With so many different hops available these days, it's impossible for each homebrewer to brew all of them single-handedly. Jim's Beer Kit is a great place to read what worked for other homebrewers, but it's especially handy when commercial brewers do this "dirty-work" for us. I taste every single-hop beer I can find, and post ratings to Ratebeer, which serves as a handy online resource whenever I need to remember my impressions of a certain hop. It occured to me these thoughts might benefit other nerdy homebrewers on this forum too.
Disclaimer: these are my own subjective opinionated conclusions, based on just one sample, at one specific moment in time. I am frequently surprised by how much another brewer's results differ, even using the same single hop variety. Your mileage may vary, and I certainly don't think my taste buds are superior to anyone else's.
From my Ratebeer rating of Mikkeller Hop Series Cluster
Aroma: 8 out of 10, Appearance: 4 out of 5, Taste: 8 out of 10 , Palate: 4 out of 5, Overall: 18 out of 20
Total Score: 4.2 out of 5
Tasted from bottle into snifter glass. Poured a thick, medium amber color with truly astounding head retention and lace. Seriously, I gave up waiting and just drank through the foam, and it still persisted long after the beer was gone. As far as the grainbill and resulting malt-sweetness are concerned, the aromas and flavors are typical of well-crafted American IPAs, which is to say: bready, toasty, caramelly, delicious. Obviously, the main point here is the hops profile. It had a pleasing, spicy, flowery aroma. Very nice. Flavors of tart green apple skin, tangy, citrus-rind bitterness, but much less-so than trendier American super-alpha hop varieties, and definitely not grapefruity like Cascades. More layered than smooth, per se. Somewhat wilder and rougher than noble hops, but despite many detractors claims (who I insist have never observed any undesirable effects of Cluster for themselves, but simply perpetuate the diatribe) there was certainly no skunk, cat-piss, ammonia, etc. I’d describe these hops as "manlier" than those fancy European aromatic flowers. Cluster was the main, some would say only, bittering hops grown in the USA for generations. Since American macro beer was often badly brewed, badly packaged, spoiled by age, oxidation, ultraviolet, and so on, the hops component has been unfairly accused as a nasty perpetrator. This beer disproves that falsehood. Medium body, surprisingly full, even "chewy" mouthfeel, sparkling carbonation. Lasting fruity, bitter aftertaste which eventually faded to dryness. I love the single-hop concept, the cool way they isolate the hops variable, enabling us to refine our palettes. I like the simplicity of the name and label. In every way, Mikkeller’s presentation reveals his homebrewer DNA. Even if Mikkeller Cluster wasn’t part of a gimmicky experiment, but was marketed as a standalone strong IPA brand, it would be one of my favorites in the style. Malty and hoppy, complex, tasty. Great with a meal, holds its own against bold, rich food. Highly recommended.