Like most beer nerds, I love to try new beers from small breweries from around the country, especially when I’ve never tried any of their beers. That’s why when I received a Frog Hop Fresh Hopped Pale Ale from The Great Northern Brewing Company out of Whitefish, Montana I was pretty excited to try it out.
To be honest I had never heard of The Great Northern Brewing Company before getting a bottle of their fresh hopped beer in the mail. Reading up a little on this beer, the hops are locally hand-picked at Purple Frog gardens within 24 hours of the brew.
Like all fresh hopped beers, Frog Hop is only brewed once a year during hop harvest.
I poured the Frog Hop in one of my Spiegelau beer glasses and was pleasantly surprised at a ton of fluffy white head at the top of the glass which stuck around for awhile. The head finally receded leaving some very nice lacing that looked like it could be made into some nice artwork.
The beer is a nice hazy golden color that is clear enough to see some carbonation bubbles floating up.
The nose was filled with much more biscuit-like malt than hops, but it has a sweet citrus/white grape aroma that is very pleasant in the background. Not exactly what I was expecting but I really enjoyed the smell.
The flavor followed the nose but built on it quite nicely. There is definitely a strong biscuit like malt flavor, but the cascade hops punch their way through leaving a great citrus and green grass flavor to this light body brew.
Frog Hop is incredibly smooth with a light body that would make this a great session beer. To be honest, I really liked this beer a lot more than I was expecting. It isn’t overly hoppy for a fresh hopped beer, just really good and well balanced.
I am a bit sad I can’t get this around here year round, but will definitely be enjoying the rest of the bottle tonight while my Seahawks are on Monday Night Football showing the nation what’s up.
Definitely give this brew a try if you can find it, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
My Frog Hop Fresh Hopped Pale Ale Review: A-
Here are the details:
ABV: 5%
IBUs: Varies depending on year
Style: Pale Ale
What’s your thoughts on Frog Hop Fresh Hopped Pale Ale?
