#hopulence

[thedaily-beer]

Wild Barrel Hopulence Hazy Juicy IPA (Picked up at Windmill Farms). A 4 of 4. Really bright tropical fruit notes in the nose with a ton of complexity. Much the same up front in the body with a slightly creamy body and lots of fruity complexity throughout and into the finish. Clean, slightly bitter in the finish, and just lots going on. Really great.

[joesliquor]

Just in from @wildbarrelbrewing with #nextlevel HAZY IPA #hopobsession and #hopulence now available @joesliquor 🥃 🍺 🍾 🔥 🔥𝐒𝐂𝐕 𝐒𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐘 𝐃𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘 @ 🔗 www.joesliquor.com🔗 🌎𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐊 𝐈𝐍 𝐁𝐈𝐎 🔥 🔥 #santaclarita #canyoncountry #saugus #valencia #stevensonranch #newhall #sandcanyon #joesliquorscv #beercave #craftbeer #samedaydelivery #wildbarrelbrewing #hazyipa #ipa #craftbeerporn #beerstagram (at Joes Liquor SCV) https://www.instagram.com/p/CEuUygVJSvf/?igshid=1nghxrio5atu8

[itwasaverygoodbeer]

Wormtown Hopulence Double IPA ~ 8.5% ABV

[sheppardsbrew]

Is Heady Topper Still The Best?

First off, I'd like to say that I hate rankings. Sorry about the incendiary title, but this is not going to be a ranking. Everyone is obsessed with rankings. Power rankings. Top Tens. They're dumb because beer isn't about being the best. Beer is about the consumer. Being the refreshing beverage that hits the spot. That satisfies the taste buds. That's interesting and complex. We all have different preferences and I'm talking specifically about IPAs because that's my favorite. I'm talking specifically about Heady because it's one of the gold standards of the style. Now, I am not going to be speaking ill of Heady Topper. As I said on Twitter last week, if someone offers me a Heady Topper, I'm never going to say no. It's just a brilliant, brilliant IPA. 

My question arises from the trouble people go through to get it. The hoarding that is involved with it. The hoopla that surrounds it. I will fully acknowledge that that might be part of the allure of it. You have to go through the effort to get it so when you have it, it's that much better. I can't say that I have gone through that as my experiences with Heady Topper have been a result of the generosity of others.

Now, in the past, I think that hype, respect, craziness surrounding it was totally worth it. There just weren't that many top of the line IPAs. In many ways, by serving as the standard, Heady Topper has made other brewers set goals to match that level of greatness. In truth, many brewers have matched The Alchemist in making great IPAs. However, Heady Topper is Heady and the hoopla continues. 

There are people for whom Heady Topper will be the divine standard and nothing else will compare. I'm not trying to convince those people to not go after Heady. Nor am I trying to convince those that may be more open to accepting other IPAs as their favorites or amazing alternatives to Heady Topper to not go up to try and get some Heady Topper. Again, I think it's a part of the beer tourist experience. 

However, I do think that you should support the breweries that are close to you that are making great IPAs or other hoppy beers (again, I am speaking specifically about IPAs because it is the style that is my favorite, may be you like Belgians or some other style where you are obsessed with a single brewery and aren't giving other, local breweries the same attention). I feel that I have some breweries closer to me that really make beers that hit the spot as much or even more so than Heady Topper. 

I guess you can't really go about this without naming names, right? I mean, I can't say there are beers that are just as great nearby and not say anything about it. Oh boy, well, I guess I'll lead into it by sharing this anecdote. Last year, I was crazy about a certain breweries beers. The first time I had said beer was at ACBF. It was strange because it was just a beer I stumbled upon and I'd never heard of the brewery or had any of their beer. I had their DIPA. It was incredible. I kept having their stuff.

I was astonished that Wormtown, the mysterious brewery that I was talking about, wasn't more known or more hyped. Their double IPA, Hopulence, is one of my favorite beers. Period. Their single IPA, Be Hoppy, is also great, but not as good, in my opinion (strangely rated higher than Hopulence on Beer Advocate). Whenever I had Hopulence, I would talk about it and wax poetic. Whenever there was a new batch, it was available and I could get it.

In the last few months, things have changed. Both of the Wormtown IPAs are hard to get your hands on. If a store is fortunate enough to get Be Hoppy or Hopulence, it will sell them on the same day. It's hard to say what has caused this demand. Part of it might be from their conception of Norm, a chocolate coconut stout that is named after a pretty well-known beer writer. By introducing the brand to people, I would guess that consumers have moved on to the IPAs. The other more likely reason is the production of Be Hoppy in cans. It has made the beer cheaper and more accessible to buy (versus buying a bomber). Unfortunately for me, these two beers seem to have the same buzz at Heady right now (funny story, I actually picked up some Be Hoppy today to trade for some Bell's Two Hearted).

Wormtown is the brewery that I'd say is the one that make IPAs that I specifically enjoy. Other alternatives close by but also that get a lot of hype and hoopla are Tree House out in Central/Western MA and Trillium in Boston. Tree House is mostly known for Julius, but they make other fantastic IPAs and other beers. Trillium is just great all around. Their flagship is a farmhouse saison, but they also make Fort Point Pale Ale, a very hoppy American Pale Ale with citra and columbus. Trillium more recently came out with Mettle, an IPA with rave reviews. As I said, they're an all around great brewery. 

Now, I mentioned these because they're closer to home. However, I realize they have some of the same hype characteristics that Heady Topper does. Trillium only started bottling and their hoppy beers go pretty fast. Mostly, they do growler fills and they're not in the most easily accessible part of the city (Seaport). Tree House only does growler fills. Both are available on draft at local bars. Wormtown has some distribution, but again, it goes quick. All of these are much more sporadic in their release, but Trillium and Tree House do a good job of acknowledging their stock and when stuff is going to be released. They brew other beers so the beers I mentioned can go in and out of stock. 

With The Alchemist, Heady Topper is their flagship and they basically only brew it with the exception of the limited releases. Furthermore, all of the stores shipments are pretty well documented over the internet to get. May be getting the best beers is just a hassle to begin with. It's a small price to pay.