Oggis Hop Whompus

Formerly brewed at Left Coast/Oggis Pizza and Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Del Mar, California USA

Nose is Mangos and hops. That is my nose’s take on this. Very nice. The hops are not as prevalent in thetaste but it is syrupy and heavy like the 120 Minute IPA. Not as hoppy but still laden with fruity syrup.

One sip and BLAMMO! Crucified by Pontius Whompus. Delicious. This makes the hair on my back dance the polka. Just super duper hops madness. There might be some malt in here, but I sure couldn’t find any. I was Rodney King and the hops were the LAPD, beating me mercilessly within an inch of my life. Mad delicious.

Tap at Vista location. Orange with a small head and nice lacing. Taste is gigantic orange, black licorice and bitter as hell. Me thinks the giant hop and big abv are masking a flaw, as there’s a light plastic-rubber flavor underneath.

Tap at Oggi’s of Carlsbad. Pours to a very murky reddish-brown body with a thin white head and decent lacing. The flavor is intensely malty and hoppy. Sweet and sticky. Citrus hops, peaches, sweet syrup. The is most excellent. Definitely worthy of the ratings. the aroma is maple syrup, citrus hops, lots of malt. The palate is rich, full-bodied, chewy. Excellent. I am not worthy.

Pours a clear ruby sienna with a nice even head of super creamy ivory tan. Pungent sticky aroma of what seem to be strong Cascade and Centennial hops, including a backing of strawberry candy, fresh orange juice, pine, more citrus and all the inclusive flavors of a severly hopped up beer, excluding any grassy harshness. A wicked sweet caramel and brown sugar glow from the background, drifting down from the hop mountain. Flavor is a saccharin hop candy, like freshly boiled pine tea and squeezed droplets of grapefruit juice rolled into melted sugars. Hoppy, but in my opinion not destructively so. There are some almost gentle floral and citrus movements, melding with the current of malt. Honey-sweetened blood oranges with glowing resins. A little flat from the ride. The alcohol glows in the nose, bringing with it the aromatics of the hop cones, as it should. The sweet candy characterisitcs and gentle alcohols are good vessels from the hop abuse; almost a sweet salve. Yet, it bites in the end. The smack is a strong kick in the ass, almost spicy awakening as it leaves. Again, forgetting the parching grassiness. A deft use of hops, in reality. If this beer didn’t get total raves from me, it’s because it didn’t seem entirely balanced, the malt was overpowered, and the alcohol at tinge hot at times. Also, I’m not an avid fan of double reds.

Orangeish clear amber with an inch of bubbly white head that falls into small peaks and valleys, leaving a mess of lacing.Wow, this smells fantastic. tons of hops, but with a dozen fruit aromas: grapefruit, orange, peaches, among others. overall a very juicy aroma that invites a taste. Taste is nice blend of hops. more pine and florals in the flavor than in the aroma, but with all of the citrusy flavors expected from the aroma. very hoppy, but not overly bitter. balanced and drinkable.

This is one of those beers that you put on your want list without ever really hoping to get it. This is perhaps my most sought after IIPA, and I could not believe that Secret Santa came through with it. Thanks a ton! The color was hazy brown, on the deep brown end of the amber/brown ale scale, with a 2-3-finger light tan head. The aroma was a lot like Dreadnaught (In fact, I did a few side-by-side sips with these two), but hoppier and with more caramel malty brown sugar hints and layers of tropical fruit and citric fruits. The taste was nirvana for a grizzled hophead such as myself, with huge fruity yet citric hops, with hints of pineapple, honeydew, Bell pepper, ground black peppercorns, papaya, and tangerine. I still think Dreadnaught is a tad fruitier, but this one is infinitesimally better overall, with a denser and slightly more complex palate and flavor profile, and has taken the pinnacle position in my all-time pantheon of IIPAs. When I die and hopefully go to Heaven, I want an endless keg of this and an endless supply of women who look and act like the chicks from the HBO show "The L Word." Yeah, man!!

Pours a very dark ruby amber color with a small off white head. Nose is very sweet and very hoppy. Lots of candy sugars and grapefruit. Taste is very syrupy and a very sticky palate. Lots of hopps, lots of sugary notes and candy galore. A light alcohol nose now. Has a slight hint of alcohol in the finish, and leaves your mouth very sticky and dry.