cloudy, burnt orange. The dense head recedes quickly. Heavy yeast sediment coats the bottom of the bottle. The flavor brings some caramel malt sweetness which gives way to an odd wine-like character. I like it, but it’s hard to pinpoint. An astringent hop bitterness continues in the long finish. Some alcohol warmth lasts in the back of my throat long after the last sip.

I think this bottle got some age on it from it’s trip from Belgium to Illinois (or I’m late to the party). The code on the top is 5??1010. If fresh, it would no doubt be better. The Nelson Sauvin hops are quite unique and I look forward to seeing them used more widely in the future.




Single hop series reviews:
Sorachi Ace
Simcoe