A-10 Warthog Double IPA - OPA-OPA Steakhouse & Brewery

PicoPapa

Connecticut

3.98/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at the Brewpub. Pours a translucent orangey gold color with a half inch of head. Lots of lacing. Aroma of pine and tropical fruits hops. The taste is juicy citrus and tropical fruits with some piney/floral bitterness at the finish with some more citrus peel. Some sweet malt flavors as well as a nice warming alcohol presence. Def can taste the 10%ABV. Medium bodied. Overall, a boozey Double Ipa with a nice mix of hops and malts. Worth grabbing again.

Serving type: on-tap

12-05-2012 22:18:43 | More by PicoPapa

rbd13

Rhode Island

4.15/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a snifter, deep amber with two fingers of head. Looks delicious...

Pine cone and alcohol on the nose with some sweet malt...

Very hoppy with clean citrus flavors and maltiness to balance, a bit of red grapefruit...

Medium/dry body with a strong oily hop linger...

This is very drinkable despite it's high ABV, enjoy and beware!

Serving type: growler

05-03-2011 04:19:30 | More by rbd13

soze47

Massachusetts

3.65/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I remembered drinking this beer on tap over the summer and liking it very much. This is a DIPA for sure and has some unique, but not all that remarkable flavors.

Appearance: Very orange, nearly translucent body. Leaves some great lacing.

Aroma: Pretty strong smell, but nothing singularly stands out. There is a pretty high sweet smell, but there are notes of tangerines and oranges too.

Taste: I wasn't expecting the sudden pine hop flavors I got right off the bat, but an almost overwhelming sweetness sets in. This sweetness is unique on its own. As said in other reviews, it is almost candy or bubble gum like. No notes of caramel to me. Resinous, thick citrus rind bitterness tempers the sweetness at the end, almost tasting like orange or Clementine marmalade.

Mouthfeel/Drinkability: This one starts off very drinkable, especially considering the high ABV on this brew. The oily hop quality gets to be a lot more cloying as this one warms toward the end of the glass.

Overall: My local store said they just got this back in stock, so I think this guy is pretty fresh. It could stand to have a lot more assertive hop flavors to counter the intense sweetness of the malt. However, this is not a bad beer and worth a try if you can catch it on tap. I will probably pass on getting the growler again. At such a high ABV, finishing it is a task!

Serving type: growler

03-26-2011 19:23:19 | More by soze47

ComputerBeer

Massachusetts

2.48/5  rDev -35.6%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Cheesy smell, bad hop notes with little to no malt aroma. Medium body, bitter to style but has a "fake" sweet finish. Definate boozy harshness on the pallette. Cane sugar? Lots of American hop notes, somewhat to resinous. Deep golden color with lots of haze. Expected more out of this beer.

Serving type: growler

02-08-2011 19:28:11 | More by ComputerBeer

VelvetExtract

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev +10.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A-Pours a nice radiant amber color with a creamy/frothy head that retains. Lacing is quite nice as well.

S-Smells big. At 11% this is expected. Pretty strong citrus and fruity hop flavors going on here. Maltiness and pine are also quite evident. Booze is maksed well in the nose.

T-Pretty strong pine hop assault. Hefty malt balances this beer our quite well. Theres a bunch of citrus in here too. A get some sweet bublegum in there too. Quite tasty. Pretty resiny too. As the beer warms up the booze comes out more.

M-Medium-heavy with a sticky resin feel. Good carbonation.

D-At 11% you gotta pace yourself but I was expecting this beer to taste much boozier. I am pleasantly surprised, am expecting to be pretty fuzzy after the growler.

A bit pricey but worth a try for the local DIPA. Happy to see a pretty respectable big beer come from MA. A pretty good DIPA here.

Serving type: growler

12-20-2010 01:52:27 | More by VelvetExtract

sawbones420

Massachusetts

4.35/5  rDev +13%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Opa Opa is great about growlering up many of their styles and distributing them around Boston. The packie near my house always carries a lot of their varieties. I saw this DIPA for the first time and grabbed it. For $16.50 after the $2 deposit, this is an excellent value (assuming you bring the bottle back after you're finished).

Poured into a snifter. Light honey color with a decent 3/4 inch head that retains for a solid 5 minutes before dissipating to a nice sturdy lace.

Hops are at the forefront, with slight pineapple tinge. Some booze comes through, but not unpleasantly so.

Nice fruity hop flavor that doesn't leave your mouth watering from overbearing resins. More of that pineapple comes through as it washes over your mouth. Finishes with a dryish hop flavor in the back of your mouth/front of your throat. I find this to sometimes be an undesirable quality in unbalanced DIPAs (mostly west coast ones), but Opa gets it right.

Super drinkable at 11% ABV. This is very reminiscent of what Southern Tier's Unearthly tasted like in its heyday. For under $15/growler (again, after you bring your bottle back), definitely don't pass this up if you see it on the shelf. Make sure you have friends around though, as it's a bit much to drink by yourself before freshness becomes an issue.

Serving type: growler

11-14-2010 03:54:50 | More by sawbones420

portia99

Massachusetts

3.63/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Growler poured into a Portsmouth tulip.

A - Pours with a finger of loose rocky cream colored foam. A nice translucent orangey copper color fills the glass.

S - Smells rich and caramelly with some light buttered popcorn aroma. Hops are central to the aroma although not as up front as I'd like. Citrusy and grassy mostly, some pineapple and light apricot too.

T - Some alcohol, tons of caramel, a nice hoppy bitterness and some pineapple/tropical fruit character. Well balanced overall...maybe too well balanced for my liking giving a bit too much caramelly malt to be ideal for me. Some malty sweetness mixes in, at times seeming just right, at other times a bit cloying.

M - Medium bodied with medium carbonation. Get a light alcohol heat on the inhale and with every sip.

D - Good tasting DIPA...definitely not the best I've ever had, but quite good. Balanced toward the malt more than I'd like to see, but still plenty of hop flavor. Bitterness not quite up to the level that I expect out of a DIPA.

Serving type: growler

05-26-2010 15:52:04 | More by portia99

tr4nc3d

Kansas

4.38/5  rDev +13.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Received growler from ppoitras for the GaTM 2010

Pours a very dark copper color with a huge four inch slightly off white head. The head was frothy and had very great head retention that subsided very slowly. As it fades it leaves magnificent patches of lacing clinging all over the sides of my glass. Very great looking beer if you ask me and it makes my mouth water just looking at it.

The aroma consisted of very ripe citrus fruit. It has huge amounts of ripe grapefruit as the main attraction, leading is sweet tangy tangerines, and some lemon zest. Sweet caramel malts can be detected along with some pine and pink bubblegum. Overall this beer smells great. So far so good.

The taste starts off with a slightly pine needle bitterness upfront, followed by some citrus flavors of grapefruit and tangerine. Off to the end a pink bubblegum taste is present with caramel malts. Pine needle bitterness fades slowly from the start of your drink but holds it until the finish.

Mouthfeel is full bodied with slightly higher then average carbonation. Sweet and piney bitterness is left on the palate after you have taken your sip.

Overall I thought this was a pretty great DIPA and if it was available to me I would buy it often. The ABV % could not be detected and this was highly drinkable.

Serving type: growler

04-17-2010 19:03:05 | More by tr4nc3d

Duhast500

Massachusetts

3.9/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from the tap into a tasting glass.

The color is a hazy golden orange with about a finger or two of white foamy head.

The smell is pretty hoppy, some citrus and pine come right out as soon as you get close. There is a little malt flavor hiding in the background.

The taste is hoppy but a thick, feels a little off but still pretty citrusy with hints of grapefruit and some slight lemon. Some piney flavor also is present that leads into a malty sweetness at the end.

The feel of this beer is a little bit thick and somewhat heavier going down then expected. Some good carbonation with a slightly dry feel

Serving type: on-tap

02-16-2010 16:42:07 | More by Duhast500

smcolw

Massachusetts

3.88/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Impressive head right out of the growler. Leaves excellent spider-web lace. Orange-amber and slightly cloudy.

Surprisingly mild hop aroma, but it is very attractive--a nice cross between floral and bitter.

The alcohol is present but not overwhelming. Good hop bite as one would expect. Creamy body with a decent carbonation. This is really a very easy DIPA to drink--quite deceptive based on the decent balance.

Addition:
On 4/12/13, I tried the bottle version of this. Here are some of the differences I noted in this taste:

A-It bubbled out of the bottle.
S-the same
T-Stronger alcohol presence
M-Thinner with a high level of carbonation.
O-More extreme

Serving type: bottle

02-13-2010 23:22:47 | More by smcolw

jlindros

Massachusetts

4.28/5  rDev +11.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Ive been really enjoying these beers from a growler, and this one was no different.

A: Big rich creamy head with a golden orange color with slight haze.

N: Strong hop aroma with citrus, slight grapefruit, touch of pine, a little malt and booze, very nice hop aroma (maybe centennial?).

T: Rich pale malt backbone, then lots of hop oils and hop thickness you have to chew. Pine, citrus and grapefruit predominanty, but not so much west coast style as east coast (which makes sense). A light sweet caramel. More bitterness comes out. A light alcohol taste and warmth, but 11% hidden well behind the thick malts and heavy hops.

M: Thick and chewy with good carbonation.

F: Bitter and slightly dry for the thickness. Long bitter lingering taste and slight syrupy. Pine lingers the most with the nice long bitterness. I think this is their best beer yet.

Serving type: growler

01-06-2010 18:53:23 | More by jlindros

maximum12

Minnesota

3.55/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to ppoitras for shipping a growler of this my way as part of a great Secret Santa box. Had to delay the unveiling somewhat, but now it's popped open to share with neighbors & friends for the evening's festivities.

Opens with a satisfactory hiss & pours with a nice white head, proof that it has suffered little from its imprisonment in its glass cell. Light amber for a DIPA. Smell is unaggressive for the style, but with a faint sweet, lemony, almost Dawn-like aroma.

Somehow, the Warthog managed to conceal the hops from the nose, because they're definitely in there. The first blast is unwashed hops with an accompanying country twang of soapy bitterness coming quick behind; but there's something just a touch off. The malts are too prominent for this hophead, quickly beating the hops into submission & allowing the caramel melt to slide into the backside of the taste profile. It's an odd tandem: the hops stick to the roof of one's mouth, but the aftertaste is of the malts. Huh. Interesting.

Overall, a good brew & an interesting interpretative dance on the style. The hops are a touch too much bitter & a touch too little tasty, & that weird end profile...well, I'll be glad to get other's impressions of this. I like it!

Serving type: growler

01-01-2010 01:52:18 | More by maximum12

Jayli

Massachusetts

4.22/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Had 9/26 courtesy of TheManiacalOne - so big THANK YOU goes out to him!

This beer pours a deep copper almost amber color with a monsterous rocky offwhite head. Head retained for a long time leaving nice thick, sticky lacing on the glass. Nose is of citrus hops, some piney notes, a touch of fruit and caramel malts. Taste starts with a big dose of hops - citrus and piney hops hit the tongue first, the middle is filled with caramel malts, finish is slightly bitter with a decent dose of floral hops that I didn't pick up in the nose. Medium bodied, medium carbonation, touch of alcohol going down with a big sticky finish to this beer. If only the ABV were a just a "touch" more reasonable, this would be a highly sessionable beer... regardless, it's a nice one to have a pint or two of and enjoy.

Serving type: growler

10-07-2009 00:29:32 | More by Jayli

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

4.47/5  rDev +16.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Poured into a US tumbler pint glass from a 64oz. store-bought growler that was purchased and consumed on 9/26/09.

A: The beer is a light golden brown color, with a large off-white head that fades very slowly and leaves a thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma is a good blend of floral hops, citrus and caramelized malts

T: The taste starts with a strong burst of piney hops, which is quickly followed by sweet flavors of citrus and caramel. The malt character is hearty but not too heavy and there's a good balance. The after-taste is slightly hoppy and slightly sweet.

M: Smooth and very crisp, medium body, medium carbonation, finish is slightly sticky.

D: Tasty, goes down very easily, not too filling, deceptively strong kick, very good representation of style, I shared a small portion of the growler with someone else but I drank the majority of it and it was very enjoyable. This is definitely the type of beer that is worth drinking throughout the entire evening for as long as you are able to do so responsibly.

Serving type: growler

09-27-2009 00:34:55 | More by TheManiacalOne

tai4ji2x

Massachusetts

4.03/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

store-bought growler, tasted in early april 2009.

coppery amber with faint haze. lots of light tan head slowly fades into a thin but constant layer. great lacing.

aroma: piney resins (very fresh upfront), with nots of grapefruit. hint of caramel underneath. some more tropical notes as it warms, but somewhat duller than expected/hoped.

taste: sweetness from the caramel meets the sweetness from the yeasty apple esters, into the citrusy hops, which are more of grapefruit rind and piney resins toward the finish, with some medicinal and phenolic notes. moderate to bold bitterness, with more resins into the finish.

medium body, nicely syrupy, with momentary, mild resins in the finish. lightly prickly carbonation can be creamy and fluffy.

a decent surprise. needs 3 or more people to finish the growler though. my brother and i struggled a little...

Serving type: growler

05-17-2009 01:47:18 | More by tai4ji2x

Ragingbull

California

4.18/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

I have had this beer both at the Opa-Opa facility in Southampton and for this particular review at the Brewmaster's Tavern in Williamsburg.

It was a dark amber in color with a moderate foam head. Somewhat cloudy in appearance. The nose is mildly hoppy. The attack is very hoppy and the flavor is distinctly hoppy as well, but it is tastefully done and a very pleasant beer. Very smooth mouthfeel feels "velvety" in the mouth.

Serving type: on-tap

05-06-2009 17:25:07 | More by Ragingbull

far333

Connecticut

3.4/5  rDev -11.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Honey copper colored with a low orangey-beige head.

Citrusy aroma, some honey and apricot.

Flavors of doughey malt and some surprisingly understated citrusy hops. Morphs to honey and pine, some grapefruit pith notes. Flavors overall are a bit muted and understated. ABV warmth is moderate for the strength of this beer.

Moderate carbonation, even mouthfeel upfront and finishes tingly.

Average drinkability, expected more complexity and richness of flavor.

Serving type: growler

04-09-2009 11:23:09 | More by far333

RedChrome

Connecticut

3.93/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Clear body was a medium copper color. Inch thick eggshell colored head faded down in about three minutes. Tiny slow rising carbonation bubbles are plentiful. lacing in rings around glass.

Aroma was a bit subdued for what i expected. Hop scents were pine like but weren't as strong as the single IPA OPA-OPA makes. A faint hint of lemon citrus.

Taste is nice and bitter. Hops show nicely and have a grapefruit quality. Pine resin clings to the taste bads after everything else fades.

Decent thickness, but not too viscous. Carbonation is a bit overpowering.

A decent brew. Would work well with a pulled pork sandwich. Worth the cost of the growler. Give it a try if you can get your hands on some.

Serving type: growler

04-06-2009 05:52:37 | More by RedChrome

Durge

Connecticut

4.5/5  rDev +16.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I was thrilled to see this DIPA show up in the cooler at Southington Wine & Spirits and thankfully it didn't disappoint one bit. A glowing hazy orange amber colord ale with a very big light oatmeal colored head and great lacing. The aroma is piney hops with sweet and briney caramel malt. Very nice. The taste is nearly off the charts good. Thick piney hops blended wonderfully with salty malt, nutty rye, a touch of bubblegum perhaps, some root beer. Mostly it's about a wonderfully guzzleable blend of firm hop bitterness and smooth malt sweetness. I could just finish one pint as quick as I started the next but I guess I wouldn't be standing long at this ABV. Nicely carbonated, just a great DIPA from OPA OPA!

Serving type: growler

04-04-2009 18:25:29 | More by Durge

Billolick

New York

4.22/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to JohnQvegas for the spur of the moment growler trade. This unexpected treat poured typical darker honey amber, under an equally typical darker tan small bubble head and leaving respectable lace on the glass. Hop bomb nose is a harbinger of things to come. Well hopped, yet easy drinking DIPA. Balanced by a nice, smooth undercoating of malt, this one ends up quite enjoyable for hop head and mere mortals alike. Easily my favorite Opa offering to date. This one brakes out of the middle of road malaise which afflicted the other Opa options I have tried. Nice DIPA.

Serving type: growler

03-21-2009 21:48:34 | More by Billolick

bgjohnston

Connecticut

4.43/5  rDev +15.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I had heard that growlers of Warthog had gotten only limited distribution in CT, and had given up on finding it when it turned up on a chance visit to a new liquor store in my area. It was not super fresh, and had been sitting on a room temperature shelf for who-knows how long, but I decided to take home the only growler that I was able to find since hearing about this beer.

It poured a dark amber, slightly cloudy, with a generous light tan head and good carbonation that was still going strong after a glass mid-afternoon, and another in the late evening. It also had a nice sharp citrus smell of hops that came through the slight head cold I seem to have been fighting all winter long.

Taste was very rewarding; nice and hoppy to start, with a strong malty presence through to the finish. I did not find it overly sweet or harshly bitter, more of a floral citrus bite trailing off into a mild caramel sweetness.

In comparing this beer to other offerings of the season, I am tempted to identify Warthog as a less explosive version of the Bigfoot barleywine. Bigfoot is really hoppy for a barleywine, while Warthog is very solidly malty for a double IPA. The big difference is that the alcohol is completely hidden in the Warthog, so that while I find Bigfoot to be an enjoyable "sipper" in front of the fire after shoveling too much snow, the Warthog is almost a "gulper", with no hint that this beer is over 10% ABV.

I am really happy I got a chance to try this beer. I have no idea when I might see it again, but wouldn't hesitate to recommend it highly.

Serving type: growler

03-15-2009 13:10:11 | More by bgjohnston

Gambrinus1184

Connecticut

3.85/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Served on-tap in a 3-oz. sample glass at the Brewmaster's Tavern adjacent to the Opa-Opa Brewery in Williamsburg, Mass.

A: Poured a sticky, hazy looking burnt orange color with a thin layer of foamy residue. Hop oils can almost be seen floating in this brew like fudge swirl ice cream.

S: Smell is quite pungent in the hop department, with grassy, herbal notes and pine needle being subdued slightly by spiced grapefruit.

T: A big, potent and alcoholic blend of sweet caramel malts and sticky hop characteristics. A slightly bitter and spicy grapefruit flavor can be noted at first, with a musky and burning pine flavor to follow it. Very good, but a sipper indeed.

M: Mouthfeel is full bodied and quite sticky from the hop profile exhibited here.

D: There was a 12-oz. max offering of this on-tap, and probably for good reason. A big, tasty DIPA with a lot of punch behind it. Won't appeal to even some hopheads because it is a little raw still. Others will turn away from the solvent.

I was told by the bartender that this DIPA was at 17%, and it did not taste like that at all, meaning either it's extremely well crafted, or she's just a liar. I'm leaning towards the latter, but still, a very tasty, powerfully hoppy ale with strong alcoholic hop resin flavors masked with sweet and subduing malts.

Serving type: on-tap

02-24-2009 00:53:10 | More by Gambrinus1184

Hophead101

Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

drank on 12.13.08 at home. recieved this from ppoitras in the Nov/Dec 'growling at the moon'.

nice reddish copper color - clear - quite a nice looking and inviting beer. decent foamy head but didn't last too long. smell was a malty hop smell. you can definitley smell the alcohol in the background as well.

taste is strong malty alcohol. creamy and buttery. nice taste once the alcohol zing subsides. and it really only hits you on the first taste. the 11% is definitely not hidden - but it doesn't alter the taste or appreciation for this beer. can't drink a whole lot of them, but am definitely enjoying it.

Serving type: growler

12-13-2008 22:34:45 | More by Hophead101

dashirey

Pennsylvania

3.68/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

I received this growler from ppoitras. It was sent for this cycle of Growling at the Moon - thanks for the opportunity to try this brew.

A - Slight hazy orange-amber colored. One finger of head that reduces to virtually nothing. Speaking of nothing - there was really no lacing left behind from this beer either.

S - Combination of alcohol, hops, and sweetness. At times each one takes control and flexes it own muscle.

T - This definitely should be considered a malty, sweet DIPA. Reminds very much of the last Weyerbacher Double Simcoe I had. I'm not sure what hops were used in this beer, but that is my assessment. The malty sweetness along with alcohol dominate the taste of this beer - it is 11% after all.

M - Smooth at first but the alcohol burn quickly follows. Medium-bodied but the sweetness gives leaves your mouth feeling sticky and syrupy.

D - I like this one, but the alcohol and sweetness would make this a tough one to drink over and over.

Serving type: growler

11-16-2008 20:50:48 | More by dashirey

wwheeler

Massachusetts

4.13/5  rDev +7.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

The Warthog dIPA was on-cask at Brewmasters in Williamsburg. It had a lovely reddish brown color, and was very drinkable considering it was a double IPA. The aftertaste was a little sweet, so certainly not a hoppy kick normally associated with an IPA. I haven't had this in a while, but when I did it was from a tap, so from what I remember the cask seemed smoother and richer in flavor. I was told that it had been aged in an oak cask, which I think helped to smooth out the flavor and alcohol compared to the regular Warthog on tap.

Even though the Warthog dIPA may not be on par with other dIPAs (certainly like the ones from the west-coast), it's nice to see that there are some brewers in Western Mass giving it a shot.

Serving type: cask

03-18-2008 15:08:18 | More by wwheeler