Day 18 of the 24 beer of Christmas is Solero, a American India Pale Ale, from Crystal Lake Brewing in Crystal Lake, Illinois. Three-quarters of the way through the Illinois craft beer Christmas calendar. Time is marching on. I visited Crystal Lake Brewing a couple of months ago for the first time on a way home from a road trip to Wisconsin. Great vibe for such a little place, neatly nestled in a busy corner in downtown Crystal Lake.
Solero promises that it will highlight the Solero hop. Unfortunately they decided to highlight the Solero hop by adding Sultana hops as well. Obviously there is something lost with the definition of highlight. That hop should shine. It didn’t. It did bring me back to the days of non-cloudy IPAs. I can dream. The beer is well made and I would have it again. Enjoy!
- Look: 8.9/10.0
- Aroma: 6.9/10.0
- Taste: 6.3/10.0
- Mouthfeel: 7.8/10.0
- Overall: 6.4/10.0
- Rating: 6.77/10.0
Useless Fact: Sleeping through summer is called “estivation.”