Bells Hopslam

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

A hazy apple cider candle color with a small head. Strong pine aroma with what seems a crystal malt backing. Pine taste some citrus. Good palate as no alcohol or plastic taste. Gets watery at end. Does not remind me nor is it better than 2-heart, which is a shame.

(Bottle via trade with <A HREF=http://www.ratebeer.com/ViewUser.asp?UserID=3 target=blank>shigadeyo, thanks Craig!) Really nicely-balanced...Pours hazy very slightly reddish amber with two fingers of off-white head. Aroma of pine, grapefruit, vanilla and caramel. Mouthfeel soft, nice, smooth, medium-full, touch of stickiness in finish. Flavor is medium bitter pine and grapefruit over caramel and vanilla. About as straightforward a big IPA as I can think of - hops are there but not overpowering, there is some nice sweet malt presence and is only a slight bit hot esp. as it warms. Nice little bitter bite in finish. A nice smooth pleasant big IPA.

1-16-09. Bottle. Clear, light orange body. Next to no head. Nose of grapefruit, orange peel, resin. The flavor is moderately to heavily sweet and moderately bitter. The finish is moderatley to heavily bitter with a moderately sweet aftertaste. Chewy. Seems to get sweeter every year. If this gets any sweeter, I am going to reduce my rating. 1-20-08. Bottle. This year’s release presents a sweeter, orange citrus backbone that is much more noticeable than last year’s. The nose is still filled with juicy citrus fruit — orange, grapefruit, pineapple and tangerine. But the flavor is sweet grapefruit juice — still heavily bitter, but now moderately sweet. I like the balance better. 2-12-07. On cask at BWW, Indy. The bitterness is even more pronounced in this daft version, muting most of the edgy sweetness. 11-17-06. Bottle. When I think breweries that know their way around hops, I first think of Three Floyds and Stone and AleSmith — and Bells. So it didn’t surprise me that Hopslam was brimming with juicy citrus aroma and flavor. Cloudy golden pour with comfortable off-white head. The nose is strong and filled with sweet oranges, pineapple, grapefruit, tangerine and apricot. The flavor is 95 percent hops — bitter almost from the start and lasting well after you’ve swallowed. There is a little sweetness around the edges. Full body. Moderately thick, chewy texture with a raspy feel and resinous coating. Can’t help but think of a thicker, richer version of Two-Hearted. Nice dry finish. 9-3-8-4-17.

Thanks to eaglefan538 for the opportunity to sample. Pour was orange, good head and lacing. This is full out grapefruit assault, all over the nose and tongue. Huge hop bill left your mouth crying for assistance, but in a wonderfully giddy way. Rich, full, nice malt balance. Good beer from Bells again!

"holy mother of beer!", i thought when i first tasted this brew. strong grapefruit/grassy aroma that foretells what’s coming. hugely hoppy but very well balanced by it excellent malt profile. probably the best double ipa i’ve had, very pleasurable to drink.

12 oz bottle courtesy of DrnkMcDermott. Pours a very hazy orangish dark amber, moderate off white beige head that sticks around. Aromas are heavily citrus hop bouquet, grapefruit, and lemon candy with floral notes slip in as well. Taste seems a touch faded with age. Heavily hopped grapefruit rind and bitter with some resinous pine and bitterness on the back end. Touch of carmel malt discernable, but balanced well (so it has to be a significant amount, right?). Finishes well with a lingering citrus feel on the palate. Medium bodied, not filling. Smooth, not harsh. Would have been even more interesting fresh. Still, pretty damn good. Rerate: On tap at The Galway Tribes (Frankfort, Il). This beer fresh is amazing. Rating change.

12 oz. bottle pours a slightly hazy gold under a medium white frothy head that leaves behind decent lace as it settle to a fine thin layer of fine bubbles. Huge citrus and pine fresh hop aroma takes center stage with honey, apricot, and toffee as secondary players. Resinous and bitter behind a medium body, the palate is full and refreshing. In spite of the pervasive bitterness, there is still noticeable light malt sweetness for some needed balance. Not anything to compalin about here.

Pours a lightly hazy orange with a sizable, creamy, off-white head that leaves patchy lace sliding down the sides of the snifter. The aroma is huge, and the name is certainly appropriate. As soon as the cap left the bottle, I could smell big citric hops. In the glass, the aroma is both sweet and bitter with notes of grapefruit, blood orange, light caramel, simple sugar and faint resin. Medium-bodied and quite slick with a transition to a tongue-squeezing, bitter and resinous finish. The flavor is sweet and malty up front with a fluid transition to pink grapefruit (with sugar sprinkled on top) and tight, resinous hops at the swallow. Both the hops and the sweetness linger for quite some time. For a beer packing 10% ABV and sporting a name like "Hopslam", I was pleasantly surprised to find a brew that is amazingly well balanced and supremely drinkable. I now understand why this beer never lasts more than a day or two on the shelves each year. If Bells ever decided to make this a year-round brew, it would be a permanent fixture in my refrigerator. Thanks for securing this sixer for me before it flew off the shelves, Tom!