For this year’s fresh hop beer season, Double Mountain Brewery teamed up with nearby neighbor Solera Brewery to release Iowa Bar Fight, a fresh hop IPA brewed with fresh Strata hops from Crosby Hops. It was one of three bottled fresh hop selections from Double Mountain this year (another two were draft only), and the brewery sent me a bottle to review.

It’s 6.4% ABV with 60 IBUs, right in line with Double Mountain’s range of IPAs. Likely you can still find this on the shelves—it’s only November, after all, barely two months out from most of the (early) fresh hop releases—along with Killers Red and Green.

Appearance: Light gold with a bit of haze going on; dense white head.

Smell: Freshly-cut grass with aromas of melon, sweat, catty tomato plant, tobacco (fresh), maybe some green strawberry. There’s some citrusy peel notes and some lemon balm.

Taste: Bright, peppery spiciness that has a bit of resin along with a touch of fresh parsley for a moderate bitterness. Floral character that reminds me of fresh edible flowers; something like dandelion though not quite as intense. Clean and relatively light malts to buoy the hops. Solid.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied, slightly “minty” character in the fresh hop finish (menthol-like); good attenuation and drinkability.

Overall: It’s a tasty one and quite moreish, and a fine fresh hop ale.