Beer Radar for Friday 30th March 2012
By John Krüger
Cascade First Harvest
Only a few weeks ago the fresh hops were picked at Bushy Park Estates in Tasmania for the 2012 Cascade First Harvest ale. Three experimental hops will be used this year; Campania for bittering, Triabunna for flavour and Ellandale for aroma. The hop names all come from historical hop growing areas of Tassie. First Harvest ale is all about using green fresh hops for maximum aroma and taste. They exhibit a resiny grassy herbaceous character rather than papery oxidised notes. Head Brewer at Cascade, Mike Unsworth said “Based on this year’s hop selection and the traditional style of First Harvest, we anticipate the 2012 brew to exhibit aromas and flavours of peeled fruits and blackberries over nettles, green leaves and ground spices. The finish should deliver a resinous bitterness which should blend in with the malt base to give a well-balanced hoppy beer.” Here at Beer Radar we’re looking forward to trying the new 2012 batch for ourselves in May when it’s released. We’ll keep you posted on our thoughts.
*Cascade has supplied a few bottles of First Harvest
