Just when you thought you missed the last opportunity for a whole year for a shot a very tasty and well sought after imperial IPA, here is another chance.
Tonight at Cypress Street Pint & Plate – Bell’s Hopslam. Yes, 1 Continue Reading →
Not even a year later and Bell’s Oberon has quickly become a favorite in Atlanta. This summer seasonal by Bell’s brewing is back on the shelves just in time for warmer weather.
Cypress Pint & Plate is located in Midtown Atlanta on West Peachtree Street. Cypress is a great, inviting neighborhood bar nestled downtown with a penchant for great beer. That’s exactly where my story starts.
Hopslam has definitely been the buzz over the past week. Looks like your wait is over. I got to talk to Larry Bell about how excited a lot of people seemed to finally get in it in Atlanta and he Continue Reading →
The Porter Beer Bar, nestled in Little 5 Points kicks off “Firkin Madness Week” starting tonight! Owner Molly Gunn has set up a great lineup of firkins, each tapping at 6 pm, and flowing until gone.
Just when you thought you missed the last opportunity for a whole year for a shot a very tasty and well sought after imperial IPA, here is another chance.
Tonight at Cypress Street Pint & Plate – Bell’s Hopslam. Yes, 1 of a few rare kegs that have found their way to Atlanta after the city drained the assumed first round. Wes Anderson, beer manager at Cypress got his hands on one of these hard to find hoppy kegs and is featuring it tonight starting at 6 pm.
If you find yourself out of the loop – Bell’s Hopslam is a double IPA or Imperial IPA released seasonally, and is very limited. Bell’s only produces this beer for a little over a month and half each year. In many cities, it sells out fast, leaving many people without. The name pretty much tells you what to expect — a Hopslam. This beer has an absolutely fantastic hop aroma. If you love the smell of hops, you are definitely in the right place. Expect piney and grapefruit hop tones on your palette. While it has a slight bitter finish, Hopslam really reminds you first and foremost that hops are a flower.
It’s pretty cool these kegs are popping up now. There are a couple more tapping soon. Stay tuned for details.
Hopslam is 10% ABV
Cypress Pint & Plate, 6 pm817 W Peachtree Street NorthwestAtlanta, GA 30308
Not even a year later and Bell’s Oberon has quickly become a favorite in Atlanta. This summer seasonal by Bell’s brewing is back on the shelves just in time for warmer weather.
To be perfectly honest, I would drink any style of beer, any time. Yet, there are just some beers that really go well sitting outside on a sunny afternoon. Bell’s Oberon definitely has sunny day appeal. Oberon is an American Wheat Ale, with a light, fruity taste, and a great spicy backbone. Wheat ales are typically unfiltered, with wheat flavors that can linger into the finish. American wheats are different from German Hefeweizens. Stylistically, you won’t find banana or clove, just floral/citrus, wheat and noble hops.
Tasting notes: Think fresh oranges. Lemon zests. Nice bready malt tones. Sweet in palette and finish. It’s drinkable & refreshing. A great warm weather beer.
Hops — Saaz (A noble hop. German in origin)
Availability — Summer seasonal — March — October. 12oz/6pks, 5 liter Mini Kegs, Draft offerings.
5.8% ABV
Updates! Release Parties!
3/31 – The Porter Oberon Release Party! Keep the glass while supplies last. 6 pm, 3/31
3/31 – Free Bell’s Tasting at Octane Coffee w/ Hop City. Free tastes of Oberon, and 2 others
4/3 – Midway Pub Release Party! Games, Giveaways, Oberon! 1-4 pm (Midway in East Atlanta)
Arrived and quickly disappeared… Sorry if you missed it. There were only 15 cases allocated to Georgia.
Confirmed. Bell’s Brewing’s Batch 9000 currently en route to Atlanta. What is it? Let’s investigate.
First of all let’s talk about the name. In a previous post I wrote about the number on the side of all Bell’s bottles. It depicts a batch number in which you can enter on the Bell’s website. There you can find out when the batch was brewed and bottled. The number on the side of Batch 9000 is of course… 9000. Bottled January 27th, 2010. Previous special releases by Bell’s include the Batch 7000 & 8000 (Imperial Stout, & Witbier)
What is the beer? While wrapped in an enigma, some about Batch 9000 is known. It’s an Imperial Stout, at 12.5% ABV. The label describes a malt beverage brewed with molasses and brewers licorice. Early tastings indicate hints of licorice, coffee, chocolate, and alcohol. From the back label —
“Dark and Rich, a great beer for the cellar.”
There are very few cases headed to Georgia. Hop City plans on selling these 12 oz bottles as singles to accommodate all the individuals looking to buy. While Batch 9000 is currently in route, it isn’t expect until next week sometime. Although, you never know. You should follow @AtlBeerMaster on Twitter just in case…
Availability – One time extremely limited release. ETA- Next 7-10 days. Possibly sooner.
Cypress Pint & Plate is located in Midtown Atlanta on West Peachtree Street. Cypress is a great, inviting neighborhood bar nestled downtown with a penchant for great beer. That’s exactly where my story starts.
Tuesdays are Beer Geek Tuesdays at Cypress Pint & Plate. Beer Geek/Manager Wes Andersen designs these beer geeky evenings with a special line up of beers by the glass. Here is tomorrow’s lineup (2/16) –
Stone Russian Imperial Stout 2009 — Imperial Stout, 10.5% ABV. First released July 2000. This Imperial uses Warrior hops to boost the strong flavors of chocolate & coffee. Released early summer annually.
Red Brick 15th Anniversary — Barrel Aged Brown, 9% ABV. Brown ale aged 13 months in Pappy Van Winkle Barrels. Fantastic notes of vanilla and oak, with some caramel malt complexities. One time release.
Schneider Aventinus — Weizenbock. (aka wheat dopplebock.) Various vintages will be available. Each release is about 8% ABV. Bottle fermented. Top fermenting yeast used. First created 1907.
Unibroue — Based out of Chambly, Quebec. Beers are bottle refermented with a process similar to champagne. Popular beers include – Blanche De Chambly, La Fin Du Monde, Maudite. Various offerings by Unibroue featured.
De Proef/Bell’s Van Twee — Belgian Dark, 7.5% ABV. Collaboration between De Proef & Bell’s Brewery. Dubbel blended with Stout, featuring sour cherries from MI. Bottle fermented w/ beet sugar.
Schneider/Brooklyn Hopfen-Weiss — Weizenbock, 8.2% ABV. Collaboration between Schneider and Brooklyn Brewing. Wheat, light hop, and light alcohol noticeable.
Terrapin —Side Project # 4 — Dos Cocas — American Porter, 5.8%. ABV. This beer was 4th in the side project series and is now retired. Chocolate (cocoa) overlays into this porter for a nice finish. I’m interested in how it aged. Well over a year old by now.
Beer and conversation start at 7 pm on Tuesday 2/16!
Cypress Street Pint & Plate
817 W. Peachtree Street
Suite E125
(located behind the Biltmore at the corner of 6th and Cypress Street)
Hopslam has definitely been the buzz over the past week. Looks like your wait is over. I got to talk to Larry Bell about how excited a lot of people seemed to finally get in it in Atlanta and he was humbled. He was also definitely unaware Hopslam had become a trending topic on Twitter. Well, looks like your patience has paid off. Your day is today. Check @AtlBeerMaster on Twitter for sightings. Cheers!
For those of you that don’t know, Hopslam has gotten a bit of a cult following over time. It’s a double IPA or Imperial IPA released seasonally, and is very limited. Bell’s only produces this beer for a little over a month and half each year. In many cities, it sells out fast, leaving many people without.
The name pretty much tells you what to expect — a Hopslam. This beer has an absolutely fantastic hop aroma. If you love the smell of hops, you are definitely in the right place. Expect piney and grapefruit hop tones on your palette. While it has a slight bitter finish, Hopslam really reminds you first and foremost that hops are a flower.
Hopslam is 10% ABV. It averages about $15 dollars a 6 pack of 12 oz bottles. Limited draft offerings soon. Due to snow basically all over the U.S., Hopslam is about a week behind it’s expected Georgia arrival.
UPDATE 1/19/10 – It was more than just snow that was delaying Hopslam. After speaking with the brewery, there were some yield issues too. Their goal was at least 15% more this year to meet a greater demand. Hopslam shipped yesterday/last night and will make its debut in bottle and draft Thursday/Friday (1/21, 1/22.)
For those of you headed to the Larry Bell meet and greet tonight at tonight at Taco Mac Metropolis, there is a full lineup of Bell’s beers tapping.
Here is the full lineup, get your glasses ready..
Amber — Amber Ale, 5.8% ABV. Flagship Bell’s offering. Mostly Pale Malts, with some Munich & Caramel Malts. Malty sweet flavor w/ nice American hop balance.
Porter — 5.6% ABV. Dark malts with roasted tones. Subtle chocolate & coffee tones. Gold medal winner in Brewers Association World Cup 2008
Two Hearted Ale — IPA, 7% ABV. Centennial hops. Pale & Caramel Malts. More HERE.
3rd Coast — American Blonde, 4.8% ABV. Brewed with Pale Malts, and a strong addition of American Hops. Crisp, bitter, refreshing. Year round offering.
Java Stout — Imperial Stout, 7.5% ABV. Personal Favorite! Sumatra coffee beans, blended with chocolate and roasted malts. Full flavored, beautifully balanced. Very short seasonal offering.
Double Cream Ale — Milk Stout, 6.1% ABV. Sweet stout with roasted malts. Creamy, with subtle chocolate and coffee flavors. Much more subtle than Java stout on the coffee side.
Winter White Ale — Witbier, 5% ABV. American Wheat Ale, brewed with proprietary blends of Hefe and Belgian Yeasts. Very light, wheaty, and fresh.
Best Brown Ale — Brown Ale, 5.8% ABV. Strong malty character. Toasted sweet malts. Hoppy undertones. Sweet finish. Sold Oct — March.
Christmas Ale — Scottish Ale, 5.4% ABV. Caramel and toffee flavors. Bold without being overbearing, Christmas ale has sweet and malty notes with very little bitter in the finish. Rare offering. Grab this one.
Cherry Stout — Fruit beer/ Flavored Stout. 7% ABV. Fantastic sour cherry flavor from Michigan. Has a chocolate covered cherry flavor. Subtle coffee. Van Twee takes some inspiration from Cherry Stout.
Expedition Stout — Russian Imperial Stout, 10.5% ABV. Strong on toasted malts. Chocolate aromas, bitter chocolate flavors on the palette. Perhaps even some sweet molasses too.
CASK!! Cherry Stout — I had the opportunity to try this yesterday at Brickstore Pub. Great cask offering, with subtle sour cherry flavors with a coffee/chocolate finish. Well balanced and flavorful.
Van Twee- This draft offering is especially rare opportunity. Bell’s brewery John Mallett collaborated with De Proef in Belgium It’s a dubbel, porter blend with sour cherries, and beet sugar to bottle condition. More on Van Twee HERE! 2 taps for Van Twee tonight.
There are delays with Hopslam, while it’s not completely ruled out, it’s not looking good.
The Porter Beer Bar, nestled in Little 5 Points kicks off “Firkin Madness Week” starting tonight! Owner Molly Gunn has set up a great lineup of firkins, each tapping at 6 pm, and flowing until gone.
Here’s the lineup —
Tuesday – (Note — Porter closes at 11 pm today)
Bells Two Hearted Ale — IPA, 7% ABV. Lots of Centennial Hop flavors. Pale & Caramel Malts.
Wednesday
Allagash Black — Belgian Stout, 7.5% ABV. German 2 Row Barley, Torrified Wheat, Oats. Belgian Dark Candy sugar. Hints of chocolate and coffee.
