Bells Hopslam

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

Great-looking beer, with its lofty, lasting head and its hazy orange color. Appeared to be bottle conditioned. Very inviting nose -- sweet-smelling malts and sprucy hops. Mouthfeel was full, smooth and weighty -- very nice! Carbonation was spot on, too. Malts were were sweet and sticky (caramel, Sugar Daddy candy and honey) but they were tamed by a big, snappy bitterness. Some earthy-yeasty elements. Hops were bold and multi-dimensional (pine, grapefruit, bitter orange, grass). As a hophead, I really enjoyed this one, and it sure does live up to its name! Thanks, John!

Sampled at the O-Town throwdown. Pours murky brown with lasting off white head. It has a full grapefruit hop aroma. The flavor follows suit with grapefruit juice hoppiness with hints of sweet malts in the background.

Bottle from ucusty. Pours a hazy off orange color with a thin head and decent lacing. Aroma of big citrus and pine with an underlying touch of honey and malt. Hops upfront with citrus (grapefruit, orange, tangerine) and pine. Secondary flavors include honey, and some caramel malts. This is almost insanely drinkable. After the hops come a little lingering honey chewiness. Pretty good, almost great, but I would rather have a Pliny. Second bottle I had was oxidized. Hops were flat and dull and the flavor was actually unpleasant. Because I tasted it up against Uber Hoppy and Pliny and it didn’t stand up, I am lowering the score.

Lovely bright golden pour with long-lasting head and lacing. Aromatic bouquet includes a whack of honeydew and sundry fruity esters as well as rosemary and other aromatic herbs. Firm, gentle, silky body. Not a hop assault. Batch 8277. Smooth and delicious, no sharp edges, no tacky sweetness, not chewy, alcohol barely detectable. Inviting and deeply satisfying. Great beer, Thanks McBackus for the bottle.

Cloudy greenish yellow, decent sized white head. Very perfumy, flowery, piney hop aroma. Seriously, I mean I could wear this a cologne. Great aroma. Big thick palate. As expected, a huge hop profile, very fresh, very flowery. Mostly pine, woodsy, with a touch of grapefruit. Understated malt flavors give some contrast and keep it from being a total hop monster. Thanks to Silphium and Secret Santa, both of whom sent me this gem.

I picked up a couple of bottles of this, and I’ve just had the first. I think I’ll wait a long while to take out the second, and then it will probably only be to trade with someone. Yellow, hoppy...it’s not bad in that it has sufficient body to satisfy my palate, and the hops aren’t ridiculously out of balance in some astringent-monster kind of way, but it still lacks in dimensionality. The alcohol is really well hidden. It’s still just a boring hop party.

12oz. Bottle. Thanks to Mr Bendo: Aroma is all hops, citrus, grapefruit, and pine. Smells great. Poured orange in color with a great, big, slightly off-white, dense, rocky head that lasted. Great lacing. Tons of particles, big and small. Very cloudy. Sparkling. Flavor is very hoppy. Notes of grapefruit, pine, mint, and hops. Not sweet or sour. Surprisingly only medium to heavy bitterness. Huge hop presence hides the 9.5% ABV well. Medium body. Lively carbonation. Creamy texture. Long bitter finish. Very hoppy, but not as bitter as it could have been. Why call it Hopslam at only 70IBUs. This beer should be 140IBUs.

Bottle; Gift from my buddy Odeed; Nose of mandarin orange, pineapple, and delicious hops; slightly hazy amber with a medium pale yellowish head; flavor of hops, tangerine, madarine orange, and mild hop bitterness from the medium body, the hops lasting into the finish.