It's a most wonderful time of the year for West Australian brewers with the March hop harvest season in the South West giving them the choice of freshly picked hops bursting with flavour.
Boston Brewing Co.'s Innovative Brewing Technique
Denmark-based Boston Brewing has harnessed those hops, using a futuristic sounding technique to extract the maximum taste to create its 2026 Cryogenic Fresh Hop Hazy IPA. The hops are flash frozen using nitrogen so they become extremely brittle and shatter into shards, exposing the centre of the hop cone to draw out the flavour.
Ingredients and Collaboration
The Fresh Hop Hazy IPA uses Beedleup and Victoria hops from Great Southern Hops, in Boston's backyard, alongside Galaxy dry hops, and malts including pilsner, crystal, chit, oat and wheat. It is brewed in collaboration with the Grain Cru out of Victoria Park and Carlisle.
Aroma and Appearance
When you crack the can, those fruity aromas are immediately prominent. Stone fruits, like nectarine and apricots, are up-front but there's a hint of pineapple and citrus underneath. It's a real fruit salad of smells. It pours a thick milky haze, with a peachy colour, and a frothy white head that dissipates slowly.
Taste and Finish
Those fruity flavours step up first when you take a sip. It has a light and clean bitterness, with a soft mouthfeel, before a slight piney flavour starts to present. The stone fruit flavours and grassy bitterness linger on the way to a smooth finish.
Should You Share It?
It's an easy-drinking hazy, belying its 6.5 per cent ABV, so maybe get some friends to hop on round and share it.
Price
$7.99 each or $30 for a four-pack.
