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 Alpha Galena IPA
Aroma: 8 out of 10, Appearance: 3 out of 5, Taste: 7 out of 10 , Palate: 3 out of 5, Overall: 15 out of 20
Total Score: 3.6 out of 5
Sampled at the brewery tap room. It poured a clear golden colour with weak white head, a little lace. Crisp and simple grainbill with a definite hop-heavy balance: for once, NOT citrusy, but peppery and grassy instead, with vaguely flowery, herbal, vegetal notes, definite black currant, faint pine resin. Galena is an interesting multi-layered hop, very pleasant, a sharp bitterness, stronger aroma than flavour, well-suited for blending with other strong personalities. I’ve tasted many beers with Galena, but this might’ve been the first single-hop version. Light body, average carbonation, lingering hoppy aftertaste. Elevated alcohol percentage was warming after awhile but otherwise well-concealed. Good stuff, goes down easy.