Bells Hopslam

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

Yowza! The hops literally leap from the glass and into my nose. Oranges, grapefruit, mango, papaya, pineapple...could this get more tropical? Some candied sweetness taboot. The hops continue to shine in the body - and they are even more defined. More fruitiness is unfortunately balanced by very little malt, but that’s OK. I could drink these all day long. This defines hop juice. A tiny alcohol burn in the finish is the only real hindrance.

excellent...light golden orange body with heavy head...aroma of sugar-infused ruby red grapefruit and light malt...flavor is very much the same, and is one of the most clean and refreshing IIPAs out there..however, the piney, grassy and grapefruit hops dominate the malt profile..nice palate

12oz bottle via trade with bgburdman9. Orange/reddish in color. Nice white head with the aroma of oranges, pineapples, and piny hops. Thick and sticky. Taste like pineapples. Slight alcohol burn along with sharp hop bitterness. Better then I thought it would be. Thanks, Brian.

12oz bottle. Hazy amber with a thick white head. Nice citric hop aroma, with a sweet background; like canned peaches. Hops dominate the palate, with a long bitter finish. I expected a bit more when i smelled the beer; but i’d gladly drink it again.

Pours a pale clear orangey gold with a big healthy loose white head. The nose is lightly sweet and full of big hops. Particularly prominent was a piney unripe mango note with hints of pineapple and resin. The mouthfeel is really very nice. It’s not as thick as many in the style, but feels substantially viscous with low carbonation, befitting the style. The flavors are subdued compared to the nose, but nice nonetheless. Again, big piney unripe mangos, obvious pale malt sweetness with just the lightest touch of caramel and pineapple. The finish clean and lightly sweet with an immediate amping up of the hop flavors. It’s not until the aftertaste that the full bitterness kicks in. Really resinous pine notes with huge bitterness and a bit of alcohol warming (this being the only place where alcohol shows up). As it warms I start picking up spicy hints of kaffir lime. This is really a deliciously well balanced brew. I would almost say this is too balanced to be a double IPA, but I’m certainly not complaining. The alcohol is really the only thing that prevents this from being a session beer! Better overall than Two-Hearted, and yet I rated it lower? Maybe it’s because I expected this to be more double? Maybe because there’s not a lot of complexity? Maybe it’s because I drink a few pints of Two-Hearted every Sunday watching the Patriots game? In any event, I love them both! Feb 27, 2007 I don’t know what sort of crack I was smoking when I rated this. I had to boost the flavor by 1, the hops are so tangy, even as this poor beer ages, it holds its own. The aroma nearly got a boost, but I just don’t know given the overall is so high. This is a damn fine beer by any account.

Strong aromas of citrus and grapefruit hops with a piney cinnamon bread backing. Some lacing. Opaque and cantaloupe in color. Crisp hop bite. Plenty of brisk grapefruit, melon and hop flavors. Dusky, drying finish. This is a whole beer, with magnificent yet delicate hop additions.

Split 12 ounce bottle in pint glass. Slightly hazy golden orange with lasting flat head and lace. Fresh hop aroma. Sweet and citrusy with hop flavor and drying finish. Medium body and carbo. More like an imperial fresh hop than a double/imperial IPA. And I love fresh hop beers. My favorite of the imperial IPAs so far. Excellent!

Big, huge, grapefruit and pine aroma and flavor. Not much malt, but that’s characteristic of the style. I liken it to a turbo charged two hearted ale and very similar to great divide hercules. Bells never ceases to amaze me. Dind’t notice any of the 9.5% either. BTW, there’s all this talk of "tropical." It’s definitely citrusy but tropical? maybe as an extreme form of citrus. i’m done with this rating. RERATE, this is way more fruity than i remember. Lots of vegeteble aromas and flavors, kind of that that earthy fart stuff. if you drink with pretzels you can notice the alcohol. Rerate, about 5 months old and there is noticeable decline in hops. and more obvious alcohol.