Society & Solitude #5 - Hill Farmstead Brewery

jmarsh123

Indiana

4.63/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks Jason for the bottle!

Pours cloudy gold with a pillowy white head. As usual excellent retention and lacing.

Smells like fresh fruit juice. Loads of mango, pineapple and grapefruit.

Starts off with a little bitter floral flavor. Cracker malts in the middle before finishes with a huge grapefruit rind finish. Do yourself a favor and let this one warm up a bit. It's good cold out of the bottle, but the tropical fruit juices really come through more as it warms and the grapefruit is delectable tart.

Good light creamy mouthfeel with medium carbonation.

Fantastic beer. Perhaps liked S&S #4 a bit more, but this is still delicious. About the only nitpick I have, is it took the beer a bit of temperature to hit its sweet spot. Absolutely love the grapefruit presence.

Serving type: growler

11-10-2012 19:10:22 | More by jmarsh123

DrinkSlurm

Connecticut

4.5/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from tap at the 2012 Harvest Festival - twice. Pours a beautiful hazy straw color with nice head. Aromas are just amazing. Big citrus/grapefruit hops! Taste is deff full of the grapefruit, but sweet hops and malts really balance the bitterness. Its just so drinkable and bursting with flavors. One of the best Double IPA's out there. Have this brew if you can get your hands on it!

Serving type: on-tap

09-24-2012 19:11:58 | More by DrinkSlurm

WanderingFool

Massachusetts

4.33/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Tasted from a growler 24 hours after the 2012 Hill Farmstead Harvestfest.

Society and Solitude #5 pours a hazy straw yellow with a medium sized, creamy head on top. The foam is slow to dissolve leaving behind a coating of lace on the glass.

The aroma is loaded with pine, grapefruit and lemon citrus. A touch of bready pale malt is also present.

Each sip of this medium to full bodied beer is oily on the palate with a good firm carbonation. The flavor has lots of lemon and grapefruit citrus as well as some pine. There's some bubblegum sweetness and a touch of bready pale malt found in the background. The beer finishes dry and bitter and slightly tart. Once gone the lemon citrus lingers on the palate.

This is a very tasty beer that's loaded with hop flavor, but the aroma fades quickly.

Serving type: growler

09-30-2012 23:50:55 | More by WanderingFool

brystmar

New York

4.25/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to Mac & Justin for sharing!

This bright, straw-colored body is lighter in color than I remember from other HF DIPAs. Delicate lace and head form atop the liquid which, again, departs from the thicker, often aggressively stubborn foam shown by their other offerings.

Taste and aroma are similar. Initial dose of lemon zest has spring in its step, yet this succumbs to the hoppy base midway through the drink. Fresh hops take over, imparting a bitter quality that isn't overbearing or imbalanced, yet doesn't quite capture the magic of their previous DIPAs. More hop resin at the end for a unique finish.

A crisp, clean, tasty brew that's sure to please many, but I'm still an Abner man.

Serving type: growler

10-01-2012 18:29:00 | More by brystmar

Gosox8787

New Hampshire

4.98/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Presentation: 2L growler filled at the brewery and sampled a little later. Kept chilled since it was filled and poured into a pint glass.

Appearance: Very light in color, more yellow than orange, and pretty cloudy. Pours a really nice, three finger, pillowy white head with really solid retention.

Aroma: Huge pineapple, mango, grapefruit and other tropical fruit notes from the hops pack a pretty aggressive punch upfront. A really hoppy, agressive nose. Lots of tropical hop aromas without much bitterness. LIght malt backbone is barely noticable and really allows the hops to shine.

Taste: Big, sweet topical fruit notes of pineapple and mango upfront. Extremely juicy and fruity. Some citrus zest, particularly orange and tangerine, play nicely off some grapefruit and just a bit of hop bitterness. Slightly bitter, dry finish.

Mouthfeel: Light bodied and nicely carbonated. Incredibly refreshing and easy to drink.

Overall, this is probably my favorite HF IPA. I had this side by side with Abner and I slightly preferred this. Incredibly juicy and fruity, with a great tropical hop profile. Refreshing, balanced and extremely tasty. I think this might be the single best IPA I've ever had.

Serving type: growler

11-24-2012 23:47:22 | More by Gosox8787

tewaris

Minnesota

3.68/5  rDev -19.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Growler sent kindly by millerbuffoon, thanks a lot!

Hazy amber colored, very typical of HF. Medium head, good lacing. Tropical fruit heavy aroma, lots of pineapple and possibly malty sweetness. Light and hoppy taste with a finishing bitterness and a dominant fruity note. Crisp and dry feel. Overall it's not bad but nothing's great about it either.

3, 3, 3, 4, 3
---
Took it's time getting warmed up and what not, glad I had a growler full. Bumping the scores up to 4, 4, 3.5, 4, 3.5

Serving type: bottle

10-06-2012 03:44:43 | More by tewaris

davey101

Connecticut

4.85/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks a ton Joe for the HF hook up! Pour from a 750ml growler into a tulip glass. This was filled October 2nd, 2012.

A - Pours a very cloudy and light yellow body. Never seen a DIPA so light, it almost looks like a murky berliner weisse or something. Massive white head forms with just an unreal amount of sticky lacing and retention. Looks perfect.

S - Mango and grapefruit juice. The smell is just so oily and juicy with a touch of dankness on the very end. One of the best hop aromas I have ever smelled. I typically lean towards grapefruit and tropical notes over the dank/resinous/piney beers so this is just right up my alley.

T - Bitter grapefruit and mango juice. Like drinking a glass of oily and super fresh citrus juice. The taste is just so perfect. Bitterness is intense but never overwhelming and the juicy citrus finishes dry and pleasantly. Again, perfect.

M - Medium bodied with light and prickly carbonation. Highly drinkable.

O - Heady? This just replaced that beer as my favorite DIPA. This is just too stupidly perfect. I could drink this every day and never lust after another beer.

Serving type: growler

11-04-2012 01:56:14 | More by davey101

jaasen64

Massachusetts

4.38/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

750ml growler filled at Hill Farmstead earlier today. Poured into HF stemmed glass.

A- Pours a hazy slightly orange yellow with about a finger's worth of foamy head that recedes fairly fast and leaves some foamy layered lacing. Decent carbonation.

S- Grapefruit (when they said think Grapefruit they weren't kidding), orange peel, light lemon zest. Nicely balanced, nice aroma strength, and definitely pleasant.

T- Grapefruit, orange peel, light lemon zest. Nicely balanced fruity taste that lingers and finishes without much bitterness.

M- Medium bodied, nice carbonation, very smooth, abv pretty much non existent. Pretty much perfect feel for an IPA.

O- This was a very nice IPA that easily stands up to the SS4 that preceded this. Nice grapefruit presence with a light zest and pretty much nonexistent bitterness. I think this came out pretty much exactly how they wanted it to come out. My only major complaint is that it should be made year round.

Serving type: growler

10-29-2012 02:00:32 | More by jaasen64

lovindahops

New York

4.53/5  rDev -0.4%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Decided to crack open a 2 liter growler of society of solitude 5 that I picked from hill farmstead at the 2012 harvest fest. I really enjoyed trying this brew at the festival so my mouth is watering to tap into this growler

A- society and solitude pours a hazy tangerine orange body with a soapy white head of foam that laces the edges with marshmallow webbing. Very exuberant and glowing in my hill farmstead stemware.

S- Ridiculous grapefruit blast that embodies the description of tropical oasis. Sweet and citric catapult of literal grapefruit bombs blasting the scent profile. S&S5 pushes your nostrils off a tropical island of a citric oasis

T- A sweet and sour compilation of the aforementioned tropical flavor. A bitter mouth cringing grapefruit flavor attaches itself to the palate while a sugary spectacle of flavor lingers on. There is a caramel flavor that is at the exit with flavor that suggests some piney resinous flavor contributing and therefore balancing the hoppy grapefruit too

M- carbonated and prickly deliciousness that flows all over the palate

O- The best way to summarize society and solitude 5 is to summarize it as a tropical grapefruit neutron bomb. Very enlightening and tropical brew that explodes and graffitees your palate with bitter sweet flavor. Again, here is Shaun Hill demonstrating that DIPA's can embody many different properties. Way to go Hill Farmstead!

Serving type: growler

09-30-2012 00:09:52 | More by lovindahops

cfrances33

Illinois

5/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Growler thanks to juliusseizure. Filled 9/22/12, enjoyed 9/26/12. Poured into a Hill Farmstead tulip.

Pour: Completely hazy yellow-orange with a finger and a half of white soapy head. Head eventually recedes to film, and leaves solid lacing. Shaun Hill described this as "think grapefruit" - well this looks just like grapefruit juice.

Smell: Tangerine, mango, pineapple, and grapefruit explode from the glass. Malt? What malt. This beer is carbonated juice. This smelled perfect.

Taste: Tangerine and grapefruit BOMB. This beer is so juicy and fantastic. The citrus that bursts in your mouth every sip is incredible. A nice sweetness, but no substantial malt presence. I'm perfect with that.

Mouthfeel: This is so drinkable. Velvety carbonation, but the highlight of this beer is how the juiciness of the taste translates to the mouthfeel. Perfect again.

Overall: I can unequivocally say this is the best beer I've ever had. Nothing has even come close, and I truly mean that. I want to edit my other reviews to show how much this beer stands head and shoulders above the rest, even Abner, Double Citra, and Ephraim. Thank you Shaun Hill.

Serving type: growler

09-26-2012 20:59:28 | More by cfrances33

Gushue3

Massachusetts

4.43/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured into Jack's Abby pint

A Pours a hazy light orange color with a pretty large white head. Lots of sticky lacing left all the way down the glass and lots of lively carbonation. Typical Hill Farmstead looking beer...

S Citrus bomb. Grapefruit, tangerine, orange and a light malt hiding out in the back.

T Follows the nose perfectly. Medium to lighter bitterness with lots of sweet grapefruit and tangerine. Sweetens up in the middle and rides out to a juicy finish. I'm always looking for the bitterness in IPAs and DIPAs but the citrus in this is crazy. and does NOT drink almost 8%.

M Medium feel with a medium amount of carbonation on the tongue. The finish is somewhere between dry and sticky.

O This beer was pretty unreal. It tastes like goddamn fruit juice with a small bitterness. These S&S's dont deviate from the awesome line. Thanks HF guys for having another top notch fest and making ridiculous beers.

Serving type: growler

09-25-2012 00:00:54 | More by Gushue3

starrdogg

District of Columbia

4.58/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Huge thanks to Prost76 for this one. Reviewed from notes from election night.

Beer pours a hazy orange-yellow with a thin white head. It looks like most of the other HF DIPAs, which is to say "perfect." I rarely care about the appearance of beers, but something about the site HF's hoppy beers is just so appealing and citrusy looking. Like most HF hoppy beers, this one has an incredible citrus aroma that just hits you in the face. Flavor follows the nose, and this one is just incredibly juicy. It's a wonderful balance of sweetness, hoppy and citrus fruit here that all comes together perfectly. The fruitiness of it is really what makes this one a standout. Mouthfeel is medium-bodied with nice carbonation. Overall, another home run from Hill Farmstead. This is one of my favorite hoppy beers from them. It's maybe not quite on the level of Abner and Ephraim, but certainly right in there with S&S4 and Double Galaxy. Just awesome.

Serving type: growler

11-23-2012 05:48:26 | More by starrdogg

Luk13

Quebec (Canada)

4/5  rDev -12.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap. Very hazy gold pour, almost white, white head. Aroma is really quite fruity and pungent, lots of grapefruit, the hops are wet and sticky. Taste is fruity, not particularly bitter, very grapefruity - bitter and citrusy tart at once. Alcohol is not perceptible. Palate is lightly-med carbed with med body. Not my favourite from HF but definitly very good

Serving type: on-tap

10-14-2012 00:40:06 | More by Luk13

dubinsky

California

4.5/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Special thanks for Nick (ilovevermont) for the hook up with this beer. Chilled 750ml growler poured into a C&B snifter/tulip.

A - Pours a super hazy and is clearly unfiltered. Reminds me of a Wit beer the way it pours. The pour yielded a frothy, white head that quickly dissipated leaving behind some nice lace.

S - Holy Citrus Batman. Huge grapefruit and orange aromas. Pineapple and pale malt lend a biscuity sweetness to even out the aroma profile

T - Another awesome tasting beer from HF. Damn these guys! Huge citrus flavors dominated by grapefruit and some tart orange juice. I’m having a hard time picking out any other flavors given how citrusy this beer is. There are slight hints of sweetness in the middle, but it finishes off as tart as it starts.

M - Although this was bottled probably a week ago, it arrived super fresh and very well carbonated. I would almost say it was mildly over carbonated for the style. The mouth feel was fairly thick and slick, almost creamy. The mouth feel of this beer is a complete opposite to what i was expecting at such a low ABV beer. Starts and finishes dry.

O - Damn, these guys at HF sure know how to brew beer. I'm used to all the usual Northern California offerings and am blown away by the beers i have tasted from this brewery. I found this to be the most drinkable, almost sessioanable IPA i have ever had. I prefer their more potent Abner but would easily say this is the second best IPA i have had from them.

Serving type: growler

11-13-2012 04:16:56 | More by dubinsky

Pinknuggets

Vermont

4.58/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Growler to worthy sniffer

A:golden yellow honey color with bright white heavy head totally opaque

S: when it is first poured it smells like a tropical hop paradise this pungency fades a little but it remains

T: first of all it tastes mainly as described like grapefruit so tip if the cap to Sean there. It is tart and juicy with lots of hop bitterness in the finish but it tastes like a just ate a grapefruit with that harsh tart sour aftertaste that lasts for awhile

M: smooth and somewhat oily with a light amount of carbonation that compliments the bitterness well.

O: I really like this both as an ipa and because it tastes like grapefruit plus it smells amazing its a great beer if you can get a hold of it hill farmstead does it again I'm convinced they brew nothing but greatness

Serving type: growler

12-12-2012 02:36:22 | More by Pinknuggets

stonermouse

Massachusetts

4.73/5  rDev +4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

On tap at HF, and then out of a growler the next day. Pour into a sample glass and into a standard pint.

Pours a fantastic, hazy yellow. Foamy, thin white head and great lacing. The head is dense, and looks like meringue, which foreshadows the lemony, grapefruit deliciousness to come.

The aroma is sweet, yet has a bit of a sharp pine bite to it. It's a bit mild, but does have just a slight booze presence as well.

The taste, however, has no booze whatsoever. This beer is just spectacular. It's lemon/pineapple/grapfruit profile truly mimics a holiday dessert, but the bitter finish reminds you that it's an potent IPA that you are consuming instead. There's just a touch of sweetness to bring out the flavors, but it's mostly a bitter bomb of pure citrus. The citrus combo is as clean as it is potent, however, and isn't harsh at all. Even the lingering bitterness just disappears from your palate, leaving you thirsting for more.

I tried my damndest to find a fault with this brew, but there really are none. It is dangerously drinkable, unbelievably quenching, and I would highly recommend sharing a growler with a few friends. It goes down quickly and easily.

Serving type: on-tap

10-31-2012 03:30:06 | More by stonermouse

s1ckboy

Massachusetts

4.3/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A - Hazy orange/yellow body, fluffy white head.

S - Citrus & pineapple. Juicy.

T - Pineapple, lemon, orange, a bit piney. Dry finish.

M - Medium body, mid to low carb.

Good stuff. One of the better IPA's I've had from Hill Farmstead. Bonus characters!

Serving type: growler

11-16-2012 00:18:46 | More by s1ckboy

nrs207

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A - Light golden yellow with a finger of a white head. Leaves decent lacing. Nice and hazy.

S - Grapefruit bomb. Sweet and bitter grapefruit pours out of this beer. There's really not too much else to note. If you like grapefruit forward IPAs, this is 100% for you.

T - Follows the nose quite well. Starts out with a nice sweet, juicy grapefruit flavor. Finish is dry and bitter grapefruit.

M - Really smooth, no alcohol. Medium bodied. The bitterness really builds as you drink it.

O - Another fantastic brew from Shaun. Big surprise, right? Not my favorite IPA, but for what they were going for, it's really excellent.

Serving type: growler

09-27-2012 00:04:09 | More by nrs207

thebigredone

Wisconsin

4.25/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Thanks to Jon for hooking me up with this.

Poured from a growler to a New Belgium snifter. Small white head, extremely hazy golden color. Basically opaque, cannot see through this beer at all.

The smell is where this beer shines. Grapfruity, citrus, pine, I love the nose on this. Best smell ever.

Taste follows the grapefruity smell. Bitter grapefruit, a msall amount of malt, a bit of pine and cirus on the finish. Mouthfeel is great.

Overall, this is an excellent DIPA. I am extremely happy I got to try it!

Serving type: growler

11-11-2012 00:03:28 | More by thebigredone

Number45forever

Vermont

4.98/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

This is my favorite beer of all time.

I was lucky enough to have it on draft a few times, and had a few different growlers of it as well.

Appearance: Like most HF IPAs, it glows orangey-yellow with a fluffy white head. Glorious.

Smell: Woah. Grapefruit, flowers, springtime, sweetness, CITRUS, lemons, oranges, clementines. All that is good and holy in this world. Zero bitterness, just magical.

Taste: See above, only better. This would get a 6.0 taste if you ask me. Explosion of grapefruity hops. Wave and wave. Dry finish...leaves you wanting more. Just superb. Citrus, freshness, perfection.

Mouthfeel: sublime. Fluffy, creamy, yet sharp and dry. Love.

Overall: I can't imagine how hoppy beers could be better than this. It's separated itself from an already crowded of pack of AMAZING Vermont IPAs. Awesome stuff.

I will be waiting patiently for this to be brewed again. If I could have one beer for the rest of my life, this is it. Moreso than Rare Bourbon County, any Cantillon, Heady Topper, whatever. Tried a ton of em, this is No. 1.

Serving type: growler

12-18-2012 19:33:35 | More by Number45forever

AnnArborJoe

Michigan

4.95/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Thanks to baconsausage for the Hill Farmstead box. My first HF beer! 750mL swingtop growler poured into my new HF stemware.

A: Cloudy golden with beautiful white head and tons of lacing. I wouldn't have guessed this was a DIPA by the looks.

S: Grapefruit, pineapple, citrus wonderfulness. I'm going to switch glasses after this one is empty so I can smell the empty glass after a bit. I have a feeling the residual beer will be fantastic for quite a while. One of the best smelling beers I've experienced.

T: Not a ton of bitterness, very dry and leaves you wanting more. Very low level of malt but not lacking. No alcohol presence. Tons of citrus, mainly grapefruit with a little lemon/orange/tangerine. Tastes more like an IPA in my opinion but is super delicious.

M: Light and creamy - perfect level of carbonation even after the shipping.

O: Fantastic beer. I could drink this forever. One of the top IPA/DIPAs I've ever had. Hard to compare to Heady/PtE because it seems more like an IPA but I can't get over how fantastic this beer is. The HF hype seems to be well deserved.

Serving type: growler

11-26-2012 22:02:55 | More by AnnArborJoe