Wet Hop Cascader Invader

Perth, Ontario and the Perth Brewery are the sources of Wet Hop Cascader Invader, a session-friendly pale ale. According to the 473mL can, the brew is a collab with a local hop farm and it supports “our community foundation”—no details about the what and the how.

The brew itself is a 4.7% job. It has handsome dull gold colouring and pours with a lush nimbus of off-white head. To my nose, WHCI has a slightly sweet lemony note, balanced against malty biscuit. The taste follows the same blueprint, but writ large: the flavour is rich in sweet citrus and toasty malt. There is some fresh and floral bitterness that becomes evident at the back end.

Aside from the excellent packaging, what stood out most to me about this beer was a vibe of freshness—it has notes that are agrarian, damp, and enjoyable. The mouthfeel is a bit thin, but otherwise I liked it a lot. I gotta think that an Ontario beer built by wet hopping fresh hops likely has to be a seasonal offering, but I’m going to buy more of this stuff while I can and hope it comes back yearly.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.