Bert Grant's Hopzilla IPA
Yakima Brewing Co. / Bert Grant's Ales

Bert Grant's Hopzilla IPABert Grant's Hopzilla IPA
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From:
Yakima Brewing Co. / Bert Grant's Ales
 
Washington, United States
Style:
American IPA
ABV:
5%
Score:
84
Avg:
3.69 | pDev: 11.11%
Reviews:
77
Ratings:
77
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Feb 05, 2006
Added:
Feb 01, 2004
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
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Ratings by beerphilosopher:
Photo of beerphilosopher
Reviewed by beerphilosopher from Illinois

3/5  rDev -18.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Poured into a pint glass from a 22oz bomber.

A - A slightly cloudy light orange. Not much of a head to speak of ... sparse lacing in the glass.

S - Not nearly as hoppy as I has anticipated or hoped, with a name like Hopzilla. Predominantly malty in aroma. Slight floral notes.

T - Hmm. A little homebrewy, with really pretty weak hop character. Slightly fruity, but not in a citrusy, tart way like I'd want from an IPA. Despite the name, this one is nothing to be afraid of ... if you're a hophead, you'll be underwhelmed.

M - Really too thin. No punch, no bite, no astringency ... in a good way.

D - This is an easy drinker, because it's so tame. Maybe I was expecting to be throttled about the head and face with hop monster flavor, but the creature is hibernating apparently. Not worthy of the name. This is an average IPA in every respect. Nothing exceptional or over the top ... if you're a hop thrill-seeker, look elsewhere.
Feb 02, 2006
More User Ratings:
Photo of HardTarget
Reviewed by HardTarget from Texas

3.47/5  rDev -6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Bottle Inspection: Marketing blurb mentions 90+ IBUs, I believe it.

Aroma: A mild hop aroma greets the nose. The hops are lightly grassy, not very strong.

Appearance: Light golden amber glass shows a think collar of off white that dies without lacing

Flavor: Grassy hops, mild malt, clean overall flavor. Taste is somewhat one dimensional but enjoyable.

Mouthfeel: Oily, faintly dry with a medium texture

Overall Impression: Mild taste, clean, enjoyable but not intense. A sessionable IPA? This comes close. Glad I got the chance to taste it.
Hand carried back from CA.
Feb 05, 2006
Photo of mzwolinski
Reviewed by mzwolinski from California

3.63/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Very attractive light copper in body, good swirling carbonation and a fluffy off-white head. The aroma is a Bit buttery, with the hops quite understated at first (at least by California standards).

Nice crisp mouthfeel, a lot easier-going than many double-IPAs. The fact that it only weighs in at 5% is noticeable, but not a bad thing at all if you’re not looking for a massive DIPA.

Nice citric hop flavor with a good malt base, a little toasty bread character as it warms. Floral hop character with nice bitterness. A bit of light butteriness in the finish, but not too distracting.
Jan 22, 2006
Photo of SwillinBrew
Reviewed by SwillinBrew from California

3.82/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
I had to give this one another try after IPAviator says he likes it.

A - an orange-peel amber color with a finger of white head that thinned and finished halfway thru my pint. Left a nice lace.
S - A wall of pine and orange blossoms, very fragrant.
T - Citrus and floral notes with some pine bite my tongue then end on a somewhat faint sweet malt. A bit on the raw side with bitter herbaceous character. I could use more hops at flameout here, or better use of hop additions throughout the boil.
M&Dr - good punchy carbonation on a medium bodied brew.
Nov 29, 2005
Photo of Phyl21ca
Reviewed by Phyl21ca from Canada (QC)

2.5/5  rDev -32.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
Bottle: Poured a clear copper color ale with a small head with minimal retention. Aroma of strong floral hops is quite enjoyable. Taste is a weird mix between dry hops with weird sweet malt. I didn’t particularly enjoy the mix between the sweetness and the dry hops. I would have enjoyed more bitterness and a greater level of carbonation (the beer was almost flat). I wonder if I got a bad bottle or maybe this is just not for me.
Nov 21, 2005
Photo of Bumpon10s
Reviewed by Bumpon10s from Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
A - Pours an orangey amber, with a head smaller than the ABV gives off.

S - Very fruity with the hops taking a back seat, no alcohol in the smell.

T - A light APA to say the least. A touch of light fruit with a graze of hops. No need to be cautious, drink up.

M - Water. Super thin APA, but at 5% ABV, it was a bit expected.

D - Well, it went down like water, but a bit unlike the style, could be better.
Oct 22, 2005
Photo of Oxymoron
Reviewed by Oxymoron from Colorado

3.81/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Did you check for monsters under you bed? Hopzilla is a good monster. The color is a light amber with some copper or yellowish glows when held to the light. There is some chill haze and some sediment that made its way into the glass.

The nose is strong in hops. But there is a strong sweet malt that is just as prominent in the nose. Both are evenly noted and very distinguishable. Pretty impressive. A pine smell to the hops.

The taste is a little of a surprise. At the top there is a little bit of a bite and more noticeable is an oily taste. Not a big fan of oily tasting beers. The malt comes quickly to back it and really does its own job of dominating the taste. Actually it covers up some of the aroma hops. The aftertaste brings that hop bite back but is masked in the oil and sweeter malt.

The body is more on the medium side. Limited carbonation but still good. Overall I thought it was a unique IPA which is good, but I think less bittering (or oily taste) and more of a floral taste and you have a monster of a beer.
Oct 20, 2005
Photo of gotbeer
Reviewed by gotbeer from Massachusetts

3.3/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
A- This beer pours a nice amber gold with a decent head that will lace the glass nicely

S- This beer smells of one things- hops, and more hops. Some citrus and grassy aromas

T- The taste is like the smell. Lots of hops- citurs, piney, and grassy flavors. Very bitter. Somewhat unbalanced. This beer could use a little malt balance to even out the hop assault on your tastebuds.

M- The mouthfeel is decent. Maybe a little thin, but not bad.

D- I could drink several of these, but I think I would get a little bored with the lack of complexity.

Overall a beer a hophead would like, but might not be overwhelmed with. It needs balance. Worth a try, but probably won't become a staple of mine.
Oct 15, 2005
Photo of Naes
Reviewed by Naes from New York

4.03/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Golden / orange in color with a large frothy white head.
The aroma is of citrusy and piney hops.
Its flavor lives up to its name, another hop monster. Though, I must add that there is a definite malt character in the mix as well. Pine and grapefruit add to the bitterness that is dominant in this brew.
Mouth feel is on the light side of medium bodied and is generously carbonated.
Oct 08, 2005
Photo of WanderingFool
Reviewed by WanderingFool from Massachusetts

3.18/5  rDev -13.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Hopzilla pours a clear straw light amber with a creamy white head on top. A moderately hoppy aroma of pine and grapefruit hovers over the beer. However I found that it's not as strong of an aroma as other American IPA's that I've had.

Each sip of this medium bodied beer is full of pine and citrus hop flavor. Surprisingly, there's some caramel malt notes in the background balancing out the hops. It finishes with an oily hop bitterness leaving some grassy notes behind.

This beer is definitely more hoppy than a regular IPA, however I found it more drinkable than other beers in its class. It's not overly bitter and doesn't "burn" as it goes down.
Sep 21, 2005
Photo of smcolw
Reviewed by smcolw from Massachusetts

3.47/5  rDev -6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Very nice four-finger head with some excellent lacing properties. Clear light amber in color.

Beautiful fresh dry-hop aroma. The malt is not hidden, though, with a pale malt aroma blending in with the floral hop resins.

The taste is a little disappointing given the excellent start. There's a Kool-Aid quality to the malt flavors (sweet and fruity). The hop is extreme, like a strong double IPA without the raised alcohol level. It is omnipresent from sip to swallow to aftertaste, which goes on bitterly for at least a minute (sort of like too-hot wings). The body and carbonation are appropriate. Unfortunately, this one is too bitter to be on my regular drinking list of IPA's.
Sep 04, 2005
Photo of Zorro
Reviewed by Zorro from California

2.95/5  rDev -20.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2
Pours a clear coppery gold colored brew. In fact this is almost exactly the same color as the old varnished pine cabinet work in my kitchen. It was gold when new but age has darkened it to a golden copper color.

Smell is clean and clearly malty. Hops are also present but don't overpower everything else in the glass. Pleasant citrus hop scent that is mild enough to let you smell a bit of toast and biscuit in the malt. I give this a little extra credit for maintaining a balance.

Taste is malty and mildly sweet with a strong hop flavor of citrus. Hop after taste is VERY bitter in the first taste. Grapefruit and lemon come through most in the hop. Bitterness in the aftertaste a bit too much for the body and malt level involved. Taste gets a bit metallic, probably from the bitterness firing all the taste buds all at once. This could have been done better with a hop mix and more dry hopping and less high alpha acid hops.

Mouthfeel is OK.

Drinkability? Not really in my book. This is a balls to the wall hop monster all right. It is unbalanced and very quickly becomes a pain, like a little kid that discovers curse words and starts repeating that one word over and over again for shock value. This beer knows only one word too "BITTER" aftertaste. I would suggest the maker cut back on the High Alpha acid hops and dry hop more with several varieties to add flavor and aroma without harsh bitterness.
Aug 26, 2005
Photo of BEERchitect
Reviewed by BEERchitect from Kentucky

3.82/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Humm... An intimidating bottle and lable. Taunting me on, I've got to take the challenge. Looks rust colored, maybe on the side of orange. Pours a sometimes dense, sometimes loose head that laced well above the proteins. Off white, the head stands nicely. Smells hoppy from the boil, but not as much as expected from the late additions. A bit salty? Tastes sweetly malty with citrusy flavors of over-ripened oranges, plumbs, and a little grapes. Spicy of christmas--pine-ey, nutmeg, all-spice, cooriander, cinnamon, curracco...and don't forget the christmas tree. Hops are indeed bold into the body. It still remains salty. The finish is dry (expected from hopping and alcohol). A bit fusal and acidic. All in all, its' a bit tame-er than expected from the label. Although I got some grassyness in the nose and flavor, I expected much more. Body could have been bolder too. Give it a shot, but expect a normal IIPA, not a monster.
Aug 02, 2005
Photo of goodbyeohio
Reviewed by goodbyeohio from Connecticut

4.3/5  rDev +16.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
maybe the hoppiest 5%er ever

clear orangey amber with crisp attitude and a slight gathering of some bubbles and carbonation on the surface. leaves some thin lacing in its wake. smell is very floral and malty.. hops bringing spice over tart citrus. reminds me of lagunitas ipa almost immediately. taste is fresh and botanical.. very light body... doesn't limit the bitterness though, as that comes through in spades. the licorice and bitter parts carry a smooth, sweet honey maximizing flavor and drinkability. this is my kind of IPA although admittedly it doesn't score well with big time hop heads. IMHO the caramel and honeysuckle flavors complement hopping more than additional hops.

a nice brew for sure.
Jul 25, 2005
Photo of beerceller99
Reviewed by beerceller99 from Louisiana

4.22/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Pale orange color color with a decent two finger head. Incredible hop / bud cousin pine resin smell. Medium bodied with a smooth mouthfeel. Nice malty grain taste with a relatively mild (considering the smell ) hop taste. Finishes with a tasty hop burp.
A nice fresh hop taste here without being overly bitter.
Very good.
Jul 12, 2005
Photo of DogFood11
Reviewed by DogFood11 from California

3.2/5  rDev -13.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
The initial appearance was deep orange color and full bodied....Smell was pine hoppy with hints of caramel, nothing else I could make out....it looked like a cup of juice after one minute....no head, minimal lacing, it looks almost apologetic. This to me is a beer that is trying to be a big IPA that is basically just a touch above a bitter pale and balanced with a sweet caramel backdrop. Citrus to acidic in the finish.

Notes: overall, this is reccomonded. Price is usually right.
Jul 01, 2005
Photo of Ahhdball
Reviewed by Ahhdball from Ohio

3.7/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Decent beige crown atop the good looking clear amber brew. Clingy thick lace followed.

The aroma wasn't that powerfull. Don't get me wrong there was some citrus and an average amount of hops. It's just not what I expected.

The taste. Hmm not exactly what I would expect from a beer with the name of a 200 foot, 5000 ton radioactive monster. Malt beginning with a good amount of hops, some honey and a little pine.

Mouthfeel was slightly thick, left a good clean finish. All in all I might have it again but I don't think I'd pursue it.
Jul 01, 2005
Photo of BuckSpin
Reviewed by BuckSpin from Maine

3.7/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Poured a surprisingly syrupy & thick warm honey amber hue. Lite sediment was noticable & suspended under a nice 1 1/2" head of loose cream foam that laced nicely.

Of course the nose is hopped (whatcha expect from a 90 IBU?). but also has hints of sweetness like honey, even pine.

The high IBU's sing loudly on the tongue, pallete and throat, but ther are nice accents to it. Its surprisingly creamy on the tongue (perhaps the syrupy quality) with some mild honey sweetness laying a thick base for the hops to dance on. If this is designed its a nice way to offset the strong hop qualities. It is sharp, and swallows very hopped with an even stronger bitter echo that resonnates loudly over a bitter film on the throat.

While not one of my favorite genres, it was good. The body is a bit lacking, and its not as complex as a Burning River, but I would recommend it and try it again (especially with some Thai food).
Jun 27, 2005
Photo of neonbrown82
Reviewed by neonbrown82 from Nebraska

3.51/5  rDev -4.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Poured with a nice fluffy one and a half inch white head on top of a hazy pale golden straw colored liquid. Appears to be pretty well carbonated. Head retention is great. Lacing is quite sticky.

The smell isn't the most powerfully hoppy thing I've experienced in my life. At least not hoppy enough to justify the name of Hopzilla. If anything, the smell is more Maltra (Mothra). It does have a very distinguishing bitter hop aroma to it, though.

The taste is just barely above average for an IPA as well. It is well bittered, but lacks a clean citrusy dry-hopped taste. The malts are dominated by a coating bitterness. Has a very dry finish. Not one of the most drinkable IPA's I've had.

Thanks to axisjones for the bottle.
Jun 26, 2005
Photo of fdrich29
Reviewed by fdrich29 from Massachusetts

3.3/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
I think I picked this bottle up at Marty's Wine in Newton, Massachusetts.

OK so I've yet to be desensatized to marketing and names assigned to products. I like a nice, hoppy IPA. Something with the sack to call itself Hopzilla with a larger than life lizard like eye that has a hop bud in the center of the pupil, in my opion, must be a damn hoppy beer.

Not so much in this case.

You can't judge a book by it's cover, but you can certainly judge a beer by it's appearance, and this one was like an old paperback that didn't have it's front cover.

Looked more like an adjunct lager, I could practically see through the glass. The head disappeared quicker than Obi Wan Kenobi's body, although there were some encouraging rings of clingy lace.

Smell was weak, with some vanilla-ish tones and floral hops. Taste is sweet with a slightly bitter aftertaste. Fairly easy to drink if you can tolerate the lack of taste and body.

I'm all for trying new and different beers, but your hard earned dollars are better off on something else.
Jun 07, 2005
Bert Grant's Hopzilla IPA from Yakima Brewing Co. / Bert Grant's Ales
Beer rating: 84 out of 100 with 77 ratings