Fort George Brewing To Release A Limited Draft Only Batch Of The Popular Java the Hop

Courtesy  of Fort George Brewing Co

Astoria, Oregon-

One of the more often requested Fort George seasonals, Java the Hop returns to Pacific Northwest taps starting October 20th. This unique IPA fuses two of the region’s most enjoyable pastimes – sipping great coffee and drinking hoppy beer. And when you’re brewing with a single hop + single bean, that satisfaction comes down to selection.

The Dark

From the beginning, Java the Hop has been a joint collaboration with Portland’s Coava Coffee Roasters. Owner Matt Higgins and his crew are expert tasters with vast experience hand-selecting beans from all over the world. For this batch they chose Los Nacientes, a Costa Rican coffee with notes of chocolate, nuts, and subtle fruit acidity. These were added to the secondary fermenter within 48 hours of roasting, to ensure maximum exposure to the aroma compounds.

“The whole beans float freely in the tank,” explains Fort George brewer Jason Palmberg. “We use something like a pool skimmer the brewery rigged up to fish them back out. It can be a little tedious. And from there the beans head to a local farm for composting.”

The Light

This year’s Java the Hop was brewed using Mosaic hops. An offshoot of Simcoes, Mosaics retain some of that strong, piney aroma from the mother plant, merged with juicy, tropical fruit traits.

“The last two Java the Hops used coffee that created a fruit forward nose,” Head Brewer Michal Frankowicz adds. “This time we wanted a bolder coffee to balance out all of the mango and citrus already present in the Mosaics.”

The Beer

Mornings are for coffee, evenings are for beer, Java the Hop is timeless. A minimal malt bill focuses your powers on the pairing - radiant and light, with huge coffee aromatics, a hint of chocolate roast (but not on the dark side), and a tropical hop finish. No mind tricks, just simple complexity.

Be on the lookout for more draft-only offerings from Fort George heading into 2017. This batch of Java the Hop is limited. Ask your favorite northwest pub to put it on tap while they can. May the Fort be with you.