Hop Bomb
Black Oak Brewing Co.

 

 

550ml cask draught
5.0% ABV

I tried this beer on May 25, 2012 at "C'est What" in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The beer poured a translucent golden red colour with a thin white head. The aroma was weak caramel, funk, and floral hops. Definitely not a hop bomb in aroma. The mouthfeel was on the thin side with mild carbonation. The flavour was weak citrusy hops, some sweet caramel notes, and some yeast. I was hoping for a whole lot better.

On cask at Volo.

Beer is orange in colour with a nice, thick white head. Pretty good retention.

Nice tropical fruit scent in the nose. Pineapple and mango. Some citrus.

Citrus and tropical fruit in the taste. Mango, grapefruit and pineapple. A bit of a sweet malty backbone. Fairly restrained taste but nice. Mild bitterness.

Medium bodied, low carbonation. A bit soapy.

Overall, pretty good but not a standout.

On cask at C'est What, into a pint glass.

Poured a hazy brownish orange, with a fairly dense cream coloured cap. Nice retention and good lacing. Nose has some subtler hopes, pine and citrus notes with some tropical fruit notes. A light sugary malt in the background. Taste is quite nice, lots of mango and tangerine, and I can't help but believe Citra played an important role here. Some leafy and pine notes as well, some sugary breadiness as per the nose. Fruity flavour. Cask mouthfeel, modest bitterness aids drinkability. Nice hopping and flavour, medium thick body. Nice, but not outstanding - I would certainly welcome this on cask more often.

Pint at Twisted Kilt

Pale amber, 1.5 fingers off white head, some lace on the glass. Smell is biscuity malt, dry hop notes, light citrus. Biscuity malt, good bitter finish, well hopped, light citrus. Creamy feel, med carb slightly high for cask, medium weight. Drinks well, good take on the pale, solid stuff.

On cask at C'est What. Comes a murky orange with a thin line of head. Good head retention and some lacing. Smell is bursting with fresh hops. Taste has enough bitterness, with some fruity hops. I think I get apricot and peach in the flavour. Nice malt backbone too. Very smooth mouthfeel. A really nicely done pale ale.

Guys, the name was actually "Atomic" Hop Bomb Pale Ale!

This was F-R-E-S-H at Volo Cask Day, Oct. 22, 2005.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Ken woods (owner) at the event as well.

A: Very pale amber/yellow with only a little haze. Only a little head.

S: Assertive citrous from an abundance of American hops.

T: Very green (fresh). They must've added a bunch of hops for the last week or so of conditioning. It's almost like grapefruit juice!

M: Light body and carbonation; slight acidity.

D: It's a hop bomb, and the hops really need a little time to mellow.

Hazy amber and orange colour with a dense, cream-coloured head. Great retention and some lacing. The aroma is absolutely full of hops, floral and orange mostly, but there's a bit of malt sweetness in there as well. Big, juicy hop flavour with lots of orange citrus. Moderate bitterness blends nicely with a malty backbone. The body is on the light side with a smooth texture. At the end of the pint the body started to fall out right at the finish, but this was a minor complaint. A great tasting session ale!

Very intenese version of their American Pale which was served at Fort York 2004 festival, and somethin Jeremy Criags had a lot to do with, according to the brewer., Hop socks galore. Great hop intensity and one of my favorite cask conditioned of all time, with the subtlety an butterness of their regular APA merely passing scenery. Now that it's a separate review, I can add it as my 1000th beer review.

Special on cask at Cafe Volo, best place to get a beer in Toronto. Pours a hazy golden amber/orange, rich creamy head on top, lots of lacing. Smell is all hops, very floral with a neat jasmine aroma. Taste is loaded with hops as well, again floral with a jasmine flavour with a nice malty backbone. Very smooth and tasty beer, definately loaded with hops.