The Oracle vs. Hopslam

I also prefer The Oracle between the two, as stated earlier, Hop Slam is more balanced and Oracle is more bitter. The ones I had were a few months or older and it still tasted fantastic, I couldn't imagine how amazing a fresh one on tap must taste. 'Not taking anything from Hop Slam because I absolutely love that beer as well, both awesome, but different.

 

Never had Oracle (hoping to in a couple weeks), but Hopslam doesn't work for me. Weird, sticky mouthfeel, way too sweet and malty. Given how much I love Two-Hearted, I assume I would love Oracle.

 

I liked The Oracle more than Hopslam. just my humble opinion.

 

I am not a fan of overly bitter IPAs/DIPAs, so I much prefer Hopslam. My wife prefers Oracle because she does prefer overly bitter IPAs/DIPAs.

 

i've only ever had one hopslam that i received as an extra in a trade and i loved it. I thought it was very balanced for an IPA... but then again I'm more accustomed to the west-coast IPA...

 

I'm on the Oracle bandwagon. Hopslam is a great beer, but something about the Oracle draws me in every time.

 

I actually hated Hopslam. Would like to try them both side by side, fresh though.

 

I wasn't impressed with The Oracle at all when I had it. Dry? Not for me. Is it drier than Hopslam, yeah but it's not a dry beer. I also found it a bit to heavy with alcohol.

For my money? Hopslam all the way, no contest.

 

The last two years of Hopslam were IMO way too sweet. The 1st Hopslam I tried ruined my life, and turned me into a confirmed Hop Head, and it's cost me thousands of dollars. It was also the first beer that was really a "wow".

 

The oracle is a new hoppy beer? never had it, hop heads delight huh? had HS, its ok I guess if you like your taste buds ruined for the evening, lol PtE was better I thought, but there not my thing those super hoppy beers.

 

I'm just happy to have access to both. Fresh vs fresh would probably be a coin flip for me, as stated above by Genuinedesciple it really depends on mood. Even though not a DIPA I think cask Two-Hearted is up there with them also.

 

Lawsons DS best I've ever had in this category

 

I always had a strong preference of The Oracle over Hopslam. The inconsistency of Hopslam combined with the over-sweetness of most of the batches I tried mean that The Oracle is the definitive victor for me.

 

Neither is very good IMO. There's too much booze in both. Hopslam has some interesting sweetness and a little more flavor and is slightly better IMO, but I won't be buying either one again when I can get better offerings year round.

 

Have any of you ever heard of "Big Head IPA" that was a one off by Bells? Do you know the back story? It was the forerunner of Oracle.

 

For others, Big Head was brewed for the CBC in San Diego as a bit of a shot at the San Diego/West Coast brewers.

I picked up a couple bottles from Bell's when it was released. I have a limited memory of the beer a this point but I remember it being abrasively bitter. Now my palate has changed a bit, I would have love to taste it then with my palate now.

 

Word is that it will be in bottles, starting this week. Although, this one is going to be really tough to get.

All that said, Oracle is one of the best in the state, but it doesn't hold a candle to Hopslam. Sorry.

 

Everytime people talk about Hopslam they talk about floral and citrusy and the main thing I get from it, smell wise, is pine. There is some floral and citrus, but overwhelmingly pine/cedar to me. I would call 2 hearted very floral, Sculpin very citrus, but I get a ton of pine from Hopslam (and Surly Furious as well). Is my sniffer off?

 

I've been drinking Oracle the past 2 days, and let me just say, it is phenominal and I wish it was distributed as plentiful as Hopslam. I feel the same way about Hopslam each year, but I don't remember loving Oracle this much...immediately goes to a top 6 DIPA for me.

 

Ill let you know my take on Friday!

Black Note and Oracle