Rogue Ales Chatoe Rogue First Growth Wet Hop Ale Review
Wet hop ales (otherwise known as Fresh Hop Ales) are a little-brewed type of beers where hops are taken from vine to brew within 24 hours, skipping the drying step that allows hops to last in storage but causes them to lose many volatile oils. Many brewers go through extreme feats to get their hops this fast, but some go above the others. One of these is Rogue Ales in Newport, OR. They have launched a new line of Rogue beers called "Chatoe Rogue," a play on the french "Chateau" normally used in the wine industry. To brew these beers, they've launched what can only be called a brew farm, where they grow both malting grain and hops. In First Growth Wet Hop Ale, they showcase two propriety strains of hops they've cultivated, Independent (coincidentally the name of the town in which the farm is located, 77 miles from Newport) and Revolution. According to the label: "Raw hops are picked, stuffed into burlap bags, driven immediately 77 miles to Newport, Oregon and pitched into the brew kettle." Luckily, we didn't have to grow any hops to try this beer (but we do grow hops anyway), so that's what we're going to do right now!
Appearance: The beer pours a deep amber red with a light taupe head. Pour this one with mild caution as we were able to get about 5 inches of head from a pretty rough pour. Looks tasty!
Smell: Fresh hops are the first thing you smell... like being in a hop field. It's not overwhelming as many hop-focused beers can be, but rather delicate and complex due to the extremely volatile oils preserved by skipping the drying step of the hops. After this, you get a bit of malt. It's fleeting, but there's definitely some bread and light grain in there... a great complement to the hops.
Taste: At first it's fairly clean and crisp, just enough hoppiness to balance the malts which definitely show through a bit. After a second, though, medium bitterness comes in as does the hop flavor. The only way we can describe it is a juicy hop flavor. Throughout the taste the grain is there, but it's just a support structure for the hops, providing a great drinkable beer. Rogue definitely did a good job with this one; they made a beer that isn't over the top but showcases some great flavors in a manner that could be drank all night long. We can't wait to try some of the other brews from the Chatoe Rogue series!
