Fridge full of fresh hops (and oh hello again)

 Hello from the outside (at Chuck's Hop Shop patio)

At least I can say that I've tried (one of Cloudburst's fresh hops)

...and that's about all I've got from Adele and modern things post-2010 or so. 

Well, not quite. Because someone does in fact have a fridge full of fresh hops from fresh hop season 2021! 

(plus another 4-pack in my not-so-little black backpack [kudos to the five people who might recognize that mid-1990s musical gem])

Club fridge, featuring fresh hop season 2021.

So it's been awhile - in fact, a four-years-plus awhile. As it turns out, a lot has happened (and changed!) since my last post in September 2018. I started a PhD program, I became an auntie, I lived in Switzerland for a summer, I met a met man-person, I learned new sports things (namely bouldering and mountain biking), I moved away from my beloved Fremont (and ~3 block walk to Fremont Brewing, my home away home) to north Greenwood, among many developments and adventures. And ah yes - the COVID-19 pandemic upended our lives as we knew them (and continues to do so).

Yet some bits and bobs (no, I still haven't tried that Reuben's Brews IPA) have continued through the years, including an unflagging dedication to (in no particular order):

• My people
• Dogs
• 90s-to-early 2000s music (why yes, I was happily jamming to Stroke 9 and now the Offspring came on) 
• Hoppy beers (though my main tastes have started to skew toward hop-forward pale ales and/or tasty IPAs of lower ABV)

I've now been in Seattle for ~12 years (!!!), and this place still keeps me on my toes. Moving outside of the Wallingford-Fremont area (aka where I had lived for approximately eight years) has opened my eyes (and tastebuds) to new haunts and hoppy wonderment. To date, four places have been particular stand-outs:

• Chuck's Hop Shop Greenwood: from summer work sessions to fresh hop hunting, Chucks has delivered in so many ways. There's something special about this place, and while it's clearly been in existence well before my move to the Greenwood area, I can't stop being so hoppy about it.
• Ridgewood Bottle & Tap: here I've had the privilege of trying Georgetown rarities such as Juniorzafa (Bode's lower-ABV sibling which somehow maintained the original's stellar hop profile) and the Washington Fresh Hop Festival 2021's Best in Show, Energy Cone by Single Hill Brewing. The bottle (plus can) shop is pretty impressive as well: for instance, this past week Ridgewood had four different Cloudburst fresh hop beers available.
• Lantern Brewing: as my (now) closest neighborhood brewery, I have soft spot for this low-key tasting room. The beers have been great, as have the food truck rotations.
• Flying Bike Cooperative: this is now our go-to post-bouldering beer place with the north Seattle crew. I still haven't figured out my preferred brewskis here, but I do like the Zest-a-Peel (and specifically the variety with a grapefruit focus).

And with that, I best hop to it.

Cheers,
N