Bandwagon Brew Pub » Wet Hop Harvest Ale (Copper Ale) ABV: 6.1 | Rating: 8.7
I finally made it down to 'Meet The Brewer' Tuesday at down at Bandwagon here in Ithaca, having a scheduled week off from rehearsal. Good timing too, as head brewer, Stephen Bareford had just unleashed his latest, a wet hop copper ale, packed with 20 pounds of fresh, local whole leaf Cascade hops from The Rhizome Republic, just down the road in Freeville, NY.
Between good conversation with friends, a firm, dank hop nose with hints of blood orange reels me in to this fresh brew. A firm, drinkable med-level body wields a great sweet / bitter hop balance with a twinge of dryness in the finish. Firm pine notes threaded with soft, sweet tropical notes.
Head brewer Stephen Bareford gave us the lowdown of how the folks at Rhizome connected on this brew and gave us a quick tour of BWB extremely modest brewing and aging area, which gave me far more of an appreciation for their efforts to cycle through new ideas while still keeping their flagship brews consistent.
Overall, Wet Hop was a solid hop-forward, but not overboard brew and along with the informative conversation from a personable, yet unabashed brewer, it was well worth the visit and rare Tuesday night off.
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