Society & Solitude #2 - Hill Farmstead Brewery

corby112

Pennsylvania

4.28/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Draft at The Boilermaker in Philadelphia, PA.

Pours pitch black and completely opaque with a half finger light beige head that quickly settles into a lasting ring.  Spotty lacing left behind.

Sweet and roasted malt aroma with some piney, grassy notes.  Malts dominate he nose but hops shine as it warns with subtle citrus, dank buds, pine needle and grass. Roasted dark malt character with hints of chocolate, oatmeal, toffee and coffee bean.

Medium bodied with an explosion of dank, piney hops that linger over the sweet and roasted malt notes into a dry finish.  Finally a black ipa that's hoppy enough.  Dry, dank and bitter with subtle citrus sweetness cutting through.  Underneath, there is some roasted dark malt for balance with sweet and dark chocolate, oatmeal, caramel and toffee.  Really nice beer.

Serving type: on-tap

08-27-2012 00:29:45 | More by corby112

Luk13

Quebec (Canada)

4.6/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

750 growler, drank one week after purchase and on tap at the Ann release. Appearance: Beautiful black pour with thick moka head. Aroma is roasted grain, coffee, chocolate, burnt toast but also incredibly hoppy and resinous. So resinous, it smells like weed. Taste: Lots of coffee and dark malts and also very hoppy and resinous. Full bodied and lively carbonation. Didn’t suffer at all from the wait unlike Double Galaxy. I’m not a big fan of Black IPAs but I absolutely loved this.

Serving type: growler

08-06-2012 02:53:10 | More by Luk13

Huhzubendah

District of Columbia

4.5/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

On draft at Hill Farmstead today.

The beer is near black with a thick, brown head. The aroma offers the best balance of pine and roast I have yet encountered in a beer of this ilk. The flavor is fabulous. A beautiful marriage of pine and roast. Additional notes of chocolate and citrus. Lovely malt body. Medium bodied and easy to drink too quickly. Alcohol content gracefully hidden. Typically not my favorite style, hut this one delivered. Another terrific beer from Shaun and Hill Farmstead.

Serving type: on-tap

07-14-2012 19:31:37 | More by Huhzubendah

onix1agr

Pennsylvania

4.05/5  rDev -7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

On Tap at Teresa's Next Door.

In the Tulip, Solitude two looks very black, An American Black Ale actually, whatever that is? Im not the biggest fan of the style, I don't see it's purpose, if I wanted a high ABV hoppy porter, i would get one.

Either way this one is black with a nice amount of firm dark tan head gracing the top and leaving some notches on the way down. The nose smells great, rich and fresh with big pine bursting, nice grapefruit notes with some florals poking out with warming. A nice roast lingers in the background, where it's usually the other way around. Society two tastes like it should, hoppy, malty, roasty and flavorful with a nearing ten percent ABV. A nice mix of pine with some grapefruit and other light tropics. The maltiness increases as the temp does so cold is the way to go, if your looking for the hops. Hits of roast with light tootsie roll and cocco. Feel is a strong medium with a big bitter hit followed by some soothing malt. It's big beer, I am not going to lie. A lot going on at once. If you close your eyes, you would think this is an DIPA up front, but that black ale portion comes through just as quick and turns the table. A glass will do for me.

Serving type: on-tap

06-12-2012 03:50:05 | More by onix1agr

Tucquan

Pennsylvania

4.13/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Had this on 2012-06-09 in Wayne, PA at Teresa's Next Door during Philly Beer Week.

A - Opaque black with a 1-finger tan head and good lacing.

S - Mild aroma with citrus and chocolate.

T - Dark chocolate, black pepper, dark roasted grain, mild sourness, plenty of hop bitterness. Well-balanced.

M - Medium body and carbonation. Mildly creamy.

O - Not my favorite style but I enjoyed this one,

Serving type: on-tap

06-10-2012 17:29:30 | More by Tucquan

ehammond1

California

4.4/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Growler

Acquired via trade
Thanks, AdamJackson!

Very dark brown, nearly black, in color with a small dark brown head that doesn't last for too long. This does, however, leave the glass completely messy with thick ribbons of lined lacing. Very pretty black IPA.

Though this beer really is exceptional, the aroma is (only) very good. There's good pine and citrus character, butting up against roast and mild coffee. I like it, though I have smelled (slightly) better.

The flavor is wonderfully balanced, though fully delicious. There's lots of pine hop flavor along roasty black malt. There's a little bit of chocolate and coffee as well, but the pine is dominant, and I like it--a lot! Awesome stuff!

Medium bodied with moderate to high carbonation. No alcohol presence whatsoever.

Simply sublime.

Thanks again, Adam. I'm all out of Hill Farmstead. Can I have some more, please?

Serving type: growler

05-29-2012 00:13:41 | More by ehammond1

jegross2

Illinois

4.13/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Reviewing the Solitude & Society #2 from the Hill Farmstead Brewery.
Score: 92

Three week old 750 ml growler served in a Half Acre tulip and enjoyed on 04/09/12. Review is from notes.

Appearance: Pours a pitch black, essentially opaque, color with two fingers of foamy tan head that settles to a ring around the glass and foggy cap. Amazing lacing and retention. 4.5/5

Smell: Roasted chocolate, lemon zest, grapefruit, orange rind and pine sap. There is a light amount of oak as well behind the juicy tropical citrus aromas. 4.5/5

Taste: Roasted chocolate malt, zesty tropical citrus and extra sticky and resiny pine sap. There is a heavy and lingering hops bitterness present. The finish is a little chocolate-y. Loads of hops to boot, with a growingly bitter finish as the beer layers on the tongue. 4/5

Mouthfeel: Medium-plus bodied with carbonation on the higher end of medium. Oily mouthfeel. Dry and bitter finish. 4/5

Overall: One of the better black IPA on the market.

Recommendation: Fans of black IPA should seek this one out. Haters of black IPA should seek a bottle of this out too, if only to demonstrate that the style has it's highlights.

Pairings: Hamburgers.

Cost: $10 for a 750 ml growler or $18 for a 2 liter growler (plus the deposit).

Serving type: growler

05-28-2012 21:22:31 | More by jegross2

vonnegut21

New York

4.15/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a delightful dark deep black with a finger and a half of brown-white head. It smells intensely of roasted malt with a healthy dose of hops. The hop presence is more floral and less fruity than other HF brews. The first sip is quite good, the richness of the malt doesn't overpower the hops as is the case with many black IPA's/American Black Ales. For an almost 10% beer, it goes down easy. Overall, a very nice brew. Second in my mind only to Stone's Escondidian Black IPA in the style.

Serving type: growler

05-09-2012 02:12:11 | More by vonnegut21

raveskdr

District of Columbia

4.6/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Was lucky enough to get a growler of this when Starrdogg and I were up at HF. Poured out of the 750ml swing top growler into my HF high tulip.

A - Nice black color with great carbonation. The head is a brownish white. Nice lacing.

S - Great mixture of tropical fruits, slight pine and roastiness.

T - Starts out with the prototypical amazing HF hop combination. Rounds out on the end with a good amount of roastiness. It finishes with a combo of roast and hops that lingers on your tongue.

M - The hops and roast really interact well to make this a really drinkable beer. A bit lighter than the other imperial black IPA's that I have had.

O - A stellar beer. I am confident in saying that this is the best black IPA I have ever had. Another beautiful beer by Shaun.

Serving type: growler

05-04-2012 14:26:42 | More by raveskdr

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.78/5  rDev -13.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Their self-capping bottle, re: half a growler. Very floral.A big roast, and also big citrus hops. The two are too much. Less hop kick may have been better and improved drinkability. Looks great at black body.Fuller mouthfeel.Suitable carbonation.Some burnt bits.

Serving type: bottle

05-04-2012 00:01:56 | More by northyorksammy

largadeer

California

4.03/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Growler from gn0sis. Thanks.

Appearance: Black as pitch, and surprisingly viscous. A dark tan head retains well.

Smell: Citrus and char, orange and chocolate. Resinous, pine-like hop notes pop out as it warms up. Hints of lime.

Palate: Chocolate covered oranges. Pine, bitter herbs, a touch of burnt malt. Pretty thick body - drinks more like a hoppy stout than a DIPA. Resinous, bitter finish with an additional kick from roasted malts.

Overall: Not what I was expecting, but really enjoyable. Something of an imperial stout/DIPA hybrid.

Serving type: growler

05-03-2012 22:36:16 | More by largadeer

WanderingFool

Massachusetts

4.4/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A couple friends of mine brought some of my growlers to Hill Farmstead on a recent trip. This beer was reviewed less than a week after being poured.

Society & Solitude #2 pours black into the glass with a medium sized, light brown head on top. The foam fades quickly leaving lots of spots of lace on the glass.

The aroma is loaded with hops. Mainly grass and pine. Some rich malt notes of chocolate and roast are also present.

Each sip of this medium to full bodied beer is soft and smooth with a mild carbonated fizz on the tongue. The flavor is hoppy with a rich malt back bone. Pine and grass with a touch of orange citrus are balanced nicely with chocolate malt, roast and an earthy nuttiness. It finishes bitter with lingering grass and pine notes when gone.

This is a beer packed with flavor. Mostly hops, but enough malt to make this an easy drinking beer. A great black IPA that I wish was easier to obtain.

Serving type: growler

04-28-2012 01:09:24 | More by WanderingFool

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

4.18/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

First had: on tap at Hill Farmstead, Greensboro, VT

Dark brown pour with a rocky off-white head that receded to a wispy layer of bubbles. Aroma thick with resin and hops, roasty malts and cocoa also detectable. Taste followed the aroma well, with the piney and citrusy hop profile typical of the style, in a great balance with dark chocolaty malts, caramel, charred wood. One of the better balanced CDAs I've had. Oily mouthfeel, can be a bit astringent and bitter in the aftertaste, but nothing too overbearing...a palate-wrecker for sure though, so make sure you do this either at the end of a session, or followed by a good water-cleansing.

Serving type: on-tap

04-24-2012 02:45:15 | More by Rifugium

ngeunit1

California

4.75/5  rDev +8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

A - Pours a dark black color with just a hint of brown and a finger of frothy chocolate colored head. The head fades down fairly slowly leaving behind some nice lace.

S - Aroma is full of pine hops and roasted chocolate malts. There is also some citrus hop alongside some lightly burnt malts.

T - Starts off with some pine hops with some deep roasted dark chocolate malts with some light bitterness. Through the middle, some more chocolate malt flavor comes through alongside some citrus hops and a touch more bitterness. The finish is a mix of chocolate malt, citrus and pine hop, some bitterness, and a touch burnt malt character.

M - Medium-full bodied with moderate carbonation. Smooth with a dry, roasted, and bitter finish.

D - Very drinkable. The mix of roasted chocolate malts and hop flavors is incredible in this one. The balance here is just perfect.

Serving type: growler

04-15-2012 05:38:05 | More by ngeunit1

Verecund

North Carolina

4.45/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

750ml growler opened on April 13, 2012.

“We pray to be conventional. But the wary Heaven takes care you shall not be, if there is anything good in you.”

Pours seal brown, with a half finger of tan head, the bubbles of which sluggishly banish themselves to one side of the glass.

An artful nose of citrus, grapefruit, sweet melon, and an indescribable mulchy earthiness. More piney and cedary on the palate—as with James/Jim, I get some Tsuga-in-the-winter evergreen, presumably from the simcoe. Peppercorn dark chocolate malt backdrop. The hop oils give the illusion of sweetness on the late palate, but it ends with a bitter and spicy kick on the finish.

Creamy, a touch oily, with medium, medium-low carbonation.

Another beer from Shaun that asks us to reflect on its art, and the source of our pleasure. I'm not sure you could ask more from a Black IPA.

Serving type: growler

04-14-2012 03:12:01 | More by Verecund

coreyfmcdonald

Georgia

4.45/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Growler pour into a tall tulip glass

A: Pours pitch black with three fingers of dense tan head.

S: Piney hops are most prevalent in the beer with a faint dark chocolate and roastiness in the background. Hops really dominate, but I can tell there is some nice roast and dark chocolate in the background.

T: An interesting mixture of intensely piney hoppiness, dark chocolate, and roasted malts. I get light caramel sweetness in the background that builds as the beer warms. The hoppiness also takes a back seat to the dark chocolate as it warms. They end up balancing each other very well.

M: Medium to thick body with creamy carbonation.

O: This is an odd beer that balances stout-like roastiness and dark chocolate with lots of piney hoppiness. Very nice. Hard to describe as it's not just a stout that is very hoppy, it's got a great balance between some stout-like characteristics while still keeping the beer very drinkable.

Serving type: growler

04-14-2012 01:06:05 | More by coreyfmcdonald

wchollif

North Carolina

4.2/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 750ml growler thanks to my buddy KingKong.

A generous pour into a snifter generated a finger of mocha colored head. The beer was a very dark brown, reminiscent of a heavy porter. The smell is where this beer lives. Smells like the best DIPA you've ever put your nose to. Not sure of the hop variety, but there's a bunch of it. Close your eyes and remember the most outstanding citrus fruit dry hopped DIPA you've ever had. The mouthfeel is smooth and well textured, not heavy like the color suggests, but more silky than the standard IPA. Flavor is crossed between nuts, toffee, pine and malts. Finishes as bitter as a big IPA should. I'm not a hop-head or a DIPA apologist, but this beer rocks. This beer is 9.5% ABV? Drank the 750, no problem.

Serving type: growler

04-13-2012 16:05:37 | More by wchollif

tewaris

Minnesota

4.15/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

750 ml growler. Poured into a snifter.

I stuck my nose into the growler, as much as a 750 ml growler would permit, and I was instantly reminded of mangoes. Good news. Some guava too, but mangoes ruled the aroma. Poured a dark brown color with good clarity and a medium sized brown head. Not much by the way of retention or lacing, but I didn't mind.

Fruity and lush hops, mangoes as remarked, some pine too. Then once in a while, it starts to smell like a regular stout, almost, with roast making its presence felt. Taste is sweet with residual malts and juicy with hops. Roast appears only at the end. Mouthfeel seems to be a very strong suite of Hill Farmstead beers. Creamy and smooth, this one (also) goes down damn easy.

Overall a great job with what I consider to be a ho hum style. Kudos!

4, 4.5, 4, 4.5, 4

Serving type: growler

04-12-2012 05:54:42 | More by tewaris

spinrsx

Ontario (Canada)

4.43/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Growler - Thanks to lubiere for this

Appearance - Dark brown/black colour with a large size frothy beige coloured head. There is a low amount of carbonation showing and there is some fantastic lacing. The head lasted for over 5 minutes before it was gone.

Smell - Malts, hops, chocolate, coffee, grapefruit/oranges

Taste & Mouth - There is an average amount of carbonation and I can taste lots of fresh hops mixed with some citrus notes and some chocolate and coffee. There is also some malts and a touch of pine. It ends with a bitter hop and sweet malt aftertaste.

Overall - Whoa.. one of the best beers I've ever had. The hops are very potent and the beer basically smells like a DIPA. I'd be more than happy if I could drink a beer like this for the rest of my life. Worth seeking out.

Serving type: growler

04-05-2012 02:25:38 | More by spinrsx

05Harley

New Hampshire

4.6/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Fresh (Feb/2012) from the keg @ Hill Farmstead Brewery, Greensboro VT
(285 calories)

Price - $10/750ml growler

The second batch of this beer brewed with buckets full (literally) of Simcoe and Columbus hops, in the kettle and, as dry hops, in the fermenter.

The appearance is a near black pour with a tan creamy dense head that fades quickly to a thin silky veil. Lines of lacing add to the artistic look. Legs, lots of legs like at the beach.

Smells like an IPA. So much so if I had a blind fold on and was asked to guess the color, I wouldn't guess black. Strong nose of grapefruit and pine (thanks to the simcoe hops). As it warms a more pronounced roastiness is detected from the malt but doesn't overtake the hop aroma.

A delicious tasting beer with flavors of grapefruit, pine, roasted malt and an underlying taste of unsweetened coffee. A complex and truely amazing balance between hop and malt flavor, nice...

Mouthfeel is silky smooth on the tongue at first with some carbonation afterburn followed by spices. The body is medium and has a sticky dry feel in the finish that works well here.

Overall I could live exclusively on Shaun's beers. With his many successful varying styles let's add this one to the ever growing list. Brewed once but should be a regular in the lineup it's that good. Way to drinkable @ 9.5% (no booziness taste at all) which puts this in my dangerous category. Oh yeah!!

Serving type: growler

03-22-2012 22:42:35 | More by 05Harley

orangesol

Pennsylvania

4.48/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Served on-tap at Shady McGrady's on St. Patty's day during the charity brunch.

A - Pours deep dark brown, bordering on black, with a nice one finger tall khaki colored head leaving small rings of lace down the glass.

S - Smells of dark roasted malt, fresh cut pine, chocolate, citric hops and a light herbal quality. Good balance of aromas from start to finish.

T - Starts off with a big dose of dark roasted malt and some dulled chocolaty sweetness slowly giving way to a mix of pungent citric hops and some fresh pine needles. Finish is a mix of dark roast and hop bitterness, lingering on the pallet long after consumption.

M - Smooth body and strong flavors with moderate carbonation. Lots of roast and hop bitterness throughout. The balance of dark flavors to hops is very well done, unlike some of the other examples of this style I have tried.

O - I don't really like the style but this is probably the best black ale I have ever had. The huge amount of hops really held up well with all that darkness surrounding it. Awesome stuff yet again from HF.

Serving type: on-tap

03-20-2012 04:30:50 | More by orangesol

yourefragile

District of Columbia

4.6/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Imperial James you say? Yes, please. 750 mL growler muled by starrdog and raveskdr.

Pours a dark mocha brown, near black with a thick, dense dark tan head. Long lasting retention and thick sheets of lace. Deep, complex aroma of roast malt, caramel, dark fruit and pine hops. Minimal traces of alcohol and great balance. Smooth, medium thick body with light carbonation and a sweet, sticky finish. Strong roast malt presence with some dark chocolate sweetness balanced by a strong pine and resin hop presence. Delicous. So, I normally don't like Black IPAs, but... I liked this. Thanks to me for opening this.

Serving type: growler

03-09-2012 02:08:12 | More by yourefragile

n2185

North Carolina

4.48/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: pours black witb two fingers of light tan head that fades into a thin layer with good lacing.

S: loads and loads of grapefruit and grassy hop aromas. There are some more subtle roasted malt and pine aromas. Smells amazing.

T: again, lots of grassy and earthy hop characters. They are more balanced in the flavor with dark chocolate and roasted malt charactersistics. It also tastes a bit like marijuana. The finish is moderately bitter, but not too much so. Very tasty.

M: medium-thick body with medium carbonation, this beer is smooth and a little creamy, which works well with the flavor profile.

O: a great beer with lots of wonderful hop notes. The roasted malt characters could be more present, but the hop flavors and aromas are so great that it makes up for it.

Serving type: growler

03-01-2012 01:18:39 | More by n2185

drabmuh

Maryland

4.43/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Growler shared by yourefragile because he doesn't go anywhere without a box of Hill Farmstead beer with him. Served in a snifter because I couldn't locate my HF glass.

Beer is black with a thin tan head, small bubbles, low retention, low carbonation.

Aroma is nice, mildly dark but mostly piny hoppiness with hints of fruits.

Beer is medium to light in body, a good beer overall I thoroughly enjoy it. It has a moderate but smooth bitterness to it on the backend, a good beer, one of my favorite black ales for sure. I"d have this again.

Serving type: growler

02-29-2012 15:40:45 | More by drabmuh

Sean9689

Illinois

4.58/5  rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

750ml growler into Darkness tulip.

A - Pours darker brown/nearly black color, cream-colored head, thin collar, wisps on top.

S - An excellent mix of hoppy bitterness and malty roast. The hops hit you first in the form of pine and citrus, and then that's followed up by a nice dose of roasted malty sweetness. Mostly a hop-focused nose, but there's still a nice mix of both.

T - The roasted malty sweetness shows up a little bit more on the nose, but the piney hops are very much still there. There's also some dark chocolate and citrus that's really outstanding throughout. An excellent mix of hops and malts.

M - Medium to full body, good light carbonation, creamy finish.

O - I was really impressed by this one. I don't think I've ever had an Imperial Black IPA that this kind of notes and flavors mixed together. There's no harsh char from the malts and it's not overly hopped...it's exactly what I would want from this type of beer. Simply a must-try.

Serving type: growler

02-28-2012 19:00:42 | More by Sean9689