Tuesday Night Tasting - Mayflower Brewing Co: Spring Hop Ale

Mayflower Brewing Co. – Plymouth, MA
Seasonal Spring Hop Ale
5.2% ABV, 37 IBU, 12 oz
Also available on draft

This is the newest release by Mayflower Brewing Co, who seems to be churning out some great seasonal offerings. They recently put out an Imperial Stout, which was aged in Buffalo Trace bourbon barrels. Some how I still haven’t had the Stout, which is extremely weird considering I have three bottles at home. Anyway, the Hop Ale is their Spring Seasonal and makes me anxious for green grass, baseball, and playoff hockey.



To begin, the color on this beer is a rich, dark ruby hue. It features a soft off-white, tannish head that lingers for a little while. The beer, has some good clarity, aided by the filtering process, and is brilliantly carbonated.

The Spring Hop Ale’s aroma is the dominant quality of this beer by far! It is incredibly fragrant, which helps this beer stand out. It is brewed with five hops in all, with Nugget being the main hop. It is also dry hopped with Citra, Cascade, Centennial, and Sorachi hops, which help give this beer its notable scent. It’s piney, floral, and citrusy…just really pleasant!

In addition to being incredibly aromatic, the beer has a great flavor too! It has a mild to semi-bold malty body with a sweet and dry finish. The Hop Ale has a nice and notable hop flavor, with a nice bitterness that is blended and balanced within the malted body.

The mouth feel on this Spring Seasonal is moderate. It has a nice and slightly sweet aftertaste that will make you go back for more! With that being said, I would give this beer a medium drinkability level. It’s not too heavy or filling, and has the right balance of malt and hop character to satisfy those in need of a good hand crafted beer.

I have to say this is yet another great addition to the family of fine beers by Mayflower Brewing Co. Their Winter Oatmeal Stout was a big hit recently, and the Spring Hop Ale is a nice follow up brew. Sarah and I had ventured down to Plymouth back in January, which is when we learned of the beer. We also got our first taste back on March 5th as Mayflower brought the Hop Ale to Cure Me I’m Irish. It may have taken me three stores to find a six pack of the beer, but it was worth the effort!


The sign of a great beer with a nice body!