Durham Hop Addict

Brewed by County Durham Brewing
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Pickering, Canada

Golden-amber. The aroma is a panoply of hoppage - earthy, citrusy (yuzu, grapefruit), woody, perfumey with light caramel malt. Woody palate is moderately bitter with slight caramel, toffee, and hints of brown sugar.

Tap at Caeli Cottage in Toronto. Pours a light amber- deep copper with a thin but lasting white head. Aroma is sharp nutty toasted malts caramel- crystal malts and light fruitiness with a ctirus and orange zest light pine hop kick. Flavor is hoppy, a bit resinous with some pine with a toffee and caramel maltinss, toast and a gritty hoppy bitterness in the end. I liked drinking the Hop Head IPA a bit more just because it was easier to drink- this was a bit too tacky in the end. Solid though.

Draught at Volo. Orange-amber colour with a tiny head. Aroma is mild, a bit earthy with a hint of hops. Flavour is quite hoppy to start, overpowering anything else that’s in there, but it settles down nicely after a few sips. Hops are of that pleasant grapefruity variety that I tend to like, and it’s backed up by good malts that are biscuity and a bit earthy/minerally. The brewer describes this as being influenced by the beers of the US Pacific Northwest, and I can see that in the hops, but the rest of the beer fits nicely with the UK style ales that Durham specializes in. All in all, a pleasant, non-pretentious pint.

Draught at Volo. Copper-brown body with a creamy white head and soft lacing. The aroma is full of piney wood hops, light caramel, and oranges. Solid earthy body with a good whack of hops up front making way for the sweet caramel middle. Loooong bitter finish. Good to see another IPA in Ontario!

Sweaty, catty, citrus grapefruit and orange suggestions to the nose. Clear copper coloured body is topped by a low tan head that recedes slowly to partial cover with excellent lacing. Caramel malts are quite pronounced but blend well with moderate bitterness. Plenty of lingering citrus and grassy hop character in the aftertaste. Very dry in texture with moderate carbonation. Sampled on tap at Caffe Volo during Grey Cup weekend 2007.

The hops are back! See previous notes, but I can bump my rating back up because this is now consistently hoppy fruity and delicious. Newest batch early 2007 not so good - hops have faded, leaving behind the all too generic English based malts dominating the proceedings. Bring back the hops - turn them up not down, especially with a name like this! I’ll average the cores out until I try it again. Original rating: On tap at Volo. Dark orange, small white head. Nice citrus hop aroma - grapefruit - and some sweet malt notes. Nice hop taste - this is an English style session ale, lots of rich caramel and sweet notes with a noticeably American hoppy bite - very similar to the new Headstrong, but even better in my opinion - a little less body but much more hops. Only complaint: because the body is a little thin, it becomes a little too sweet and then unbalanced as it warms. But served chilled, this is a great Ontario beer and a nice effort by Durham. And they should be commended for pushing our conservative little Province wide envelope.

On tap at C’est what? Copper liquid is topped with a frothy beige cap. The aroma is heavy citric hops(mostly grapefruit)with some pine, followed by bready, cookie dough and caramel. Taste is bright cirtus rind hops, fresh leafy greens and pine with some butterscotch and caramel sweetness. This is quite dry and chalky, and finishes bitter and and tasty. I wish it was available near me!

On tap at the Magpie. Copper in colour, with just a thick film of head. Lots of C hops in the nose, with some earthiness underneath. In fact, early, mid and late hop additions all make their significant presences felt in this beer. There is a lovely caramel malt backbone. Finish and body are just so-so.