Covert Hops - Westbrook Brewing Co.

craytonic

District of Columbia

2.55/5  rDev -30.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Thanks Dan!

Appearance: Big tan head, takes up most of the glass
Smell: very herbal, too much roast and tar
Taste: Roast and dark malt dominate, not much else going on. Bitter like old burnt coffee
Mouthfeel: medium body and mouthfeel
Overall: Dumped this sucker very quickly, just not enjoyable at all due to the burnt flavors.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2012 19:39:58 | More by craytonic

DaPan

Ontario (Canada)

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

04-13-2013 22:03:07 | More by DaPan

rjknyy

Georgia

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

04-13-2013 21:51:52 | More by rjknyy

mikeincharleston

South Carolina

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

03-31-2013 21:22:34 | More by mikeincharleston

ejimhof

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -17.8%

02-10-2013 23:56:38 | More by ejimhof

drewone

California

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

01-22-2013 07:10:42 | More by drewone

UCLABrewN84

California

4.03/5  rDev +10.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Bottle pour for New Brew Thursday's 3rd Anniversary event held at Beachwood BBQ & Brewing in Long Beach, CA.

Pours an almost opaque super dark brown with a foamy dark khaki head that settles to a small cap on top of the beer. Foamy streaks of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of dark roasted malt, cocoa, and herbal hop aromas. Taste is much the same with an herbal flavor on the finish. There is a medium amount of hop bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp and medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer that is tasty and easy to drink.

Serving type: bottle

01-22-2013 02:08:51 | More by UCLABrewN84

jorrx003

Florida

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

01-13-2013 22:31:35 | More by jorrx003

sendbeer

Georgia

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

01-06-2013 05:52:23 | More by sendbeer

themom

South Carolina

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

11-16-2012 19:47:13 | More by themom

UnderPressure

South Carolina

3.88/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 2 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle dated 3-3-12. Opened 10-25-12. Served at 48 degrees F.

Overly carbonated. I'm surprised the bottle didn't burst. Big time air escape while prying the cap. 95% foam when pouring into a pint glass... An obvious flaw. Opaque, black beer. A rocky, long-lasting tan head fills nearly the entire glass. Lacing everywhere.

Heavy spicy/piney American hops in the aroma. Roasted malt accompanies.

The flavor is reminiscent of a hoppy porter. Chocolate and coffee with heavy hops. Plenty of bitterness. Great flavor.

Light bodied. Intense, attacking carbonation even after all that foam. A long lasting very bitter finish.

This would've been an awesome beer if it wasn't for all the carbonation. It's taking me all night to drink this beer waiting for the carbonation to die down every time I pour some. It's been bottled for nearly 8 months. Maybe the residual yeast has been working on fermentable sugars during that time.

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2012 23:06:28 | More by UnderPressure

GossageBrewery

Missouri

2.78/5  rDev -23.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Served this American Black Ale, on tap, at the brewery, in a pint glass. This ale poured a dark black color, produced a thick brown head, featured excellent retention and excellent lacing on the glass. The aroma consisted of roasted grain and herbal piney hops. Medium in body, this ale featured roasted grain, and piney hops. Overall this brew is a bit off balanced, the hop flavor fades at the end and leaves an almost watered down taste at the finish.

Serving type: on-tap

10-05-2012 20:15:41 | More by GossageBrewery

OriolesFan1008

Maryland

3/5  rDev -17.8%

09-20-2012 22:57:02 | More by OriolesFan1008

sammy806

Maryland

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

08-25-2012 19:56:57 | More by sammy806

fat58hwy

Tennessee

1.25/5  rDev -65.8%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

I bought a bomber at Growlers while on vacation in Hilton Head after trying and enjoying their IPA. I was very excited by try this after I got home. As I poured it in the glass, the beer immediately turned to foam. The bottle was infected. I notified the brewery to see what their response would be. They admitted thay had a problem with that batch and they should have been pulled from the shelves. Unfortunately, I had the same result with their Pacific Jade Rye Pale Ale. They offered to replace them if I brought in the email the next time I am in Charlotte. As I live 376 miles from there, I don't see making the trip and remembering to bring the email. I don't know what I expected, but I thought blaming the store and making a lame offer was disappointing. Not the way to build a faithful following. This is more a review of the Brewery than the on the beer, I felt it needed to be posted.

Serving type: bottle

08-03-2012 01:27:01 | More by fat58hwy

brentk56

North Carolina

3.3/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Appearance: A foamy explosion, with the initial pour being all foam; settles into a murky obsidian with a nice head, excellent retention (no suprise) and good lacing

Smell: Burnt embers dominate with the piney hops underneath

Taste: Starts out with a lot of roasty char and, while the hops arrive in the middle to add a bitter and piney dimension, the char winds up overwhelming the finish

Mouthfeel: Medium body but overcarbonated

Overall: Balancing the flavors in an American Black is a tricky thing and, in addition to the carbonation issues, this beer doesn't handle the balance as deftly as some others I have tried; Westbrook needs to cut back on the char so that the hops be more prominent in this beer

Serving type: bottle

07-20-2012 20:58:25 | More by brentk56

Mattybz28

South Carolina

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

07-04-2012 03:33:38 | More by Mattybz28

wcudwight

North Carolina

3.95/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 4

Wow! Was this thing brewed with Belgian yeast. Explosive when the cap pops off. Pours mostly head even with the most careful of pours. Hugely carbonated. With all that being said it's a very good beer. Coffee and Hops my two favorite things in both the aroma and flavor. Yum Yum. Balanced with strong flavors of both and they work very well together. I'll definately seek this one again, but next time I'm aware of the carbonation. Whew!

Serving type: bottle

07-01-2012 20:00:34 | More by wcudwight

analienacorn

Florida

4.5/5  rDev +23.3%

07-01-2012 19:22:13 | More by analienacorn

jpro

South Carolina

4.08/5  rDev +11.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

64oz growler brought to our Memorial Day cookout. Poured into a shaker pint glass...

A: Black; quarter-finger of mocha head; leaves some blobs of lace.

S: Sweet malts; ground coffee; hempy hops.

T: Starts with a blast of hops - citrusy and pine resin, followed by sweet roasted malts and chocolate; very roasty on the finish.

M: Full-bodied; moderate carbonation; a little too full for the style, perhaps - but I guess it is a pretty wide open style; sticky.

O: A nice American Black Ale... Hoppiness is good, but just a smidge more mouthfeel and roastiness than I’d expect for the style. A nice brew, though -

*from notes (5-29-12)

Serving type: growler

06-25-2012 03:17:24 | More by jpro

SLeffler27

New York

4.08/5  rDev +11.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Covert Hops is black, passing no light. A huge, dense, creamy chestnut head fills the glass and builds well above the rim. The head retention is impressive and leaves a coating of fine lace as it drops at a glacial speed turning rocky in places and dense-creamy in others. A fine mist of carbonation clings to the wall of the glass.

Once the head permits the nose, one can clearly detect rich pine sap with chocolate and coffee. A fresh, citrus background of orange rounds it out. There are also some notes of cigar smoke, but the chocolate returns with warmth.

Bitterness is well controlled, especially given anticipation from the aroma. Toasted character is equally prominent with black coffee, some chocolate and vanilla. Warmth brings out the sweetness.

A light body with soft carbonation, a silky texture, some residue on the lips, and alcohol more prominent than expected. Given the relatively low alcohol content it is quite impressive how much flavor Westbrook was able to develop.

This is clearly one of the better examples of this style. It adroitly brings out the hops one expects from an IPA as well as the roasted malts one expects from a stout. This one was enjoyed on its own, but could easily accompany a juicy burger.

Serving type: bottle

06-24-2012 21:13:00 | More by SLeffler27

freduardo

Alabama

4.25/5  rDev +16.4%

06-03-2012 02:53:10 | More by freduardo

elgiacomo

Georgia

3.23/5  rDev -11.5%
look: 2 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

22oz bottled March 3, 2012. Served at around 40F.

Pours black with a huge brown head even with a very careful pour. Looks infected, but it’s not, just over-carbonated. When it does finally settle down, it holds a small cap and leaves some lacing behind.

Aroma is pine and citrus hops, a lot of dark roasted, if not burnt malts, chocolate, coffee, a little dark fruit and anise. Good to very good strength.

Flavor is similar, piney hops, some citrus, chocolate, dark roasted malts, toffee, coffee, dark fruits. Minimal sweetness, mild bitterness, little to no alcohol.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied and starts with extremely prickly carbonation that distracts from being able to taste the beer. Subsequent pours from the bomber have settled the carbonation down and is much smoother and more enjoyable.

Very good Black IPA, but carbonation issues hurt the appearance and mouthfeel. If they sort those out, they’ve got a good one on their hands.

Serving type: bottle

05-22-2012 02:25:07 | More by elgiacomo

iL0VEbeer

New Jersey

4.5/5  rDev +23.3%

05-19-2012 17:03:57 | More by iL0VEbeer

CSQ1111

Kentucky

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

05-17-2012 21:00:02 | More by CSQ1111