Bells Hopslam

Brewed by Bells Brewery
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

batch # 8907 poured golden and clear with half inch off white head with aromas of hops lots of hops ,pine ,citrus and clover honey,taste is vey mild for a dipa hops but much of the hops flavor and high alcohol content is masked by the hugh malts base of this very drinkable masterpeice overall i really dont go out of my way for any ipa or dipa but with all the forum talk going on i had to check this one out and I’m very glad i did

12oz bottle. Batch 8907. Pours clear copper with nice soapy white head. Aroma is wonderfully citrusy and hoppy with some sweet maltyness. Flavor is citrus, pine, sweet malt and bitter hops. Mouthfeel is a bit syrupy with sweet malt. A nice DIPA but a bit over rated. Re-Rate: The aroma is great, Flavor is nice. Still a little to much sweet malt for my palate but this is a good IIPA. I think I was expecting a little to much the first go around. A fine beer it but stil not worth its lofty rating.

Pours a copper color with a nice white head.... Huge citrus, pineapple, grapefruit, mildly sweet aroma, this is one of the best smelling beers i’ve come across... Doesnt have the creaminess to the aroma that alot of DIPA’s have... Flavor of piney hops, a bit of citrusy though not the big citrus from the aroma, and a touch of honey, doesnt live up to the aroma or the hype for me... Also by the by, i dont get the tongue bruise i was promised... Great balance for a double ipa(usually i dont like big double ipa’s mainly because of the creaminess/fullness of the mouthfeel)... Big thick sticky mouthfeel, you can detect the alcohol by feel, but not by taste... Mildly bitter, mildly sweet finish... Good, nearly great, but way way overhyped and overpriced, the marketability of limited supply vs huge demand in action....

12oz bottle batch 8907. Thanks a ton to 17thfloor for this! Pours golden orange with a thick creamy white head. Aroma is very fresh pungent herbal hops and hop oils. Lots of pineapple and citrus zest with a nice creamy caramel malt backbone. Flavor starts with a soft sweet pineapple mellowness and lays soft on the tongue. But as soon as you start to swallow you get hit by a huge rush of hop oil bitterness that stays all the way down the throat. The alcohol is well hidden but you can detect that it is a heavier beer. Medium to full body and lively carbonation. This is very nice, much like Two Hearted and a great example of good balance with high hop and alcohol.

12oz bottle, batch 8907. Mostly clear deep gold-orange color with a small white head that leaves some spotty lace. Citrus, melon rind, alcohol, sweet honey, and spicy herbal hop aroma. Quite sweet, with a touch of honey and bread. Some fruity, citrucy hop flavor and a finish that almost gets dry and bitter until the sweetness comes back in and sticks to the back of the tongue. Medium bodied and rather light feel overall, which helps to partially mitigate the sweetness. This could use either a ton more hops, or a much dryer finish. I’ll stick to two hearted. (7,4,6,4,13=3.4) Rerate: Same batch, a couple more bottles have been mused over. Impressions: The aroma is a nice citric-fruity hop and sweet honey malt combo, though it’s a bit light for a double IPA. The flavor, while still falling more on the sweet side, is dryer than I had previously thought. It’s not the residual sugar so much as the lack of stronger bittering hops that set the balance this way. I think that the fruity hop flavor and more modest bitterness combine to give a sweet, fruity overall impression. It is growing on me. A balanced and very drinkable IIPA. The body is about as light as I can imagine a 10%abv beer being. If it weren’t for the alcohol presence, this could be almost a regular IPA. While I more intense and complex overall hop character could transform this beer into something amazing, it is still enjoyable and deserves a couple more points. (7,4,7,4,14=3.6) Rerate: on tap at Brickskeller. More bitterness and assertive hop flavors, still very drinkable. Freshness seems to be the world in this beer. Hopslam has beer my learning experience with balanced IIPAs, and I like it more every time I have it. (7,4,8,4,15=3.8) More Random Indecisiveness: had it again, and, eh,.

Can Larry Bell live up to the hype again? 12oz. bottle purchased from Top Shelf Liquor in Allen Park. As soon as I pop the cap, the excellent aroma lets me know I’m in for something special. Appearance: Pours a nice golden orange hue. This is slightly hazy due to the yeast that I poured into my Bell’s snifter. Nice off-white head with nice lacing. Very inviting... Smell: What an excellent aroma. Starts with a slight hop burn follow by grapefruit, pine, and citrus. You can almost taste the hops...My fricking mouth is watering. Taste: Tastes just like the aroma. Nice hops up front with grapefruit, pine and citrus notes. Malts come to the party later on to add a beautiful balance to this masterpiece. Mouthfeel: Nice smooth mouthfeel. The hops hang around for a bit and coat the tongue and roof of my mouth. Drinkability: I could definitely put back a sixer of these, but I’d rather savor this bad ass Double IPA with one or two. Hoppy, malty, and exceptionally balanced. The first time I tried this, I had it next to Rouge I2PA and DFH 90 min. IPA. This was exceptional compared to the other two. The Rouge wasn’t too bad, but the 90 tasted like a malty barleywine. I used to think the 90 was a hop-bomb....not anymore. I would love to try this next to Dreadnaught...from memory, they are similar except for the fact the a 22oz of Dreadnaught was $9 and a sixer of Hopslam came out to be about $12. Once again, Larry and the Bell’s crew put out an excellent beer. If it’s not the best double IPA, then it’s definitely in the top five. This should be the new benchmark for the style. Hopefully Bell’s decide to make this a more regular offering. Pick this up if you see it...you will not be disappointed.

Pour is an orange with a average white head. Aroma is lots of grapefruit and pine so much so that i don’t even have to bring the glass to my nose. Flavor is again over the top with the hops. Finish is bitter but smooth all at the same time. The 10% is no where to be found. This is an outstanding hop bomb of a beer. A little pricy at $16 a six but this is one to have at least once.

Aroma: This DIPA is freakishly fragrant. Pineapple and grapefruit (mostly pineapple for me) immediately hit you in the face before you can get your nose to the glass. Pineapple Express baby! Five of us passed this one around and each person gave an immediate “WOW” upon smelling. Appearance: The beer is a warm early evening sunshine orange and is mostly clear. I was surprised that it wasn’t a little more opaque due to the amount of hops. Flavor: WOW! This is an insanely tasty beverage. It tastes just like it smells. Considering its name and bottle label, it is surprisingly easier on the palate than you would think. The Flying Saucer has it here on draught, and I had no problem kicking back three of them. Palate: Again, this one goes down very well and has great mouth feel. It stood up to the spicy nachos I was eating, so I imagine it will stand up to just about anything. Overall Impression: This is my new favorite beer.