West Coast Full Hop Alchemist is an 8% double IPA from West Coast Brewing, based in Shizuoka, in Shizuoka, Japan. It’s part of their regular lineup and can be found in both cans and on tap. West Coast Full Hop Alchemist is a continually evolving series of beers, with each new iteration either changing the hop bill around, or boosting the hops.
West Coast Full Hop Alchemist Aroma and Taste
West Coast Full Hop Alchemist poured out a hazy golden orange juice-like colour with a thin white head on top. The aroma, like the beer’s appearance, was juicy with lots of tropical fruits gently coming through – think mango, passion fruit, pineapple, as well as the usual citrus ones of lemon and grapefruit. There was a faint hint of creamy lactose nose to the beer, along with a slight saltiness to it, but that was to be expected with the amount of haze and “hop pop” going on. However, once West Coast Full Hop Alchemist had warmed up, the alcohol heat came in fast and hard – a little too abrasive for my liking but then I guess this isn’t a beer for drinking warm.
Despite the alcohol hit from West Coast Full Hop Alchemist, it did start off quite smooth, with a low amount of harsh bitterness, which was instead a smooth, well rounded one when chilled. Like in the nose, the tropical fruit flavour gave West Coast Full Hop Alchemist more of a juice-like flavour to it, and was also quite thick in the body. The lactose and saltiness levels were not as high as the aroma originally led me to believe and the body had some malt sweetness to take a little bit of the hop edge off. Those same flavours lingered into the aftertaste but once West Coast Full Hop Alchemist had warmed up, it suffered from the same boozey hit that the hops couldn’t hide.
West Coast Full Hop Alchemist The Bottom Line
West Coast Full Hop Alchemist is best drunk chilled, but then you may miss out on some of the fuller flavours.
Where to Buy West Coast Full Hop Alchemist
West Coast Full Hop Alchemist can be bought online at the following places:
