Hopstinger
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant

Reviewed from notes. The appearance was a orange to amber sort of color with a finger’s worth of white foamy head. Nice looking rings of lace slid down the glass. The aroma had some citrusy smooth sweetness with a subtle honey sweetness. The flavor was mostly the same as the aroma. Aftertaste and finish were the same with a slight stickiness. The feel was almost medium bodied, seemed just a touch under with a decent carbonation about it. ABV felt appropriate. Overall, pretty good AIPA that I could have again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On-tap at Hop Attack

A - Served with a clear, golden-copper body...the head stood one finger tall and was white in color...it retained to a full cap and left some lacing behind

S - Citrus hops stand out as they are bright and show off some bitterness...lemon is the main citrus I'm picking up...not much honey sweetness in the nose

T - This one is hoppy all around...there's not much sweetness from the honey to be found...the citrus hops once again dominate and send flavors of lemon and grapefruit throughout the beer...they finish bitter but that's where the honey decides to shine...it allows the beer to finish bittersweet on the palate

M - Medium bodied...honey is dominate in the finish but bitter hops are playing too...bittersweet finish

O - I was wanting more from this beer in the aspect of honey...it was pretty subdued to the amount of citrus hops still alive in the beer...a nice bittersweet finish

Served on-tap at Iron Hill Lancaster.

A – Pours amber orange with a nice one finger tall white head leaving light rings of lacing down the glass.

S – Smells of sweet honey, citric hops, dulled citric fruits, and some light booze. The hops are beginning to fade a bit and the honey sweetness is taking over it.

T - Fairly similar to the nose. A mix of honey sweetness and dulled citric hops up front never really giving way throughout. There is still a hint of the bright citric fruits that once called this beer home but they are fading quickly. Finish is a mix of sweetness and hop bitterness. Not as good as it was fresh but still very good.

M - Medium body and flavor with moderate carbonation. Sticky sweet feel with plenty of it lingering thru the finish.

O - This one was pretty good. It tasted a bit old but it still had plenty of life in it. The hops blended well with the honey sweetness to form a well balanced beer. Good stuff for sure.

Had this on 2011-04-24 in the brew pub in Lancaster, PA (from tasting notes)

A - Hazy gold with a one finger white head and good lacing.

S - Hop floral, light citrus and grain

T - Light caramel malt, orange citrus, decent bitterness with an IBU of 70. The grapefruit taste lingers nicely.

M - Med body med-carb. Bubbly, smooth, not oily.

O - Tastes pretty darn good after an 11-mile hike! I like the residual citrus flavor, which makes it quite refreshing.

I had this on cask at the Lancaster brewpub, poured into a goblet.

Appearance: Pours a cloudy amber with a reddish tint. There is a finger of off white head with really nice lacing.

Smell: This is the best part of this beer. Sweet citrus hops dominate, I'm picking up pineapple. The hop smell is also mildly herbal.

Taste: I'm not going to lie, the taste is a bit of a let down after the smell. There are bitter citrus peel and herbal hop flavors, but it's not as dominant as it was in the smell. There is a nice sweetness from the malt, but the flavor isn't as strong as I would like. The finish is bitter.

Mouthfeel: The body is on the thin side. Obviously there isn't much carbonation. Very dry.

Overall: I was a bit let down after smelling this beer. I wouldn't say that it's bad, just didn't live up to it's promise.

A-Hazy golden copper with medium off-white head that reduces to a thin cap and left large deposits of rope like lace.

S-Citrus hops sure but rather muted compared to the draft version. Herbalness and malt are almost as dominant.

T-Grassy citrus hop flavour in the forefront. A grainy toasted biscuit malt pressence is more noticable than in the draft. In fact, things get somewhat muted.

M-Medium bodied and quite smooth with good lingering hop bitterness.

D-Good but, for once a cask version does not one up the draft offering. The hops seemed muted and the brew presented itself as quite balanced overall. Not the in your face, sweet, hop bomb that the draft delivery brings. Honey sweetness also seemed completely lost.

On tap at the Lancaster location on 4/8/11. Served in a pint glass, this brew appears a hazed color of orange with a finger of creamy white head that is fluffy. As the cap recedes, it leaves a curtain of lace all over the glass.

The aroma is bright citrus hops smelling of grapefruit mixed with a hoppy scent of grass and light herbal aspect. It is a very enjoyable aroma that has a backing of sweet smelling malt that comes across like candy.

The taste of the brew is sharp with citrus rinds, grapefruit, grass, toasted malt and a light flavor that seems like honey but not quite. There is a peculiar sweetness about this brew that evaporates to a crisp dryness on the tongue. The dryness of the finish coupled with the sharp citrus hop bitter bite makes for a brew that is easy drinking.

This is a full bodied brew with a modest level of carbonation. It is very east drinking with a sharp, enjoyable bitterness. Slightly warming alcohol inclusion and overall a top quality IPA that I would drink regulary.

a: This was a clear, golden amber color and it was served to me with a large, sticky head.

s: Big nose on this one. Lots of sweet caramel, honey, and peaches, plus plenty of fresh smelling, pungently citrusy hops.

m: This does everything in a big way. Very sweet elements of caramel and to a lesser extent honey quickly washed away by big, very bitter but still flavorful citric and kind of piny hops.

m: Very big bodied for 7% abv with creamy carbonation.

o: Very, very good but not quite up there with kryptonite.

A-pours a clear honey gold with a huge frothy head and lots of sticky lacing.

S-sweet honey, peach, tangerine and an undertone of sweet malt. Very appealing.

T-sweet maltiness in the front with a ton of flavoring hops and good solid bitterness in the finish. Sweet and juicy hoppiness throughout, very nicely flavorful with great balance.

M-medium bodied, lingering light bitterness.

O-really excellent. one of the best local brewpub IPAs around.

HV

A - Pours a creamy white head with excellent retention. It leaves globs of sticky lace all over the inside of the glass. The beer is a pale yellow with orange highlights.

S - The aroma is extremely pungent. There is a little bit of honey and caramel paired with some citrus hops and some tropical notes.

M - Light in body with crisp active carbonation.

T - Light bready notes and caramel up front followed by some floral hops. It's then got a citrus kick with a bit of honey. It finishes with a lingering bitterness.

Absolutely excellent. The hops aroma and flavor on this beer is huge, and the honey works really well with them. Iron Hill makes some truly delicious hoppy beers.

On tap at the Lancaster location

The beer pours a honey amber color (appropriately enough) with good head retention and lacing. The nose on this beer is quite aromatic, showcasing considerable orange citrus, light pine, honey and a hint of dank earth. The flavor profile replicates the nose pretty closely, except the honey flavor is much more apparent on the palate. The beer is well balanced, with the sweetness held in check very nicely by the hoppy bitterness in the finish. The beer is not overly sweet/malty or boozy, which is how I prefer my IPA's. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, with a fairly long, hoppy, lightly honeyed finish. Drinkability is quite good.... I could easily down two or three of these bad boys without much problem.

Very tasty beer and a very nice effort from Iron Hill.