Noggin Floggin - Hopworks Urban Brewery

DanChristensen

4.73/5  rDev +26.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.75

The 2013 release of Noggin Floggin is my favorite yet. To me, if HUB decided to call this an imperial IPA then I wouldn't have questioned it. Maybe the only thing that makes this a barleywine is the higher ABV. For example, the color was a clear, gold with a white head. The smell was delightfully hop heavy. The reason we all love beers is because of the taste, right? Noggin Floggin blew me away in this category. The malt flavor was simple but strong and the hops... oh the hops. This is why I think this beer could be an imperial IPA. The hop flavor tilted towards citrus but was balanced by other flavors as well. Mouthfeel: wet... jk it was pretty full bodied. A very well orchestrated beer. Bravo HUB!

Serving type: on-tap

01-27-2013 21:07:41 | More by DanChristensen

Hawksfan79

Washington

3.99/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25

Glass used: snifter

This beer had an beautiful dark amber appearance. Although I didn't get much out of nose other than the smell of alcohol, the flavor was really good. It has a light hops flavor with notes of malty caramel and a strong alcohol warming finish. I was really impressed with this beer.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2013 23:59:38 | More by Hawksfan79

jellikit

Washington

4.25/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: orange. Slightly Hazy. Not much head.

Scent: sweet malty smell with a faint alcohol aroma.

Taste: wonderful. Sweet with a malty/fruity flavor. Slightly bitter with alcohol added.

Mouthfeel: carbonated well. Pretty thick on the tongue.

Overall: my favorite barley wine so far.

Serving type: bottle

08-24-2012 19:14:28 | More by jellikit

homebrew311

Illinois

3.65/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bottle poured into Stone Olde Guardian glass. Appearance is somewhat light for style, a bit of haziness, viscous looking as well. Nose is sweet and full of molasses, sap, maple, pine, and brown sugar. Earthy hops come through as well. Smells somewhat hot. Taste is sweet and boozy. Brown sugar and molasses are present along with caramel and piny bitterness on the finish. Flavors are big and bold. Mouthfeel is thick and somewhat high in the way of carbonation. Overall, nice take on a barleywine...very sweet and flavorful and definitely a heavy hitter..

Serving type: bottle

07-27-2012 06:12:14 | More by homebrew311

MadeInOregon

California

4.73/5  rDev +26.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Scored this one as a gift. Lucky me!

APPEARANCE: Lightest barleywine I've ever seen; color is a nice orange somewhere between a dark hefeweizen and a pale ale. Still acceptable for the style, but certainly not traditional. Liquid pours thick and malty out of the bottle with a nice white head forming atop.

SMELL: Hops, oranges, vanilla, cherry, alcohol, and caramel. It seems a tad faint but the aromas are still very nice and appropriate for the style.

TASTE: Phenomenal. Taste is very complex and candy-sweet including cotton candy, cherry, vanilla, oranges, and bourbon flavors. It ends with bitter hops but with a great deal of sweetness still on the tongue. Really quite incredible balance and complexity for a barleywine, especially considering its 70 IBU's.

MOUTHFEEL: Very warming, but no burn. The feel is very smooth and malty on the tongue.

OVERALL: Best barleywine I've ever had.(Very puzzled by the low ratings for this beer!) However, I will say that I think this is more of a hybrid with an imperial IPA than a traditional barleywine. Lovers of both styles will be surprised and pleased with this one.

Serving type: bottle

05-23-2012 05:23:41 | More by MadeInOregon

Duke

British Columbia (Canada)

4.05/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

(From a snifter)

Appearance: Noggin Floggin pours a half-cloudy tawny colour with a small white head which dissipates quickly, leaving a mere white ring and no lacing.

Smell: The scent is mainly the hops and the malts. It's quite fresh-fieldy, and I'm getting a touch of caramel in there too as the alcohol sprints past up my nostrils.

Taste: Noggin Floggin tastes sweet and malty, and quite rindy. The hops don't bite the tongue as much as they dance along it, and the booze certainly hits quickly. I think the sweetness is a mixture of toffee and dark fruits.

Mouthfeel: The beer feels very full, and syrupy too as it leaves a layer of itself over the tongue before drying out abruptly. The carbonation level is very low.

Overall: I find Noggin Floggin sweet and well balanced. It's big, boozy and interesting, and I'd certainly buy it again.

Serving type: bottle

04-07-2012 05:03:25 | More by Duke

Docer

Washington

3.4/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: (3.5)
- A so very lightly cloudy IPA-like brew. Much lighter in color than I expected, and glows like a west-coast IPA. Orange, a little murky splash of brown, and caramel. Off-white finger of foam quickly settled to a little bubbly ring in the glass, and some thin islands afloat.

Smell: (2.5)
- The scent is masked in its malty madness. Almost a touch vegetative, citrus-like, and grassy herbal. Roasty sweet caramel is very light, and a bit of alcohol shines through when forcing myself to take a deep whiff to get some scent. Touch of meatiness and rubbing alcohol really.

Taste: (3.5)
- Sweet creamy malts, caramel, esters, fruit, grass, and pancake. Certainly a unique flavor. Almost like a marshmallow pop-tart type of sweetness to it. Nice pine and grassy bitter hops. Chocolate even? Sweet cream? Kind of an oddball but not bad. Almost seems to have a slight corn and oatmeal flare to it. Also a touch of some interesting woody and vanilla like flavors.. though not barrel aged.

Mouth Feel: (4.5)
- Nice medium to heavy body... really rich, smooth and creamy. This might just be the best aspect of this beer.. which is kind of too bad really. Well carbonated, and leaves a nice thin layer of beer film behind to lend the mouth some chewiness.

Overall: (3.5)
- This Barleywine is just kind of strange and different overall. Has a great hop bitterness, and just a really odd blend of flavors going on overall. It's a touch lighter in color than most barleywines, and just has some taste that I can't put a flavor too... but it's familiar. It's not bad.. just takes a moment to adjust to. Bet the bourbon barrel version is killer.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2012 01:41:19 | More by Docer

TheFlern

Idaho

4.03/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

This is a big DIPA. Drink it fresh is my advice.

Appearance: Golden body with a white head.

Smell: Huge citrus fruit flavors. Grapefruit, white grapes, green apple, pineapple. Malts are sweet in the background. The alcohol is also present. Reminds me of a sweet white wine.

Taste: Like eating a grapefruit for the most part. Not as sweet though.

Mouthfeel: Good amount of carbonation. Fairly bitter and not so smooth but this isn't suppose to be Keith Stone anyways.

Overall: A surprising beer. As I stated in the opening of this review I believe this beer would be better characterized as a DIPA. If you can get it fresh, who knows though with no bottle dating, then I suggest picking it up and drinking it asap. I don't see this one developing at all with age. I'm going to knock it really hard for not being age-able (imo) since it is listed as a barleywine. If this was listed as a DIPA I'd give it a 4.5 or 5. This beer most closely resembles Arctic Panzer Wolf from FFF. If you think that beer gets better with age then put this in your cellar. If you are sane an think a DIPA fades over time drink this fresh.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2012 00:21:55 | More by TheFlern

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

First had: on tap at HUB, Portland, OR

Light golden-brown liquid, clear, with a small layer of white head. No real surprises in the aroma: toffee malts, dark fruits, perhaps a bit hoppier than you'd normally expect in the style. Taste was boozy up front, very heavy on the licorice, with some sticky toffee, raisins, and a little hop bitterness in the finish. Decent. Medium mouthfeel, a bit syrupy, alcohol warmth, a moderately drinkable overall. The barrel-aged version was tremendous...

Serving type: on-tap

01-08-2012 20:35:32 | More by Rifugium

podunkparte

Washington

4.38/5  rDev +17.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Golden and clear. Lots of carbonation streaming from the bottom of my Duvel tulip glass. About a finger of white head. Dissipates quickly.

S: Pungent west coast hops. Not sure what to say but to say it smells like a nice American barleywine. Lots of hoppiness and some sweetness and a little bit of alcohol.

T: Nice initial bitterness followed by a big fruity hop punch. Mid palate some great sweetness and it finishes with a little more bitterness to keep your mouth watering. I'm liking this. Dry on the end.

M: Awesome. Tons of carbonation to keep your palate as fresh as it can be drinking a big barleywine like this. Love the tingle of the effervescent bubbles. They really clean your tongue and keep you fresh for the next sip.

O: A nice surprise from a bottle I just picked up. I'm not usually a fan of really hoppy barleywines (fresh Bigfoot) but this one is really good. The fruity hops are refreshing and tasty and the sweetness from the malts is spot on.

Serving type: bottle

01-04-2012 08:39:12 | More by podunkparte

MsRif

Pennsylvania

2.83/5  rDev -24.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Had on-tap at HUB in Portland, OR. Poured a clear golden color with a slight reddish/orange hue. Small off-white head that left sticky/spotty lacing. Had an aroma of malts, caramel and...well...nothing. Taste was really underwhelming. Extremely malty and sweet...not really "bad" but also not a good example of the style, IMO.

Light-medium in body with minimal carbonation. Smooth. Sessionable...which I never thought I'd say for a barleywine.

Serving type: on-tap

12-27-2011 23:55:39 | More by MsRif

waltersrj

Washington

3.43/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

2011 Bottle.

Pour: Light, golden brown with slight red hue and a quick to disappear off white head.

Nose: Sweet caramel and toffee, west coast citrus hops, slight raisin, alcohol, and brown sugar.

Taste: A good hit of hops, brown sugar and toffee in the mid palate and a dry, hoppy finish with a moderate alcohol singe.

Mouthfeel: Thin, not great for the style.

Overall: Not bad but not a favorite either. An American Barleywine for sure with the 70 ibu's but the taste isn't ideal. Not pretty in a glass but I'd probably buy again and enjoy immediately as I don't think this would cellar well.

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2011 00:32:39 | More by waltersrj

barleywinefiend

Washington

2.88/5  rDev -23%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A: Poured a lighter golden color with good carbonation leaving a nice white cap

S: Plenty of hops and booze

T: Immediate booze, some grains, booze again, dry, floral, sweet corn it seemed like, just odd

M: Thin for the style, booze just not appealing at all

D: Average at best. Maybe this needs time to mature but with the thin body I dont see this doing to well past a year

Serving type: on-tap

03-13-2011 23:17:50 | More by barleywinefiend