GYO simply put stands for Grow Your Own. Since I’ve taken up a green thumb and decided to grow my own hops this summer this beer appealed to the horticulturalist in me. Rogue brewery is located near one of the best hop growing regions of the world so the decision to plant their own hop field(s) is no surprise to me. Throw the fact that they are growing their own barley is a bonus. This beer uses only 4 ingredients: hops (named Revolution), malt (named Dare), and the iconic free range coastal waters and Pacman yeast. The interesting thing about this beer is that it’s made with all the first year’s bounty…the first fruits if you will.
The color is a bright orange hue when help up to the light reminding me of orange cream soda. The head was substantial and lasts the entire glass leaving behind a come lace. I have never heard of let alone sampled either the hops or malt so I was eager to try something new. When I held the glass up to my nose I was met with a sweet caramel tone balanced with a floral hop presence. Almost honey-like to be exact. The malts do stand out more than the hops, but both pair well together. My best guess is that the variety Revolution is similar to a noble hop because it had a more floral herbal aroma and taste. The Dare malt was delicious. It added a nice red ale complexity while yet maintaining a lighter color and body. There were sweet caramel notes, a nice bready quality, and sweet lighter malt characteristics. While Rogue classifies this as Blonde Ale I would go as far as to say it is close to a Red Ale. I might even call it an English Mild/Bitter.
I enjoyed the ease with which it drank and the smoothness the ingredients provided. I felt as thought I was standing in between both the grain and hop in the Pacific Northwest as I took each sip. The mouthfeel is light-medium, the finish smooth and relaxing, and the aftertaste malty with a residual light hoppiness. I would recommend going out a picking up a bomber. You never know, it might encourage you to take up a plow and yoke the oxen.
ABV: 4.8%
Grade: B+
not my favorite Rogue offering….
however, their GYO Dirtoir Black Lager was phenomenal.
i’m keeping my eyes open for that one.
Just had this last night….have to agree with Nate dag, not my favorite rogue. Lackluster.
I enjoyed this beer. It’s a balanced lighter beer for rogue but they can’t all be Old Crustacean. Plus I appreciate that this is the first year growth. I barely had enough hops to home brew with my first year!