Urthel Hop-It - De Leyerth Brouwerijen (Urthel)

DavidST

Texas

3.35/5  rDev -15.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 330ml bottle into a snifter, unknown bottled date.

This pours a hazy unfiltered yeast filed green tea like color (a murky light tan), with a decent white head which dissipates down to a thin layer. The initial nose is of alcohol, then I get some grassy notes, a hint of belgian yeast esters, and a little grainy malts, definitely not an in your face amount of hops. As much as the alcohol is in the nose, I'm nervous about how well its going to be hidden. The feel is medium with plenty of tingly carbonation. The taste is okay, the alcohol is pretty present as I feared. The taste is of grainy malts, a little hops, a long dry finish with a lingering alcohol after taste. To be honest I from the few Belgian IPAs I've tried, I prefer the ones made in America over the ones made in Belgium, I don't think they're used to the West Cost style of an insane amount of hops, this is much closer to an English IPA and is far less hoppy than even an American Pale Ale.

Serving type: bottle

07-24-2011 19:43:53 | More by DavidST

tdm168

North Carolina

3.58/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

11.2oz bottle poured in a brandy snifter

Pours a perfect amber with moderate head. Nose is unexpected. Was looking for more hops and obvious Belgian yeast, but instead mild hops and malts. Taste is good though for an IPA very mild hop character; malts come through nice and the alcohol is masked well. Mouthfeel is very smooth and crisp. Not a bad IPA, but it won't have me switching from American to Belgian any time soon.

Serving type: bottle

07-19-2011 01:06:32 | More by tdm168

PDXHops

South Carolina

3.85/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

11.2 ounce bottle poured into a Duvel tulip. Slightly hazy golden body with a massive initial head that condenses slowly to a skim. Speckly lacing all around.

Nose is full of noble hop goodness: grassy, spicy, floral and citric notes abount. Cloves and booze in the background. No date on the bottle, but the sharp bitterness and fresh hop flavors suggest freshness. There's a smooth, almost thickish feel, but not enough to blunt all those hops. Very little sweetness from the malt profile, but there's a nice crispness to it. A hint of funk. Good stuff. There's a rather strong booziness, though, that somewhat limits drinkability and enjoyment, though. Dial this back to 7% or so and oh, baby.

Serving type: bottle

07-15-2011 19:35:09 | More by PDXHops

Beer4Baltimore

Maryland

4.18/5  rDev +5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A - crystal clear bright gold with an inch of sticky head.
S - nothing too strong. I expected more hops. A little malty underneath some mild hops with a trace of yeast.
T - light sweet malts with a solid hoppy background and just a touch of yeast. The alcohol is a little biting in the finish, but sometimes I like my IPA's that way.
M - crisply carbonated, light bodied and smooth unlike some harsher IPA's.
D - an easily drinkable IPA.
I was expecting more of a Hop bomb, but that is just my east coast hop head coming through.
Overall it's a good smooth nicely hopped ale that will quickly be gone from my glass.

addendum: the last few ounces brings up a little sediment that wakes the Belgian yeast portion of the beer.

Serving type: bottle

06-17-2011 23:42:38 | More by Beer4Baltimore

ksimons

New York

4.1/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A-pours a golden orange with lots of visible carbonation bubbles and a thin layer of white head that sticks to the edge of the glass

S-pale malts, piney hops, light fruits

T-taste starts out with pale toasted malts and caramel sweetness but quickly gives in to the dominant hops. Still able to pick up on the sweet malts though which I like. Alcohol starts to pick up by the end.

M-medium body, moderate carbonation

Overall its a very tasty beer, not too hop heavy which was good for me, but had enough bitterness going on to make it interesting

Serving type: bottle

06-11-2011 21:54:20 | More by ksimons

mryuk

Illinois

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

pours an unfiltered orange with almost a bit of pink and little head.

smell is a bit of honey with earthy hops. light.

taste is lots of honey. almost mead-like with a hint of earthy hops.

mouth is medium with good carbonation.

drinkability is ok for what it is but not great.

Serving type: bottle

06-11-2011 17:12:32 | More by mryuk

rustrose

North Carolina

2.63/5  rDev -33.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

Urthel Hop-It

12 oz bottle served in Jever pils glass. Pours gold with a thick, soapy white head of two inches that holds forever and leaves lots of lace. Very sticky foam.

Sweet grainy cheap malt smell hits on the nose first, like a malt liquor. However, this is soon enhanced with a candy-like presence that’s a dead ringer for “smarties.” Floral, almost soapy dimension. Weird. Seems to just keep evolving. Some pear in there, and that weird harsh powdery chalk/drying smell

Kind of a weird beer. Tastes of sweet grainy malts, like PBR supersized, followed by a dose of harsh herbal hops, with a little bit of candy thrown in along the way. Finish is long, confused, and cloying, with herbal hops, Necco wafers, unidentifiable fruit, and some kind of sweet multigrain bread. Just doesn’t clean up very well.

Mouthfeel is medium and highly spritzy with tons of champagne-like prickle.

Low drinkability because of the sweet and cloying aspect, with too much sweet grainy malt. This tastes like a Belgian malt liquor. Blech.

Very disappointing beer. Not sure if this is an old bottle that just isn’t doing this one justice, or if this beer just sucks. But this really lacked balance, cleanness, and digestibility, and was such a chore to drink that I’m dumping the remaining half bottle. I’ve given this one several chances in this 4-pack, and it’s just not doing it for me at all, especially after all the other great, balanced BIPAs that I’ve been trying.

Serving type: bottle

06-07-2011 07:11:25 | More by rustrose

Cozzatoad

Italy

3.68/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml bottle

A- Clear and bright golden. Medium to big fluffy and solid white head that leaves a lot a lacing on the glass

S- Not as hoppy as expected maybe; sweet malt notes (caramel?), with a hint of spiciness to them, maybe from the alcohol. Then of course hops are there, bringing a grassy feel with some lemon and orange notes

T- Very much like the aroma; malts are solid and on the sweet side, though i can't get any particular flavour, and there is some yeast in the mix. Hops bring a decent amount of background flavours, mainly lemon and a fresh grass feel, maybe some orange. A pleasant hint of bitterness in the aftertaste

M- A very delicate feel. Soft on the palate, expecially for the style, with a medium body that i actually expected to be bigger given the 9.5%ABV, which is nowhere to be detected

O- Refreshing and an easy drink, with that classic belgian feel to it. An interesting take if you are looking for an hoppy but not overwhelmingly bitter beer. Nothing mindblowing yet

Serving type: bottle

06-03-2011 13:08:41 | More by Cozzatoad

DAllspaw

Indiana

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

on tap at bier market in Toronto

Solid white head in tulip glass, golden yellow color and relatively clear. A little bit sweet in the smell, not picking up as much hops as expected from description. Taste is nice balance of hop, malt with ttraditional belgian characteristicsm which is a good thing. Surprised at high abv, would have never guessed.

This is a very solid beer in it's own right, just not overwhelming, could be unfair after having Leffe before.

Serving type: on-tap

06-02-2011 01:33:11 | More by DAllspaw

SkeeterHawk

Texas

4.03/5  rDev +2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This is one of the few Urthel beers that I haven't reviewed yet, and in fact, I don't think that I have tried this one yet. I am not a big hop-head, but I am hopeful that some of the other Urthel characteristics will come through. Let's see:

Appearance: Pours mostly clear and a yellow golden color with a huge 3+" head of bone white foam on top that grew at least 1/2" after the pour. There is a solid amound of creamy foam that stands the whole way through the beer and this leaves thick sheets of lace on the glass after drinking. The lace is solid and uniform, looking like real lace. This is a pretty well presented beer.

Aroma: There is a good deal of hops here, but they aren't dry or powdery or anything. The alcohol is already noticeable too, but not as a heat, but a defined peppery spice. Above that, there is some dry malty notes like they are wheat derived and some sweet caramel. Other than that...there is more hops. As the beer warms, there is evident spice from the alcohol. The wheat and dry malty notes are also getting more prevalent as the beer warms.

Taste: The flavor, though hoppy, isn't nearly as bitter as the aroma would have suggested. There is solid hops as floral and a bit of citrus up front, but there is a solid malty backbone of toasty notes and sweet caramel that the beer is sitting on. Overall, surprisingly, the beer is medium to light bodied with plenty of carbonation, but the beer is coming across as a lot bigger than your typical Belgian IPA and is bordering on Quadruple. Overall the finish is balanced very well. There is sweetness and hops both to hang out on the palate, but if I had to choose, the malt is the winner by a hair in the finish.

Opinion: This is a good beer. The blend of hops and malt go well together. I like the balance in the finish. There is toasty sweetness and hop bitterness playing all over your palate, and the alcohol comes in late and pretty much cleans up the whole mess. All this said, I like the Samaranth better as it is more blatant alcohol mixed with malt and other characteristics. As it is, this beer does well for what it is supposed to be, so if you like Pale Ales in general, run to the store to give this a try as it is a quality brew. Myself?...I will enjoy the rest of my glass, and wouldn't turn down the beer if it gets offered to me, but since I am not much of a hop-head, I will try this beer again as the opportunity presents itself again as a new review.

Serving type: bottle

05-26-2011 08:02:13 | More by SkeeterHawk

allergictomacros

Ontario (Canada)

3.75/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Clear gold. Solid inch of thick foam.

S - Orange, tangerines. Stone fruit - peaches mostly, and some grass.

T - Lots of fruit and yeastiness up front. Some bitter orange as well. Fairly dry.

M - Hard carbonation and medium body.

D - A bit unbalanced. Not really a favorite. Flavour profile is too heavy for quaffing but worth trying.

Serving type: on-tap

05-17-2011 16:51:48 | More by allergictomacros

DearthVader

California

4.18/5  rDev +5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

On tap at The Stuffed Sandwich

Pours a very murky glowing gold. A nice 1 1/2" fluffy white head sits atop and leaves nice thick lacing throughout.

Smells of spicy grains, slight citrus, and some yeast.

Taste is of citrus and Belgian yeast. Slight spice and finished with a nice wet, hoppy feel. Very nice spin on a Belgian.

Mouthfeel is relatively creamy and a ton of carbonation. The carbonation makes it almost puckering at the end.

Very enjoyable! I'm really liking Belgian month at The Stuffed Sandwich. Cheers!

Serving type: on-tap

05-10-2011 21:07:19 | More by DearthVader

Jules11788

California

4.15/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a big white head, dissipates quickly; medium lacing; cloudy, golden-copper color

S: Tart, slightly fruity/herby and hoppy, little bit of malt

T: Starts out tart and herby, then develops into a more hoppy/bitter finish with some peppery/boozy notes at the end; very smooth for 9.5% abv

M: Light/Medium body, very smooth; slightly carbonated

O: Very delicious! As a fan of IPAs and Imperial IPAs I really enjoyed the slight tartness of this belgian style. I'm not usually a fan of tart Belgians, but this one was just so well balanced with the hops. I would very much recommend this.

Serving type: bottle

05-06-2011 21:27:31 | More by Jules11788

vfgccp

New York

4.2/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A – Clear light gold. Tall white head with a moderately loose bubble structure. Ok lace.

S – The aromas are clean and crisp. Spicy notes of coriander, pink peppercorns, and clove are wrapped around bitter and herbal notes of tarragon, sage and Curacao.

T – The taste is fruitier than the nose, but still carries similar spice / herb themes. Orange zest and pink peppercorns take the fore front, while the hop bitterness plays out as sage. Their yeast also managed to pull out light honey and banana notes. Overall the profile is very well integrated.

M – Well carbonated, with a soft, medium body. Sweet and herbal bitter backend.

O – Great flavor with a smooth and refreshing body. Surprisingly good with a variety of fresh fruit, particularly green grapes.

Serving type: bottle

04-26-2011 21:48:08 | More by vfgccp

rdilauro

Connecticut

4.15/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Nice golden light pour with a nice creamy head. The hops come right out in slam you in the face, but in a really nice way. Its hard to imagine this beer is over 9% alcohol.

Finishes perfectly, a nice summer and enjoyable brew.
Yeast is present but nothing overdone

This was my second tasting of this brew. I am remembering my first taste, that it seemed like there was much more hops. I was trying to find the IBU's on this one just to check.

Serving type: bottle

04-19-2011 01:06:03 | More by rdilauro

dogfishandi

New York

4.03/5  rDev +2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

11.2oz bottle around fridge temp poured into a tulip glass. not sure what the bottling code translates too.

pours out a very nice golden color with hues of orange in the light. hazy with some sediment. big fluffy, velvet, sopay white head. foamy cap at first, decent retention, good lace at first.

not a huge aroma, but still decent. spicy phenols mostly noticable, clove, some pepper, bubblegum. lemon citrus hops.

spicy phenols, lemon citrus, leafy hop, bubblegum at the forefront. also some pepper, maybe a touch of sweet grains. a nice level of bitterness, finishes with some warming alcohol.

lively carbonation over the whole palate. medium to full bodied. bitterness lingers for a bit.

a solid belgian IPA, but there are better more easily obtainable ones out there IMO.

Serving type: bottle

04-16-2011 20:43:05 | More by dogfishandi

n2185

North Carolina

3.58/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 1 | overall: 4

A: pours a clear golden orange with 3 fingers of white head that retains well with decent lacing.

S: sweet bubblegum and candy sugar at first followed by a spicy Belgian yeasty spiciness. Bananas and cloves as well. Very little hops.

T: Bitter pine flavors up front with some sweet fruit and Belgian yeasty spiciness underneath as well. Bitter finish as well.

M: light body and mid-high carbonation, this beer is nice and crisp.

O: not a bad beer, but I wish the hops were more pronounced other than in bitterness.

Serving type: on-tap

04-12-2011 21:32:04 | More by n2185

drtth

Pennsylvania

4.03/5  rDev +2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a snifter glass. Glass of cold water on the side to sip from periodically.

Appearance: The beer pours out with a lightly hazed golden color with loads of bubbles rising from the glass. The ½” frothy white head that recedes slowly leaving some nice lacing behind. Eventually the head settles into a ring of foam around the glass with a thin layer covering the liquid. For most of the beer sipping leaves a patch of foam and irregular patches and legs of lacing.

Smell: The aromas are fresh, clean and grassy with a touch of citrus zest (lemon) backed up by a bit of floral spicy character.

Taste: As predicted by the nose, the flavors are grassy and spicy with some nice citric zest. The malt provides a light sweet backbone that supports the hops but leaves them the leading role.

Mouthfeel: The mouth feel is full to medium bodied and quite smooth with gentle persistent carbonation. The finish is relatively long with a gently bitter finish that ends in dryness.

Drinkability and Overall Impression: I think this is a nicely drinkable beer. Each sip follows the other nicely. That said there is just enough sweetness here that it does slow me down a bit. My overall impression is of a well made beer that I’ve really enjoyed. Its nice to have had a Belgian IPA made with noble hops rather than American hops as were the Belgian style IPAs I had sampled in the past.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2011 19:59:13 | More by drtth

BuzzLitebier

Maryland

3.55/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A buddy left this at my house, and I decided to give it a try. When I poured it, the aroma reminded me of a pilsner, but I also caught the sweet smell of a Belgian ale. It was a nice light honey color and had a good head, which disappeared quickly. The beer wasn't too bad- definitely had the ketones of a Belgian but decent lingering hops to offset it. Would I have it again? I'm not a huge blonde Belgian ale fan, and I wouldn't buy it myself, but if someone were to get it for me, I wouldn't pass it up.

Serving type: bottle

04-10-2011 00:56:38 | More by BuzzLitebier

slonsk

New York

3.5/5  rDev -11.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Nice head, light golden color
S: Fruity, spicy scent
T: Little hop bite, spicy golden belgian, bit of hops/bite on finish. Was hoping for bit more hoppiness
M: Crisp, but not smooth
O: Ok, not notably special. Wanted a better finish and bit more hop

Serving type: bottle

03-23-2011 00:17:16 | More by slonsk

womencantsail

California

4.28/5  rDev +8.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Thanks for sharing this one, Patrick.

A: The beer pours a clear golden color with a large white head and lots of carbonation.

S: A nice floral and spicy hop aroma to the beer. Definitely a lot of yeast influence as it's decently spicy with some fruit notes. Some mild sweetness of malt and bread.

T: Nicely balanced between bitterness, floral and grassy hop flavor, and malt. The malt character is primarily bread and is not all that sweet, but it does give a nice balance. Somewhat dry on the finish.

M: Medium in body with a lively carbonation.

O: Sort of like a hopped up tripel, but really nice and easy to drink, no matter what you call it.

Serving type: bottle

03-20-2011 22:08:17 | More by womencantsail

dstc

Florida

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

Pours a somewhat pale, clear gold color with a huge white head. Head falls oh so slow. Clinging, sticky lace.

Spicy aroma filled with Belgian yeast. Hops are mild but there.

Taste is like a Belgian ale, rather typical but with bitter hops added. You can pick up the Belgian yeast and spices then it turns a bit hoppy and ends slightly bitter.

Medium bodied on the tongue and a bit biting. Smooth though.

Good stuff. Interesting to have a rather typical Belgian ale but with a hop kick. Easy to drink.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2011 14:27:13 | More by dstc

doopiedoopiedoo

Netherlands

3.98/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottle bought at Bert's Bierhuis.

Nice dark golden, slightly hazy with a little bit of head.

Hoppy smell with typical Belgian yeast notes and a little alchohol.

A typical Belgian mouthfull of malt and yeast but with some hop hidden in there. Not in your face like American IPA's.

As described above. Typical Belgian. Pleasant amount of carbonation.

I drank this in a to compare with the Flying Dog Raging Bitch and great Divide Titan. This one didn't win but was a pleasant drink.

Serving type: bottle

02-14-2011 09:12:46 | More by doopiedoopiedoo

Zimbo

United Kingdom (Scotland)

4.22/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Quite a big fan of this blonde. I think too many hear of its IPA inspiration and expect something more akin to an American craft beer. It's very different but definitely an interesting marriage of hop and blond.

Starts with a lovely nose and pours a pretty nice thick head into a Westmalle goblet. Ever so slightly off yellow glow there are some small bubbles coming from the base of the glass but no real beading to speak of. The head deflates over time but there is enough to leave some modest wispy lacing.
Partially carbonic to start but once this quickly disappears it begins with a restrained but very long burly bitterness which somewhat diappears in the middle before coming back for a long flourish well after each sip.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2011 16:59:07 | More by Zimbo

jeffaz02t

Arizona

3.6/5  rDev -8.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Burnt Orange hue with large fluffy head that dissipates to a few inches. Laces throughout.

S: Slight hops, spiciness,sweetness and fruity yeast.

T: Hops dominates, followed by a slight malt sweetness and yeasty goodness. Brilliant use of hops, but the malt character is what is slightly lacking here.

M: Medium with slightly above average carbonation.

D: You certainly cannot taste that this brew is 9.5%, however I would not pour more than one of these per session as they flavor of the malts starts to get to me after a while. They are not bad, just not the profile I prefer from a tripel/pale.

Notes: As far as hops, this Belgian brew rocks the competition. My only beef is listed already; I get sick of the malt profile pretty quickly with this brew. This is a personal preference thing, many people love the malts of this brew.

Serving type: bottle

02-04-2011 14:06:15 | More by jeffaz02t