Bells Hopslam

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

12oz - batch 7690 - Aroma is juicy fresh floral hops, earthy citrus hops and alcohol. Pours orange with a small head and great lacing. Flavor is incredibly balanced for such a hop bomb. Lots of carmel follows the intense citrus and floral hops. Palate is sticky and tart. A very nice brew for the hop lover in all of us.

I thought this beer was similar to Two Hearted, just a little bigger. The flavor was sweet,slightly hop dominated giving it a moderately sweet pineapple and apricot flavor. Moderate to low bitterness, no alcohol in the flavor at all. Well made beer. I think if you like Two Hearted, you gotta like this one.

12oz bottle. Pours clear copper with a small white head. Citrusy and piney hop aroma with a malty sweet balance. Heavy citrus hop flavor, but the honey in this beer gives it the perfect sweet balance to the bitterness. Full-bodied finish. World class.

Great eggshell tan head that lasts and lasts, on top of a cloudy amber base. Wonderful lacing. Nose of sweet malts and citrus. Taste an explosion of bitterness and citrus and pine with good sweet malts underneath ... unusual to be this bitter and this balanced. Merely average mouth ... given the cloudiness and the nose I expected a bit more.

12 oz bottle (Batch 7806)

I’ve been saving this for a while and finally decided to open it. After all, it was unlikely to become more of a hopbomb with aging. It had been stored in the fridge as long as I have held the bottle which has been about two months now. My palate might be adjusting because this was not as intense as I thought it would be from the description. Still, it certainly earns the category of double/imperial IPA without a doubt.

Aroma / Appearance - A coppery translucent body is decorated by a three-quarters finger height head. The thick lacing clings to the sides as if to indicate the levels at which the sips were taken. The nose of caramel, resin, grapefrui, orange and chocolate liquer reminds me of a young barleywine. It was very inviting; I could smell this one for fifteen minutes or more before my nose would burn out.

Flavor / Palate - The thick mouthfeel clings to the throat and tongue as the flavors unfold on the eager senses. Creamy caramel, vanilla, malts and the base bitterness create a rich complexity. The resinous grapefruit aftertaste intensifies over the course of the bottle until by the last sip it is pure hops. However, at no point is it so strong as to overwhelm the palate - it has a nice balance to it which makes it all the more enjoyable. It would be nice to put this side by side with a Ruination and see how they compare.

bottle. thanks bri. golden/copper with spotty white head. earthy funk, good funk, Jame Brown funk with fresh earthy hops in aroma. hoppy, earthy, chewy hpos with lingering bitterness. great. 10% = trouble

Everybody’s talking about grapefruit, but I get mango, mango, mango on this one, which is what really makes it stand out for me. Grapefruit and pine and all that, too. Definitely more sweet than bitter to me. Way too easy to drink for the 10% it’s packing. Great beer.

12oz. bottle Batch7690 thanks to SS. Murky orange/amber color with a small off white head and lots of floaties. Nice hoppy aroma of orange marmalade, grapefruit and some pine. Flavor starts off mildly sweet and malty, then quickly becomes quite bitter. Grapefruit pith, light pine and a sort of sourness that reminds me of sneaking tastes of my aunts’ whiskey sours when I was a kid. A different kind of IIPA which I liked very much.