XHops - Silver
Toppling Goliath Brewing Company

4.18/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Thanks to Jeff for this one. 22oz. bomber into a Surly teku. Shared with schen9303.

Nose is Brett funk, pineapple and other citrus fruit. Aromatic with a lean towards the sweeter side. Beer opens juicy. Hints of pineapple, kiwi, Brett funk and cane sugar. Are these Nelson hops? Hop bitterness is low with a big tropical fruit presence. My favorite! Body is light with ample carbonation. Prickly and lively in the mouth and goes down aggressive and sparkling. Dry finish. Real quenching!

One of the better beers in the series and one of the more unique IPAs that I've come across! Worth trying!

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4.08/5  rDev -4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bomber. Pours clean golden, thin white head fades to a lasting ring. Sweet fruity aroma, tropical. Taste is on the sweet side, candyish, tropical melon and mango, citrus peel lemony hops. Thin but silky smooth feel. Overall good pale ale, a little sweeter than expected.

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3.97/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: Clear yellow, big head.

Smell: Earthy, socks to start, then citrus, then something I can't decipher from my notes.

Taste: Mildly sweet, citrus, tropical fruitiness, very mild bitterness. Very easy drinking.

Overall: Picked up a bomber at the same time as some King Sue. This Xhops had a kind of weird aroma, unfortunately I can't read my handwriting. The taste was nice and fruity, very little bitterness but still balanced tasting. Nice pale ale.

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4/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.25

22 oz Bomber with no visible date on it, poured into a DFH/Spieglau 19 oz IPA Glass.

A — Pours a glowing vibrant yellow hue into the glass with a stark white colored head that sits on top and leaves behind some wonderful bits of lace. Some sediment is roused up upon the final pour, AOK with me.

S — Smell is quite aromatic and zesty with lots of melon character and aromas. Honeydew and cantaloupe. Slightly earthy and piney as well.

T — Much like the nose, though even more amplified, I get bitter and hoppy flavors of lime, honeydew, cantaloupe, and an awesome pineapple character.

M — Bitter, dry, clean.

O — Very well done again from TG, this is a step up from regular PseudoSue in my book. Mysterious omission on the ABV/IBU though.

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4.21/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Pretty good. Aroma is hugely grapefruit, but flavor oddly is more of a blend of citrus and resin. Good body and an excellent finish. Easily drink an ocean of this brew.

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4.59/5  rDev +8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a brilliant orange color with a moderate amount of haze. Nose is stonefruit and citrus.....pear, mango, orange, and pineapple. Taste is juicy and fruit-forward rounded out by a touch of pine and some sweetness. Could be one of the most smooth and drinkable IPA's from TG. Low bitterness and great feel.

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4/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

650 mL bottle. Hazy pale orange. Big white head. Smell is all over the place with hops. Sweet and floral. Some grapefruit. Pine. Kinda tropical too. The hop flavor is simpler. More straightforward grapefruit. Tropical fruit up front. Sweet pale malt. Almost no bitterness, but some of the floral flavors linger behind it. Medium light body. Well carbonated. Complicated hop, whatever it is.

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4.59/5  rDev +8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.75

Pours to a cloudy, straw appearance with a two finger white head. Smells dank, earthy and of grapefruit infused banana peel. Really intriguing nose. Taste is off the charts good with juicy grapefruit, dank funk and balancing malt. Just a pleasure to drink. Mouthfeel is moderate as is carbonation. This is the best TG beer I have had to date. I need to find more of this stuff. Well done!!

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4.15/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

L: Pours light Golden with just a little bit of haze. Nice carbonation streams and a white head that sticks around.
S: Smells bright and citrusy. Hoppy with a malt underneath.
T: There is a malt balance to it which is nice. Also a nice hop flavor different from other TG brews. But it still has the juicy flavor.
F: Medium bodied and smooth.

O: Another good Pale Ale from Toppling Goliath.

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4.65/5  rDev +9.4%
look: 5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

In my opinion, this is probably the best beer I've had from Toppling Goliath yet. Primarily because the beer had a great balance between malt and hops and the hops didn't dominate the overall taste.

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4.03/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Smell is pine, pineapple, mango, a hint of black pepper, and some fruity esters. Taste is mango, orange citrus, some grapefruit, and lemon peel. Mouthfeel is soft and creamy. This is a good beer though I preferred Xhops Gold.

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4.81/5  rDev +13.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

Poured from a bomber into a Nonic glass. Bottle date is smudged, but I think it was 6/30/16.

A: Pours a hazy, yellowish-orange color with a 1.5 inch, cream colored, foamy head with good retention. Small amounts of thick bubbly lacing.

S: Strong aromas of tropical fruits, pineapple, mango, and peach. Citrus notes of orange and tangerine. Mild piney and sweet malt undertones.

T: Taste matches aromas almost exactly. Strong tropical fruit and orange citrus flavors with a small amount of piney hoppiness and sweet malt notes as well.

F: Medium bodied, smooth, and very crisp. Great carbonation with very slight dryness.

O: Overall, an awesome pale ale! Huge juice bomb! Loving this one. Wish this was more readily available.

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4.12/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a slight hazed Golden color with a fluffy white head and thick lacing on side of glass, smell was dank first and light citrus with some tropical hops, taste was great garden hops mixed with lemon citrus/grapefruit hints of white wine and white fruit, sweet malts and very little bitterness, mouth feel was sweet and hoppy low bitterness, another great TG PA highly drinkable delicious.

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4.23/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Poured into a teku pint. Bottle date is smudged.

A- Pours a turbid orangeish amber color with a 3/4 inch off-white head that retains very well before becoming a thick ring around the edge of the glass and a mostly full sheet of surface foam. Semi-resilient lacing leaves large clots behind.

S- Grassy, citrusy hop aroma with some cereal grain malt sweetness accompanying.

T- Has that soily yeast characteristic going on. Moderate bitterness and a lot of orange notes from the hops. Don't know what the ABV is but I'd wager it's around 6%. Very easy to drink, kind of mellow compared to some of their other IPAs.

M- Somewhat sharp from the hops with a milky feel. Medium carbonation and a lightish body.

O- The orange juice IPA craze is in full swing and this one carries that profile to a T. This one has a bit more character and bitterness than others in that category, which I like. Still, I don't see what this brings to the table that's so much better than the same beer that they actually take the time to filter.

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4.71/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

Clear golden, two finger fluff head, bone white, good carbonation. Smell is dank, leafy, earthy, floral and spicy. Taste is spicy and juicy, but light bodied unlike most beers where spiciness is present. Really an excellent beer

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4.54/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

Poured from a 22 oz. bottle into a chalice.

Appearance: Pours a bright and fairly hazy golden orange with a moderate amount of bubbles. Solid finger of white head that settles into a thin patchy layer.

Smell: A juicy and spicy hop driven aroma with a scent of citrus, pine, and spicy yeast. Citrus hop scent of orange peel, mango, grapefruit, melon, papaya, and lemon along with pineapple. Hints of pine resin. Spicy Belgian style yeast hints of clove, pepper, and banana. Malt hints of grains and cracker. A very nice aroma.

Taste: Like it smells, a very juicy and somewhat spicy hop forward taste with notes of citrus, pine, and yeast spice. Upfront juicy tropical hop notes of orange peel, melon, mango, grapefruit, papaya, pineapple, and lemon. Some notes of piney hops. Belgian yeast with notes of clove, pepper, and dried banana. Malt notes of grains, biscuit, and cracker. A very good juicy taste.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with a moderate amount of carbonation. Juicy, spicy, and drying.

Overall: A really good juicy Pale Ale. Big citrus fruit presence with an interesting kick of Belgian yeast. Seems more like a Belgian IPA.

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4.17/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Huge orange juice nose and the flavor is very similar. Reminded me of an east coast pale ale. The hops contributed much more of a juicy flavor than anything bitter. My only gripe about the Xhops series is the abv has generally been low and although this one is unlisted, it tasted like it was a little watery on the finish. So this makes me think that the abv is only in the low 5% range. Not that I need to drink high abv beers all the time but when the bomber was $9, I tend to want a little more. But that said, this was the best Xhops series beer I have had.

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4.07/5  rDev -4.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

650ml bottle. Served in a Toppling Goliath chalice.

Pours a mildly hazy but mostly clear golden copper body, two finger appropriately thick white head, rings upon rings of lacing, thin film, overall short retention. Smells of pineapple, floral notes with a slight hint of herbality, caramel, resinous pine, light toffee. It's an interesting mix of hops, and I definitely got a whiff of a tropical fruit aroma as I opened the bottle, though it seemed to further differentiate itself into something more complex within a minute or two. Flavour is pineapple juice, caramel malt sweetness, not a whole lot of cereal grain, finishing off with a resinous pine. That floral aroma seems to come and go, and you get a bit more sweet caramel and sugar on the palate. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, just the right amount of carbonation, not silky creamy nor is it dry or super crisp, but it seems to fit just right. Moderate resinous bitterness on the finish. An overall solid pale ale offering from Toppling Goliath. These hops seem to contribute to an overall sweeter malt base in a complementary fashion rather than overtaking the malt completely like some hoppy ales can. It is more of a balanced brew than most others from the brewery, with more of the sweetness shining through.

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4.39/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Super hazy IPA. Orange yellow sunset. White head with lace.

Lots of juice here. Orange, melon, and lemon. A bit of floral/herbal hop notes. Maybe some papaya in there as well. Finishes with a light Belgian IPA flavor with some clove and banana notes.

Medium bodied. Low bitterness.

Very solid pale ale! Loving the east coast haze!

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