Some beers are so great that they only come around once a year. A select few of those beers are great enough that when they do come around, they are bought up so quickly that it becomes almost a competition to get your hands on it before it’s gone for another year. Today’s beer is one of those special ones. Tröegs Brewing in Hershey, PA is known for awesome beers, including Hopback, Perpetual IPA, The Scratch Series, and of course Mad Elf. The jewel in this crown of great beers is an imperial red/amber ale that packs a solid hop punch. Let’s take a look at Nugget Nectar Imperial Red Ale.

The Facts

Brewery – Tröegs
Beer Name – Nugget Nectar
ABV – 7.5
Style – Imperial Amber/Red Ale
Serving Type – Bottle, poured into snifter
Brewery Location – Hershey, PA
Availability – February-March
Color - Deep amber, orange
Head/Retention - Solid head
Aroma – Citrus, earthy. Hints of tangerine rind.
Taste – Grapefruit citrus kick immediately with hop bitterness showing through midway
Finish – Bready with lingering bitterness and citrus hints.

Overall Impression

This is by far one of my favorite beers. The hop bill for this beer gives Nugget Nectar a unique citrus and slightly floral character that follows from the aroma all the way past the finish. This beer starts it’s life as Hopback amber ale, a solid beer in it’s own right, but gets it’s volume turned up to 11 with more of everything, making this a more mature, headier beer that is a real winner. The head is long lasting and just what I would expect, and the color is an amazing reddish amber that is just perfect. I’m glad I got my hands on a case of this, as they all went within a few days.

Tröegs added more brewing capacity this year, so a second release of Nugget Nectar will be out shortly after this post is written, but I imagine it will go just as quickly.