VERSUS: Tree House Green vs Trillium DDH Congress Street

The Stats
Tree House Green
Style: American IPA
ABV: 7.5%
Current Ratings...
- Untappd: 4.49/5
- Beer Advocate: 4.59/5 (Top 250: #38)
- RateBeer: 4.07/5
Trillium DDH Congress Street
Style: American IPA
ABV: 7.2%
Current Ratings...
- Untappd: 4.53/5
- Beer Advocate: 4.6/5 (Top 250: #40)
- RateBeer: 4.09/5

This is a battle of Galaxy IPA's. I have previously reviewed both the Tree House Green and the Trillium DDH Congress Street. Since I have been fortunate enough to have both of these beers cross my path at the same time, I would be a fool to pass up the opportunity to have these beers have an all-out battle to the death. 

BREWER'S DESCRIPTION

Tree House Green

"Our cross-continental IPA! Made with Australian and American hops, this tropical heavy IPA opens up in the glass with notes of hugely flavorful notes of lemon-lime, pineapple, orange sorbet, and tangerine. It has a soft but pointed bitterness and a rich, velvety mouth feel. Intensely kettle and dry hopped yet balanced and flavorful, Green is a beloved crew  favorite here at Tree House!"

Trillium DDH Congress Street

"This amplified version of our flagship American IPA, Congress Street, is a focused exhibition of the Australian Galaxy Hop."

APPEARANCE

Tree House Green

A hazy body with light orange color and almost two fingers of bright, white head that retained beautifully and left tons of lacing on the glass.

Trillium DDH Congress Street

A sunset orange color complete with a body that is a bit more murky and opaque. No light getting through this (on an IPA!). The pour produced a finger and a half of white head that leaves no lacing.

AROMA

Tree House Green

A clean hop dankness with Juicy Fruit gum and a sprinkling of pine and grapefruit. Some orange rind and a biscuity malt presence round it out nicely.

Trillium DDH Congress Street

Much more aggressive with the hop bitterness. It has the same grapefruit aroma, but much more acidic. Hints of creamy orange sherbet add some sweeter notes. Some potent dank hops too.

TASTE

Tree House Green

That bubblegum and Juicy Fruit from the aroma starts things off on the taste. Subtle hop bitterness starts to shine, but the more I sip on this, this has a creamy sorbet flavor and tons of pineapple. There's maybe even some tangerine and clementine as well. The back end actually pops with more bitterness and dank flavors.

Trillium DDH Congress Street

Like the aroma, this has a much more aggressive approach to the hop bitterness, but that's a good thing. Acidity is the name of the game once again as tart grapefruit and citrus tend to dominate. Once more, this is not being said in the negative. More of that creamy sherbet adds a dessert-like feel with faded moments of pine and spruce to boot. The lingering effect is dank bitterness and it is quite appetizing.

MOUTHFEEL

Tree House Green

Despite the creamy taste, the body is lighter than the taste would lead you to believe. There's some lingering astringency with each sip, but a good bitter aftertaste is welcome anytime.I'd say this has a lighter feel than others in the same 7.5% abv range, but it gets the job done.

Trillium DDH Congress Street

The body is full and creamy and leaves a delectable combo of dank hops and orange sherbet. The abv is well-hidden, and despite having a strong bitter bite, the drinkability is sky-high for me.

OVERALL

When comparing these two Galaxy-saturated IPA's, it is a tale of two cities.

If you want a lighter feel that still has solid dank flavors, and a ton of tropical fruits, you go for the Tree House Green. Green is (again) lighter in body, but packs in a lot of flavor with a smooth feel and easy drinkability.

Trillium DDH Congress St manages to smack you in the face and kick you in the balls with a ton of dank bitterness, but still manages to be just as drinker friendly as the TH Green.

It's a battle of delicious Galaxy IPA's, but since DDH Congress had more complexity with the same drinkability as Green, I am giving the nod to DDH Congress Street.

RATINGS

Tree House Green
8.8/10

Trillium DDH Congress Street
9.0/10