Russian River Happy Hops Blonde Ale
Hopped-Up Blonde Ale, 5.4%ABV
Not really a Blonde Ale, not a Pale Ale, not an IPA. Happy Hops is a light colored refreshing ale with a pronounced hop character from the experimental 369 variety (Mosaic).
You may also see a special version of this beer once a year called Happy Hops Harvest, which is brewed with fresh "wet" hops grown locally.
Available year round
Not really a Blonde Ale, not a Pale Ale, not an IPA. Happy Hops is a light colored refreshing ale with a pronounced hop character from the experimental 369 variety (Mosaic).
You may also see a special version of this beer once a year called Happy Hops Harvest, which is brewed with fresh "wet" hops grown locally.
Available year round
3.7
205 reviews
Santa Rosa, United States
Community reviews
500ml bottle pours out golden topped with a white head. Nose is nice citrus floral hops mango and some sweet malts. Taste is more of the nice sweet malts rule citrus mango very nice.
500ml bottle at home. Pours nearly clear gold with a lasting white head and sticky lacing. Floral, hoppy aroma. Flavors are grapefruit and lemon citrus, hint of peach, fresh piney and floral hops, bready malt in the background. Medium carb, medium-full body. Dry, citrusy finish. Delicious hops showcase.
Medium color. Very clean, fresh and lifted. Citrus and tropical. Palate is dry, hoppy with only moderate bitterness.
Bottle, long-lasting white head, some lacing, yellow straw color, slight clarity haze, strong citrus and faint onion hop aroma, medium-low body, medium carbonation, pleasant low bready malt flavor, hop bitterness is moderate but does not linger, balance toward hop flavor, refreshing, finishes somewhat dry.
Poured into a glass from a 20 oz bottle. Light straw color with a small, but persistent white head. Nice lacing. Aromas of pine, grapefruit, a little peach, and lightly floral. Refreshing, medium body, soft mouthfeel. Bitter grows on the finish. Enjoyable.
On tap at Doheny Beach Sabroso beer and taco fest. Pours pale gold. Aroma is resiny, floral hops. Big surprise how complex this one is. Resiny and piney ipa, but juicy tangerine, grapefruit and oranges too. Like a more sessionable Pliny. I avoid the juicy description, but this is! Update: this was the best beer at the festival.
Bottle from Lunardi’s in Campbell, CA. Aroma is vegetal, wet grass, dry pine needles. Taste is soggy unripe pineapple but then finishes oh-so-dry-pine. Great mix of wet and dry overall. Flavor is a bit muddy / damp.
Pours clear golden with medium head.
Strong aroma of grass and pine.
Rich taste of grass, pine, grapefruit. Juicy aftertaste. Moderately bitter.
Amazingly balanced.
Sands me to the days I tried and loved my first IPAs
Super crisp with the lightest bit of haze to a perfectly golden coloured body with a thinnish pure white head, about two centimetres tall. Aroma of super fresh, grassy and quite herbal hops with a big dose of resin - and not pungency - that hits very nicely and isn't too strong throughout. Light to Medium-bodied; Super strong grassy and herbal hops with a very nice fresh hop bite and finishing with a little subdued fruity notes of citrus and even a hint of guava. Aftertaste shows a little bite of fresh oranges and citrus elements with a super fresh and way more pungent hoppy bite that shows a little herbs and a dry hay note towards the end that makes this a bit more dry than typical, but still nice and easy drinking. Overall, a very enjoyable fresh hop beer that shows very nicely and leaves a good robust finish that isn't cloying or deep, just easy going and quite drinkable. I sampled this sixteen ounce sample on draught, at the brewpub in Santa Rosa, California on 11-March-2019 for US$6,00 while in Napa Valley, California.
Aroma is floral with some resin and mineral notes. Pours a slightly cloudy gold color with a well laced white head. A slightly dry mouth feel with a taste of tropical fruit, resin and some mineral hops with a floral finish.
Pours a bright yellow with a fuzzy white head. Nose is funky grapefruit and pepper. Crisp and full, more funk, this comes together really nicely, grain, bitterness, zest, berries... Outstanding!
Draft pour pint at Toronado, San Diego. Soft cloudy character to this golden pour. Thick cream cake head. Citrus rind hops jump out. Smooth taste. Lemon and citrus hops, balancing grain, but remains cool. Melon taste later. Pretty smooth IPA. Solid IPA here.
On tap at the brewery. Pours gold orange. Orange peel, floral, tangerine, toffee, biscuit. Medium body. Good.
Pours a mostly clear, deep gold from a 16oz bottle. Very subtle aromas, maybe slightly piney. Very hoppy, with pine and stone fruit notes. Light and crisp, feels less heavy-duty than other RR IPAs. Very good, maybe a cut below Blind Pig and Pliny the Elder on my preference scale.
Gold pour, white head. Aroma and flavor are grassy, lemony, peachy, maybe a bit thin, quite crisp.
Another Intensivo!!! Und das GreenGold war anscheinend extrem happy ;)..klar geschrubbt, on the BlobSide & vermosaict👋😀 On Tap in Santa Rosa...
Draught @ Russian River Brewpub, Santa Rosa. Pours clear golden with an offwhite head. Aroma of malt, fruity hops, peach, light tropical fruit, citrus. Flavor is light bitter, malt, grass, fruity hops, citrus. Medium body, average carbonation, light bitter finish. 200718
This is a New England ipa now. Excellent huge aroma berries, passion fruit. Light on the bitterness, big on the fruit flavors of passion fruit and a bit of mango. Well balanced interpretation of the style.
Very smooth, easy drinking pale ale (or so I would type-cast it anyway), with good malts and hops in good balance. (On tap at brewery, Labor Day weekend 2017, tour of northern breweries with Jazz88).
Light amber, medium head. Soft and sweet, with a mellow, almost herbal character.
Aroma is honey, pine needles, and lemongrass. Body is a nice balance of malt and hop character. Very sessionable and tasty.
On tap at The Good Hop, Oakland. Pours cloudy golden, white head. Moderate hoppiness, some pine, citrus, malty, biscuit. Bitter finish. Medium bodied.
Clear gold in color... Aroma of biscuity malts, light caramel, bready notes.... Flavor is biscuity with light bready body and some light herbal hops on finish... definitely a blonde/pale hybrid... solid
On tap at City Beer, pours a hazy copper with a small white head. Aroma brings out dry piney hops and crisp crackery malt. Flavour is dry and fresh, with lots of bitter dry piney hops and a crisp crackery malt backbone. Clean, fresh and easy to drink, but not particularly exciting. Very good.
Bright yellow some foam. Almost no aroma some cream. Tastes piny sprucy sweet caramel. An interesting hybrid. Sorta works.
On tap at The Daily Pint. Crystal clear golden orange with a bright white head and wonderful lace. Biscuity/bready malt aromas with a hint of grain and grassy hops. Flavors are somewhat the same, but the hop bitterness is more pronounced with the maltiness just maintaining a background presence. Light to medium body, nice carbonation, slightly watery mouthfeel, and a clean finish.
From tap at Toronado, San Francisco. Aroma is fruity and piney hops with citrus, biscuity malt and notes of tropical fruits. Dry-ish bitter finish. Body is medium. Smooth and well-hopped APA.
On tap at Toranado SD. Pours a clear gold with a white head that dissipates slowly to the edges and laces. Aroma has a combination of straw and grass with a touch of pine supporting. Flavor has the same straw and grass combination with a bit of pine and citrus underlying.
Pours a super clear golden with excellent lacing white head. Fruity earthy hop aroma. Dry, light bodied with an earthy hop edge rounding out smooth and a bit citrusy/fruity.
Notes: on tap at the brew pub, June ’17
Draught at RRBC. Amber color, white head. Bitter taste with grapefruit, hops, pine, mango, toast and grass. Bitter finish with grapefruit, hops, pine, a bit of mango and grass. Good APA.