Cold Hop

Wednesday night was relatively warm. We had just gone through a cold weekend and early week. A cold snap that caused considerable shrinkage on me because Stella wouldn't let me turn on the heat. During this cold stretch I drank some Old Rasputin and Long Strange Trippel. But I didn't want anything like that on Wednesday night, I wanted something a little lighter on the palate.

I took the kids outside to play some soccer and football after dinner. I don't know if you've ever herded 3 kids under 4 around, but let me tell you, it gets warm, especially on a warm evening. I think I even broke a sweat playing QB (I was 0 for 39 passing, I blame the receivers).

When we came into the house, I was ready for a beer. I had picked up a sixer of Boulder Cold Hop ($8.29 or so at Gomer's) the week before, but hadn't had the occasion to drink one since it was cold outside and I had the stouts and trippel. If I wasn't going to drink a Cold Hop now, I'm not going to drink one. I opened up a bottle and poured it into a pint glass. Cold Hop is an English strong ale, a category of beer I'm not very familiar with and one that is not well represented in the marketplace (so eat it, it's not my fault). I would say that it is a bit of a combination of an ESB and an IPA. Cold Hop has a floral hoppy aroma but has a malty sweetness not present in most IPAs.

I'm not going to say this is a great beer, it's a good beer with lots of great flavor. I will say, though, that if you do any kind of physical activity outside on a warm autumn day, Cold Hop is very nearly the perfect beer. Typically, when I'm warm and looking for a beer, I can think of no better beer than a Sierra Nevada or Boulevard Pale Ale. But, Cold Hop ended up being just what the doctor ordered on Wednesday night.

If you're like me and have some leaves to bag, pick up a sixer of Cold Hop and have it waiting for you when you're done bagging. You won't be disappointed.