Here's to Beer! Reviewing Schooner Exact Hopvine IPA

Editor's note: You may recall Rich Coffey from our recent profile. It's fair to say Rich knows a lot about beer--he's a certified Cicerone (the only one in Washington state, in fact). Hence it is my great pleasure to introduce his new weekly beer column, "Here's to Beer!"

If you have ever grown your own hops, then you have known the pleasure of a fresh hops harvest. Crushing those fresh hops cones slightly between your fingers, you feel their sticky resin coat your palms, as you cup your hands and raise them to your nose to take in the aroma.

This is precisely the scene conjured by Schooner Exact Hopvine IPA. The name is an appropriate one, as the aroma you get from this beer should be familiar to anyone who has grown their own hops. Crack open a growler of Hopvine and you are greeted by a highly herbaceous hops aroma that captures the plant at its most piney, resinous peak. The malt profile consists of, Pale, Crystal and Carapils malts. These provide a vehicle for loads of hops flavor, courtesy of Chinook and Citra hops.

At 6.6% ABV. and 60 IBUs, this is not a huge beer, at least by the numbers. It is not a bitter bomb that annihilates your palate. It is, however, outstandingly balanced, and highly drinkable. This is a quintessential Northwest IPA. Bring a few growlers to your next gathering and garner instant brownie points with your beer geek friends. Or, you may wish to horde it to yourself, because its that good.

Hopvine IPA was originally brewed last summer for the fifteenth anniversary of the Hopvine Pub, but these days it’s brewed exclusively for PCC Natural Markets, where you can find it, and others, in one quart “mini growlers”. It’s a great value, and you would be hard pressed to find fresher beer, short of visiting Schooner Exact’s First Avenue tasting room, where Hopvine and many other fine beers can be sampled.

Hops in beer almost seem to ask for food as an accompaniment, much in the same way as tannins do in wine. Typical IPA fare should work well with this; try dishes with complex spice profiles such as curry, or five spice duck. Anything with an herbal flavor should pair well too. A Bahn Mi sandwich stocked with cilantro or basil would make for an awesome combination. For the cheese lover, I would suggest something like Gruyere, Laguiole, Cantalet, or the classic IPA pairing, bleu cheese.