2016 Three Notch’d 10* Farmers Pale Ale
In 2014, Three Notch’d Brewing collected freshly picked hops from ten area hop farms, producing 10 Farmers Pale Ale. In 2015, the company had to add an asterisk to the label as they added three more local businesses to the collection. The brewery may need to rethink the name of this brew for next year as 2016’s release of 10* Farmers Pale Ale incorporated fresh hops from 15 farms. That’s pretty damn awesome, but how do more hops impact what was an already damn good beer?
The 2016 release of the 6.5% ABV pale ale is just as tasty as the previous effort. There’s a bit more of a peppery, spicy hop character that wasn’t present in 2015. The beer is sticky, piney and resinous while grapefruit and citrus notes mingle with herbal notes. A light-to-moderate hop bitterness is tempered by a soft malt sweetness, creating a wonderfully balanced presentation that is packed with wet hop flavor, but not an overwhelming bite.
I love the concept behind this beer and have been thrilled to find bottles of the 2nd and most recent release. Will I be purchasing 20 Farmers next year or will there be a second asterisk added to the beer’s moniker. Regardless of what it’s called, Three Notch’d have themselves a hell of a beer with 10* Farmers Pale Ale — one that I eagerly look forward to drinking again in 2017.