Hoponius Union | Jack's Abby Brewing

4.23/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

This beer pours a hazy golden orange with a one finger off white head that sticks around quite a while and leaves thin hanging chunks of lacing.

The smell is awesome! Bright, citrusy, tropical and juicy. Smells like an IPA with a touch of toasted malt and lager yeast.

The taste is quite a bit more balanced. Starts off fruity and juicy, but transitions into a bready dry finish.

Feel is light, juicy and slightly resinous, but finishes dry.

Overall a very very good beer. One of the best pale lagers I've had.

★ 514 characters

4.75/5  rDev +12.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Hands-down awesome beer. It has some mouthfeel, you'd expect it to be overly bitter, but it's crazy smooth and balanced. The color is beautiful, there's a slight haze from it not being filtered, smell is fruity and hoppy, and the taste is balanced. If you can get your hands on this, try it.

★ 291 characters

4.47/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Reviewed from a can (poured into a pint glass) purchased at Good Beer on 9th street in Manhattan.
So I tasted this, thinking to myself, "this is pretty good. I like this." Then I looked at the style parameters and saw this was in the same category as Michelob and said Oh Crap. I get the scores. This tastes like an India Pale ale, but it's lagered. Usually I only get that sort of effect with some Imperial pilsners that have a bit more alcohol in them. That being said, this is a pretty high alcohol content American pale lager. It's pretty impressive to get this kind of flavor out of the kind of brewing process used. I'm a fan.

★ 632 characters

4.27/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Hazy dark golden pour with minimal white head. Aroma is dank and fruity of the tropical variety, still allowing some bready malt through. Flavor is the same with a good punch of tropical fruits dominating a malty backbone. Finish is smoother than expected. Smooth sipping throughout. Very well done.

★ 299 characters

3.96/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

on draft

light copper golden in color, white head. nice hoppy aroma - grass, citrus, pine mix. just a bit of bready malt flavor mixed in with the hoppiness. thinner bodied.

★ 176 characters

4.9/5  rDev +15.8%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 5

This is one of my new favorites. Poured into a pint glass. Copper hue, one finger head with slight lacing. Citrus aroma with slight yeasty quality. Taste fairly intense hops balanced well with malt. Definite lager presence. Finishes strong. Can't wait to try it on tap.

★ 272 characters

4.24/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Serving: Bottle
No date (Consumed Aug-13)

A:
It pours crystal clear light copper with three fingers fluffy white head that slowly drops to a decent film with long swoops of lace and okay retention. (4)

S:
Lemon pith, grass, light hint of pine, some crusty white bread from malt. (4.25)

T:
Lemon grass, regular grass, herbs, bitter orange, toasted bread underneath. (4.25)

M:
Clean and crisp with a quick finish and medium carbonation. (4.25)

O:
Very tasty, well-made beer.
Pungent aroma, layered bright hoppy flavor, very drinkable, straight ahead, and enjoyable. Grassy end of the spectrum with some light lemony citrus to make it pop. Will have again. (4.25)

★ 672 characters

4.1/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Smell: sweet peach orange tangerine.
Taste: upfront sweet peach orange middle of the mouth tangerine slight mango grapefruit some dankness a crackery male finishes with a nice piney hop bite.
Feel: medium bodied the piney hop biterness covers the mouth in the finish.
Overall: nice and hoppy lager with a nice fruit presence. A really well done beer.

★ 350 characters

4.34/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Dark gold color, tower of off-white foam cap rising high.
Abundant, aromatic hop combo, fresh, whole come aroma, if you've ever had fresh whole cone hops, or pellets in your hand and taken a big whiff, you will know this aroma well. Earthy, dry tropical, tangy fruits and a subtle but effective sweet lager malt balance.slight sour/sweet funk thing too.
Flavor, oh man, the flavor....what a wonderful blend of hop flavors, much like the aroma, fresh and complex, earthy, tangy, sour then sweet. Balance of subtle sweet malt, lager funky yeast and awesome hop attack (not at all bitter). 65 ibu's is spot on for the IPL style.
Feel is fresh, crisp, medium bodied wet then dry finish.
Favorite IPL so far, this one screams QUality.

★ 734 characters

4.52/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

hazed golden orange with a dense white head and good lacing.

nose is citric hops, caramel malt, grassy and floral notes, earthy pine and a light herbaceous quality. on the palate is zesty citrus up front, followed by beady and caramel malts with a grapefruit and pine bitterness on the finish. excellent balance achieved between fruity hops, sweetish malts and a slightly bitter finish. overall this is an extremely clean IPL that is well balanced and super drinkable, cheers!

★ 478 characters

4.51/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Crazy brew. Bought a sixtel. Loved the cloudiness. Wonderful smell. Lots of grapefruit. Nice finish, lingers for a long time. This one is a keeper. Nicely done.

★ 163 characters

4.18/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Super citrusy and very clean. Like the lager counterpart to Bells Two Hearted, with maybe even more hop presence and aroma. Well balanced, outstanding.

★ 151 characters

4.62/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

L - Pale/strawlike in color. Nice lacing and a super-clear look tells me that this is a good lager.
S - Nice mild hop presence-stone fruit, citrus, some very light maltiness
T - Very incredible experience. This was a true integration of the hop profile from a west coast IPA, with the very light body of an American pale lager. No esters that I could detect--the hops ran the show.
F - Perhaps the mouthfeel was the most fun part of the beer. Quaffable and lighter than air, the hops seemed to dance off my tongue. A slight sticky flavor persisted on the roof of my mouth, but nothing like a proper IPA. Finish was actually a bit quenching rather than dry.
O - What an unique experience. This beer was so much fun to enjoy. I could easily have a couple and still stand up straight. Would pair nicely with a burger and fries.

★ 824 characters

3.88/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

L - A finger's worth of crisp khaki colored froth... Modest retention gives way to a full lacing of mostly the same quality and character... The color is a pale copper... Loaded with moderate paced carbonation... A slight bit of lacing clings to the sides of the glass...

S - A pleasant aroma of fresh whole-coned hops... A rock solid malt base lays slightly beneath the surface... Rich bready malts... Cereal grains... A subtle caramel sweetness... Simple, straight-forward and quite effective...

T - The aroma was a wonderful indication of what to expect on the palate... Fresh hops to start... Then a wave of malty goodness comes... The hops rise to prominence again on the finish...

F - Medium bodied... Sturdy and crisp... Light to moderate carbonation... Turning about creamy and lush towards the end of each sip...

O - Quaffable, sessionable and refreshing... A real easy drinker... There are no "world class" characteristics about this brew, but everything works remarkably well together in a harmonious fashion where the total is greater than the sum of the parts... I could enjoy a couple of these a couple of these in a sitting without blinking...

★ 1,188 characters

4.21/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

The beer pours out into a Duvel glass a lightly hazed golden orange color with a 3/4" ivory head that recedes visibly to leave rings of lacing with some large patches and some legs clinging to the sides of the glass. The surface is coated with a thin layer of foam and a thicker island of foam here and there. Sipping creates arches of lacing along with large and small patches of leggy lacing.

The aromas include some strong components of orange and grapefruit zest backed up by some grassy character with the malt way in the background.

The flavors are much as expected from the nose with the grapefruit zest in charge, some grassy character, some bitterness that is all supported by a malt backbone that adds just a touch of sweetness that softens but never overrides or conceals any of the hop flavors or the bitterness.

The mouth feel is on the light side of medium bodied and slightly creamy with the gentle persistent carbonation. The finish begins as the initial burst of citric bitterness begins to fade a bit. The orange, and grapefruit flavors begin to fade followed by the malt and sweetness leaving the bitterness to slide a way on its own leaving only a bit of bitterness throughout to fade into the dry ending that invites another sip.

Another very well made beer from Jack's Abby and one I'd be happy to have again. As an example of a west coast take on IPAs/IPLs this has the strengths of the focus on the hope but doesn't have that tongue rasping bitterness that can actually sometimes be painful.

★ 1,524 characters

3.7/5  rDev -12.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75

I've never been a fan of IPL'S but I think it's because I haven't found one I like. I did not order this beer, my boss did, and I thought it was pushed on her by our rep., but either way I'm happy we got it because it's a great beer and it sells very good for us. It's nice and crisp, hoppy, not super high in ABV%. I would reorder this beer.

★ 342 characters

4.55/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Jack's Abby Hoponius Union IPL

L: Deep Gold and slightly hazy with an off white head which has good retention and lacing. 4
S: Citrus is the first impression but then fresh, warm bread fills out the aroma. 4.5
T: Bitter and citrusy. Juicy. Some sticky pine resin. The bready malt is there, but in the background laying down a canvas for the hops to work with. Aftertaste is resinous, citrusy hops which lasts forever. 4.75
F: Medium body with low to medium carbonation. Dry finish. 4.25
O: Really good hoppy lager. It stands up to my favorite IPA's. I still like a good citrusy and piney IPA/L and this is a great one. 4.5

★ 640 characters

3.87/5  rDev -8.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Pours a light copper color with less than a finger of head. The nose is super piney and hoppy. The flavor seems flat compared to the nose. The finish has a nice dry quality for sure but I woudl not quite agree with the can that it is "Wicked Hoppy."

★ 252 characters

4.36/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

What a classic Mass brew. Awesome golden yellow with a delicious evergreen forest floor pine and citrus smell. Crisp. Delicious. So fresh and so clean (clean).

★ 159 characters

4.1/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Got in a BIF from tasterschoice62. 12 ounce can into lager glass, canned on 1/22/2016. Pours lightly hazy golden yellow color with a 1-2 finger dense and fluffy white head with great retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings down the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Aromas of big grapefruit, tangerine, pineapple, peach, passion fruit, mango, melon, lemon zest, orange peel, light pepper, pine, cracker, biscuit, light honey, herbal, and floral/grassy earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of bright citrus/tropical/pine hops and moderate bready malt notes; with great strength. Taste of big grapefruit, tangerine, pineapple, peach, passion fruit, mango, melon, lemon zest, orange peel, light pepper, pine, cracker, biscuit, light honey, herbal, and floral/grassy earthiness. Moderate pine/citrus rind/spicy bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of grapefruit, tangerine, pineapple, peach, passion fruit, mango, lemon/orange peel, pepper, pine, cracker, biscuit, and herbal/floral/grassy earthiness on the finish for a while. Damn nice complexity, robustness, and balance of bright citrus/tropical/pine hops and moderate bready malt flavors; with a great malt/bitterness balance and zero astringent hop flavors after the finish. Light-moderate dryness from bitterness that increases through the glass. Very clean on lager flavors with zero yeast ester notes present. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth, moderately sticky/creamy/bready, and lightly resinous balanced mouthfeel that is great. Alcohol is very well hidden with zero warming present after the finish. Overall this is an excellent IPL style. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of citrus/tropical/pine hops and moderate bready malt flavors; and very smooth and easy to drink. A very enjoyable offering.

★ 1,911 characters

4.31/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Poured into IPA glass. It pours a pretty golden-honey color with a two-finger, snow white head and extensive lacing. It smells of tangerine, caramel, pine needles, and floral hops. It is quite dank with tastes of tangerine, grapefruit, pine, and bitter hops. It has a real bite to it. This Lager is medium-bodied, moderately-carbonated, and at 6.7% ABV, it is sessionable. Overall, this is an excellent American Pale Lager. It's well-crafted and refreshing. It is appropriate either pared with a hearty meal or for casual drinking.

★ 537 characters

4.52/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a can fresh from the brewery (which is very cool and has awesome food) to a snifter.

L - Give off some light that filters through beautifully.

S - Floral, grassy, lemon.

T - reminds me of a revved up Ithica Flower Power. Very floral, very hoppy, but where it beats out Flower Power, in my humble opinion is the finish. There is more malt to smooth out the finish to counteract the subtle bitterness. The citrus is beautiful, I get lemon zest the most. Nothing over powers anything else though. really, really good brew.

MF - A complete hit here as well.

O - Wow. I've seen this around forever and just got around to visiting Jack Abby's now due to the Framinghammer series. I am such an idiot. I started with their flagship and wow, I'm super impressed. Cheers to you Jack's Abby. Craft Lagers, I love it.

★ 825 characters

4.21/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

This is little different and a pleasant surprise. Dark honey color that matches a sweet honey, florals, malty nose. Taste is equal parts malt and bitter hops -- very nice balance. Light to medium body. Refreshing. Outstanding brew.

★ 231 characters

4.13/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Very very good beer. Crisp and refreshing. Nice little hop presence. Good stuff here! Would love definitely have this beer regularly if I could get my hands on it.

★ 163 characters

4.26/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

L-Pours golden with a modest 1cm white head. Lacing is spotty but lasting.
S-A large citrus presence let you know the beer is well hopped.
T- The beer is smooth. The citrus hop flavor lasts throughout the brew. Not complex, but delicious.
F-The beer has a medium mouthfeel with light carbonation. The beer coats the tongue and the flavor lingers. This is a very good thing.
O-This is the kind of beer that says "hops are amazing". It doesn't try to get tricky. It takes one thing and trys to showcase it with greatness. I will be revisiting this beer many times in the future.

★ 576 characters