Bells Hopslam

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

Finally, finally I get to try this! I think Jer shared this with Greg and I - thank you!!! Incredibly hoppy aroma - very green and sweet. Dark yellow, small white head. Amazing taste - supper hoppy, balanced, sweet, alcohol there but never too much - met all my incredibly high expectations. I want more. Now.

Appearance: Pours a translucent, orangey body with a full, foamy white head. Smell: Wow, they ain’t kidding. Redolent scent stinking of fresh grapefruit, pineapple, and passion fruit. Taste: Malts are obscured, perhaps rightly so, by the extreme hoppiness. Tons of intense, juicy fruit hop flavors with a moderate kick of bitterness. The 10% abv is very well hidden. Bittersweet finish with a lingering tropical fruitiness. Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied. Medium carbonation. Distinct oily juiciness to the mouthfeel. Drinkability: Extremely hoppy, but it still displays a relatively good balance.

Bottle: Huge hop aroma with lots of citrus, grapefruit, pine, and pineapple. Pours a hazy golden-orange with a large white with orange tint head that has good retention. Very good lacing. Flavor starts pretty sweet with orange and pineapple. Big hoppy finish with lots of grapefruit, pine, and light acidity. Definitely a hop monster, but still balanced. Lingering grapefruit aftertaste. Mouthfeel is rather creamy with very mild carbonation. Glad to find out this wasn’t a "one and done". A beer that I will make sure is always around the house.

Bottle: Straw colored, moderate white frothy head, loads of small bits about, spotty lacing.   Fairly cloudy otherwise.   Citrus and pine nose.   The citrus comes out on the tongue, but the malts seem not big enough.   This is more of a 1½ IPA.   Moderate body and mouthfeel.   Solid, well built, but just not what I expected for an Imperial IPA.   Wished it was a bit maltier to combat the "hopslam".   Otherwise still enjoyable.   ABV is well hidden tho, which is a plus.   Thanks again Ben for sharing this one with me.

Bottle. The beer pours to a nice orange body with a creamy white head. Nice lacing. Tons of medium-slow speed carbonation rises up the body. The aroma is filled with citrus fruit galore. Notes of grapefruit, pineapple, Turkish apricots, nectarines, and Mandarin oranges. Pine trees as well. Very nice. The flavor is like I’m eating what fresh hops smell like. Oh so delicious and bitter. Oily and resiny. Oranges, pine, and malt. Full bodied with well hidden alcohol. Lots of oils.

Awesome aroma. Fruity pears, apricot, and grapefruit. Nice resin and fusel oil, pine cone and mild alcohol notes. Hoppy, fruity, and floral. Super nose to this one. Golden amber clear with a slight haze. This off-white wispy head. Medium heavy watery body with medium carbonation. Starts with a nice malt sweetness. Big initial notes of grapefruit and pear. Great hoppy flavor. Big bitter finish with sweet malt notes and almost cloying. Alcohol is noticeable. One of the fruitiest and juiciest IPAs I’ve had. Nice bittering in the after and nice hops presence all around.

12oz bottle brought by Criag to the gathering. Fruity grapefruit aroma. Orange body with decent head. Flavor was a good dose of fuity citrus you would expect from an IPA. Dry bitter aftertaste but not too bad. Good refreshing beer near the end of the gathering.

12 oz bottle, via joebrew. Pours a very cloudy dark yellow gold with alot of small chunkie floaties in suspended animation. Frothy white head one finger in height left lots of lacing. Aroma is of pungent piney and citrusy hops in mass quantities. There’s some malt there but it is in the background and slightly doughy. Flavor is a little muddled to me, the hops are a little dulled by the soft doughy malt and heavy yeast. Maybe you’d call this "balanced", but I prefer a cleaner crisper malt profile that resides behind the hops, not interwoven amongst. Mouthfeel is creamy with very fine perfect carbonation. Finishes slightly sticky and resiny. This was pretty decent, but a little disappointing. I think I wanted a little more heavier malt presence.