Bell's Hopslam Ale - Bell's Brewery, Inc.

troysoy2

Pennsylvania

4.78/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

A little mid-afternoon hopslam never hurt anyone. Picked up the other day at 1 for the Road, in Wexford, PA. Thanks!

Bottle date 1/10/12, poured into a chalice. The head was impressive, but died down quickly to a frothy film, which left splotchy, yet attractive lacing. The body is a deeper redish gold, and has a nice thickness to it.

The smell is everything I imagined it to be. Hop heaven. Citrusy grapefruit, oily, with a hint of sweetness - almost confectionery. The smell almost leaps out at you from the glass.

The taste is, as promised, quite the slammage of hops. I guess I must officially be a hophead now, as I could appreciate the bitterness and tart grapefruit without being the least bit put off by it. In fact, I don't think hops alone make this a great brew. There's a good complexity to the taste, with sweetness from the honey in the finish, and just the slightest bit of lingering alcohol heat. The mouthfeel has some real body to it, as well as just the right crispness of carbonation.

Ok, so is it worth all the hype? I'd probably say so. It's a great beer, and I really am glad to have the opportunity to try one of the (presumably) "holy grails" of the IPA world. This is a great beer, and it's a shame it isn't more widely available. Mark one off the bucket list.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2012 17:11:23 | More by troysoy2

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5/5  rDev +10.4%

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4.25/5  rDev -6.2%

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5/5  rDev +10.4%

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4.75/5  rDev +4.9%

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4.75/5  rDev +4.9%

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4.5/5  rDev -0.7%

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4.75/5  rDev +4.9%

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4/5  rDev -11.7%

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3.5/5  rDev -22.7%

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4.75/5  rDev +4.9%

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3.25/5  rDev -28.3%

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4/5  rDev -11.7%

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Louisiana

5/5  rDev +10.4%

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4.25/5  rDev -6.2%

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4.75/5  rDev +4.9%

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4/5  rDev -11.7%

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Missouri

4.5/5  rDev -0.7%

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Michigan

5/5  rDev +10.4%

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