Tasting

What does a beer from the Yakima Valley actually taste like? Mostly grapefruit, orange, pine resin, and ripe fruit, layered over a thin backbone of bready malt. The bitterness lingers on the palate without scratching, and the aroma is often more powerful than the sip itself.

Bale Breaker's Field 41 Yakima Pale is a perfect example. The brewery says it brews this beer right in the middle of the hop field, as a tribute to the family's hop-growing heritage. Taste it, and you'll find citrus and resin, but never heavy malt.

Topcutter IPA, named after the harvesting machine, is the brewery's flagship beer. Piled High is their Fresh Hop IPA, released in a new version every year since 2012; according to the brewery, it has won multiple awards at the Fresh Hop Ale Festival. Both beers prove that a hop-forward beer can be aromatic without drowning in bitterness.

In the glass, aroma is what matters most. In the US, the standard serving is a pint, a glass holding about 0.47 liters. Taprooms also offer smaller tasting glasses alongside it. A tulip-shaped glass holds the aromas together nicely when you swirl and sniff.

An IPA shouldn't be served too cold, ideally around 6 to 9 degrees Celsius. In freezing cold, the hop oils vanish; at room temperature, the bitterness turns clumsy and flat. The fresher the beer, the more aroma it carries; an aged IPA often tastes of cardboard and honey.

Taprooms typically pour straight from the tap. A popular option is the flight, a tasting board of several small glasses that lets you work your way from lighter to bolder beers.