On the last night of my last trip to Jackson Hole, a small Thai restaurant and brewery caught my eye.  I walked into Thai Me Up with no expectations and walked out having had an amazing salmon curry and some of the best beers, including a phenomenal Double IPA, I have had.

At that point, Thai Me Up was also the home of Melvin Brewing.  Since then, Melvin has also opened a brewery in Alpine, Wyoming, but the move to a bigger space and bigger production has not affected the quality of their beers.  Bigger distribution means a trip to Jackson Hole is no longer necessary to enjoy these fine beers.  In this review, I’m going to tell you about their hoppier offerings.

Hubert MPA is a pale ale bursting with fresh hop aroma and big hop flavor balanced by a bready and sweet malt backbone.  The bright beer shines with aromas of pine, orange, and lemon.  The piney and citrusy hop profile dominates the flavor, but the malt does come through in the aftertaste resulting in a well-balanced and very enjoyable pale ale.  Hubert is an easy-drinking 6%.

The brewery’s namesake beer is an IPA.  Melvin pours a dark orange and offers up scents of orange and a bit of sweet malt.  The beer is 7.5% and is noticeably thicker than Hubert.  Though the malt has been increased, the balance of the beer comes more from the bitter and piney hop flavors being offset and contradicted by floral and fruity hop character of orange, lemon, and apricot.  The pine aftertaste lingers long after the beer has been sipped.

Melvin’s 2X4 Double IPA is the beer that truly blew me away on my visit, and it is also one of their most celebrated beers.  2X4 weighs in at 9.9%, and this big beer has equally big flavors.  Initially slightly sweet, the heavy malt bill is noticeable and a good balance to the hops as a hop bite transforms to layers of floral, citrusy, fruity, and pine hop flavors.  Sipping this leaves no doubt why this beer is so praised.

Grab a six pack of Hubert or Melvin or grab a four pack of 2X4.  Better yet, grab one of each.  I think you’ll agree with me that Melvin makes some of the finest beers out there.

Cheers,

Alex

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