Great Divide Hades

Most regular readers of this blog know that I tend to focus on our local Minnesota brews in my posts. The majority of my beer sessions are the same way. However, as you've no doubt already seen, every once in a while I have to mix it up with an outside beer.

When it came time for a beer session last night, I ventured to the fridge to decide which beer to use. I didn't really have any local beers that I hadn't already done a session with, so I grabbed a bottle of Great Divide Hades that I had gotten in a build-your-own 6-pack.

Great Divide Brewing is located in Denver, CO and was founded in 1994 by Brian Dunn. The brewery has built quite a good reputation for themselves with their quality beers and numerous awards. From their website:

Great Divide brews some of the globe's most balanced yet assertive and flavorful beers.

These beers have landed an impressive amount of acclaim: Great Divide beers have earned 16 Great American Beer Festival medals and 5 World Beer Cup awards. Great Divide was also ranked 8th in Ratebeer.com’s 2010 “The Best Brewers in the World” and was ranked 7th in Beer Advocate’s 2009 “All-Time Top Breweries on Planet Earth.”

A lot of people love this brewery...

According to the website, Hades is a Belgian-style golden ale brewed with a proper Belgian yeast strain. This one weighs in at 7.8% ABV.

I pour the 12 ounce bottle into my tulip glass. A 2-finger white head makes an appearance before shrinking down to a paper-thin layer. The body is light gold in color and has a slight haze. There are some pretty streams of bubbles ambling to the top of the liquid.

There is a bit of caramel and mild grassiness in the aroma along with an herbal spice that really dominates.

The brief taste of honey leads straight into some tart lemon citrus. Then there is a wonderful level of spice right before a moderate bitterness. The finish is dry and has notes of alcohol. The bitter quality hangs around for a little while after you swallow.

The medium mouthfeel combined with very mild carbonation makes it very drinkable. It has a pleasant warmth and leaves minimal lacing on the glass.

Hades is a spicy and dry Belgian that is crisp and easy to drink. All the expected flavors are there, but they are not overly strong. This beer would probably be a great gateway beverage that opens doors for people to Belgian brews with more pronounced attributes. It is well made and quite tasty, but I probably won't revisit it very often as I prefer other Belgian-style brews more. Go out and give it a try!