Named for the Greek god who hurls lightning for sport and rearranges the sky when bored, Zeus hops arrive with thunder in their pockets and mischief on their minds. This proprietary American hybrid doesn’t whisper. It kicks the door, drags in a sack of lupulin, and leaves the room buzzing with spicy-herbal swagger and a pungent, oh-hello-there bitterness that snaps you to attention.

For years, Zeus lived in a mythological group chat known as CTZ — Columbus, Tomahawk, Zeus — a hop afterlife where identities blurred, names overlapped, and everyone agreed not to ask too many questions about lineage. Different growers, similar plants, same cosmic shrug. But science, that relentless buzzkill hero, eventually ran the samples through gas chromatography and said: hold up. Zeus is its own beast. Separate. Distinct. Still throwing thunderbolts.

What remains undeniable is the power. Zeus is a high-alpha, high-lupulin American brute with a surprising sense of poetry — all citrus sparks and occasional woody growl beneath the brawn. A hop that can bitter with authority and still smell like it means you no harm. Mostly.

So let’s raise five glasses and let the sky crack open. Welcome to Craft Beer Crosscut 12.3.17: A Flight of Zeus. Drink carefully. The gods are watching.

Boundary Bay Cabin Fever

8.5% ABV, 45 IBU

Brewed with Zeus, Simcoe, Willamette and Celeia hops and five malts — including Chocolate malt and oats — Boundary Bay Brewing’s Cabin Fever is rich, malty and deceptively strong. With an extended conditioning period, this winter warmer has a smooth mouthfeel. The aroma has a rich, nutty maltiness with some vanilla, raisins, caramel and bread. The flavor leans sweet nutty initially and then opens up for more of a balance with spicy hops that are not strong and end up creating a lovely lingering bready aftertaste. Nice balance.

Alpine 6×9

6% ABV

Prior to 2013, the small, East San Diego County brewery Alpine Beer Co. only made 1500 barrels per year, and craft enthusiasts had to drive to Alpine, 30 miles outside San Diego, to get it. Today, Alpine beers may be found in all 50 states and 26 countries. However, Alpine continues create limited-quantity brews that continue to give dedicated fans good reason to make a pilgrimage to Alpine, including the collaboration IPA with Melvin, 6×9. Brewed with CTZ, Amarillo and El Dorado, 6×9 hits the nose with dank weed, tangerine rind, grass, herbal and stone fruit. The taste matches the nose with a powdered sugar maltiness, oily texture and dank finish.

Boundary Bay 4th Quarter Comeback IPA

8.3% ABV, 65 IBU

If a “comeback” involves a single malt, 2-Row Pale, plus Zeus, Simcoe and South African experimental hop N1/69, then we want Boundary Bay’s 4th Quarter Comeback IPA on our team. N1/69’s juicy fruit, mango, citrus, dank, and pungent joins Zeus’ citrus and Simcoe’s fruity and pine characteristics battles 2-Row Pale’s bready/biscuit notes. The 2-Row Pale loses, as this is a fruity, bitter IPA.

Knee Deep Tahoe Deep

8.5% ABV, 66 IBU

The CTZ hops — Columbus, Tomahawk and Zeus — shin in Knee Deep Brewing’s Tahoe Deep double IPA. It lends pungent, dank, floral notes and a mild citrus aroma to a beer with earthiness and woodiness flavors. Combined with Cascade and Centennial hops, and Tahoe Deep starts sweet, with hints of orangey citrus, then develop bitterness in the middle that builds through, and after, the finish. A resin-and-earthy bitterness lingers in the back of the mouth and in the throat, giving the beer a dry character.

Lagunitas Hop Stoopid Ale

8% ABV, 102 IBU

When in the mood for hops, and nothing says hops like the 102 “I.B.U.4.U.” Lagunitas Brewing‘s Hop Stoopid Ale with Summit/Nugget/Apollo/Bravo/Columbus/Tomahawk/Zeus in the boil with a mid-dump of Cascade and Chinook; Simcoe in the whirlpool and dry hopped with Columbus/Tomahawk/Zeus, Simcoe and Chinook. Bam! The nose is very sweet, fruity and slightly floral with a hint of booze. On the tongue are peach, mango, orange rind, grapefruit and earthy hop notes before the hops blast the palate. It’s a sweet IPA with hints of sweet bready malts soaked in booze with tons of bitter hop notes and tropical fruits.