Closest beer to Heady Topper

The beer I just drank will be the closest to the heady I'm drinking.

 

I will be trying this from a growler for the first time tomorrow, and I can't wait.

 

Bohdi is the bee's knees!

 

Had my first Gandhi Bot the other night, and while it's not exactly like Heady Topper, I was struck by the similarities. Great beer!

 

ABRASIVE!!!

 

Stone Ruination has shown the closest resemblance for me

 

Lagunitas Sucks when fresh batches come back this fall.

 

I've yet to try anything that's crazy close.

There's a local place in NH (Nepenthe ales) makes a IIPA called Lotus Eater - when it first came out last year the first batch of it was fairly close to Heady - it even looked like it. They've been tweaking the recipe quite a bit and I haven't had any that came close to that first batch, but that was the closest I've ever had.

If you homebrew, this recipe is amazing. Get a hold of some Conan yeast and you'll be golden. http://signpostbrewing.com/heady-topper-clone-brew-4-0/ I brewed a batch recently and I think it's incredibly close (I did a side by side with the real HT.)

 

Does Abner come in cans?

 

At a glance, this thread seems to me to be people saying what they think is as good...which is hilarious to me because I think like 20 IPAs/DIPAs are better (queue the quintissential 'but I can't get those either).

Anyways, I think that Lunch and Bissell Substance both have some distinct similarities to Heady flavor-wise

 

I'm surprised by the Nepenthe comment. I tried a few of their beers when I lived in NH and they were about as amateurish as I've ever tasted for a commercial brewery. It was like tasting the ingredients of a beer rather than drinking the finished product, if that makes sense.

 

I had a new brew at one of my local breweries that is IMO very close to heady, except for a little more malt would be needed on the back end. It is called Transmigration of Souls from Orpheus and it is amazing! It is a very high quality beer!

 

…in 32oz bottles *facepalm*

 

This:

I believe my description of Bodhi when I first had it was "looks like Pliny, tastes like Heady."

 

Haven't tried Substance yet, but to me Lunch tastes like Pliny the Elder. Have yet to have a beer tastes like Heady because Conan yeast gives beer such a disitinctive character, and John Kimmich is probably the only pro brewer can mix hop mastery with Conan mastery well enough to make it.

 

I take it Conan is a type of yeast? Does it really play that large a role?

 

The closest that I have found to Heady has been NoDa Hop Drop and Roll
Both come in a can, both have a similar nose (Heady's is better), similar mouthfeel, both have those wonderful little particles floating around (god I love that shit). I prefer Heady but HopDrop is not far behind

 

Regardless of which beers I may or not like more...I'm not sure ANY truly taste like Heady does. Abner and (maybe) Ephraim kinda do, but not quite. Some of the west coast items I see on this list might as well be a totally different style, for better or worse.

 

Probably HF Society and Solitude 5, Maine Dinner, and Fort George/Boneyard/Block 15 3-Way IPA.

 

Yes, and YESSSSS!!!!!