Wellington headstrong APA now in bottles

[tupalev]

I tried the Headstrong in Bottle form tonight - I was pleasantly surprised. I was at the Bow intro for this beer and while I thought it was a decent session brew, I didn't really get an IPA feel from it; the hop aroma and bitterness was extremely muted (I now think this had more to do with how it was served that night - seemed to be way too bubbly, I'm sorry I can't be more specific). From the bottle though, the cascades in the aroma came through strong, the beer itself was well balanced and it was nice and bitter. A really strong initial bottle "metallic" taste that eventually faded away was the only deterrent. This was a fine beer and a welcome addition to the Ontario scene. And for the record, I do not have near the knowledge as some that have posted on the subject, but I found it to be heavily influenced by the American interpretation of the style. Just my 2 cents; give it a try.

[pootz]

pootz,

Headstrong is actually an English Pale Ale.


Cheers, Doug

Sorry that's not what my palate tells me. But what the hey...I enjoyed it and I'm not all that particular for English ales anyway.

[pintbypint]

I was way impressed with this one. Great aroma, great malts, great hops. Plus $2.95 for a bomber is a more than fair price, and I can save the bottles for my homebrew

[pintbypint]

And for the record, I'd call it an English Pale Ale. Not that it matters, it's good, just drink it

[Belgian]

Great I want to try this. I recently discovered Wellington's darker beers are quite good.

I had a sample of Headstrong at the Summerhill LCBO on Saturday. I think that's the final nail in the coffin for me trying IPA's. I just can't take that style of beer.

Don't give up until you try a sixer of Scotch Irish Sgt Major's IPA. Make yourself have at least two before you nail that final nail.

I'm not a big IPA drinker either but this one is changing me. (Heck if you hate it after two I may buy/trade the other four from you!!)

[midlife crisis]

Just had my first "bomber" of Headstrong and found it very enjoyable. Not to re-open this debate needlessly, but surely this is an American-style pale ale. The dominant characteristic is the upfront hoppiness, which (I believe someone said) would be incongruous in a fine English country pub but perfectly within the norm in Portland or a good San Francisco bar. Just my feeling; at the end of the day I couldn't care less how it is characterized but I'm enjoying it and think it's in the mix with our other few good Ontario pale ales.

[lister]

Don't give up until you try a sixer of Scotch Irish Sgt Major's IPA. Make yourself have at least two before you nail that final nail.

I'm not a big IPA drinker either but this one is changing me. (Heck if you hate it after two I may buy/trade the other four from you!!)

Well I may give it a try if I see it tonight at the Davisville LCBO. I'm not expecting any miracles that'll change my mind on pale ales. The only one I can stomach is Rickard's and I know it's laughable to even call it a pale ale which is probably why I can drink it. I'm going to try to get two singles if I can instead of a sixer otherwise I may have to take you up on your offer.

[lister]

I picked up a case of six. I don't know about the tastebuds you guys have got. Yowzers! How the heck is that refreshing to drink?! I'll give it another go later in the week but the hand is firmly gripping the hammer...

With apologies to Mr. Adams, it's like having your tongue smashed out by a bushel of brussel sprouts wrapped round a large concrete block.

[Rob Creighton]

it's like having your tongue smashed out by a bushel of brussel sprouts wrapped round a large concrete block.

Wow, I don't know why I can't remember these gems when I need them.
I have to agree with you though Lister. The Cascade hop in this beer is big for my PA tastes. That being said, I tried a Michigan Brewing IPA earlier that was easily twice as hoppy as the Headstrong. Balance wasn't in the conversation with this one.

Given the trend, the beer sampling society demands two things. More alcohol and more hops. Despite all denials, American micro's are now offering beers that average well above 5% abv and bitterness that typically ranges off scale. I recently had a brown ale where the accent is supposedly on malt that was off scale on bitterness. The Michigan IPA is 7.2% abv and their PA is 5.5%. Their Celis Grand Cru is pressing 12% abv and still the clientel wants more.

The natural evolutionary reaction to this is to start distilling which is now the hottest trend in the US and Ontario. A new still has opened in London Ont. to make cheap/expensive vodka for cooler production. In Brighton MI I visited a facility with a brewery/distillery/winery licence that is bottling a grapefruit product called 'pink pussy'. Yup, there's no turning back boys. It's more, more, more. Balance nor style is not the issue. never has been.

[pootz]

That being said, I tried a Michigan Brewing IPA earlier that was easily twice as hoppy as the Headstrong. Balance wasn't in the conversation with this one.

Given the trend, the beer sampling society demands two things. More alcohol and more hops. Despite all denials, American micro's are now offering beers that average well above 5% abv and bitterness that typically ranges off scale. I recently had a brown ale where the accent is supposedly on malt that was off scale on bitterness. The Michigan IPA is 7.2% abv and their PA is 5.5%. Their Celis Grand Cru is pressing 12% abv and still the clientel wants more.

The natural evolutionary reaction to this is to start distilling which is now the hottest trend in the US and Ontario. A new still has opened in London Ont. to make cheap/expensive vodka for cooler production. In Brighton MI I visited a facility with a brewery/distillery/winery licence that is bottling a grapefruit product called 'pink pussy'. Yup, there's no turning back boys. It's more, more, more. Balance nor style is not the issue. never has been.

Yeah... gotta agree with you Rob...the US niche' market catering to "hop heads" and "big brews" seems to have spiraled out of control...Monolithic ales of 9% plus with bitterness off the scale and no pretense of balance or complexity are more common now and they sell out...arrogant bastard started this marketing crap with the cult that equates intense bitterness and high ABV with testicular fortitide...I'm sure some of these Ya-hoos whould drink pure distilled alpha oils even if they could hear their stomach lining crackling like it was hit with sulfuric acid......this race to make the biggest nastiest brew has blown all the taste/class out of traditional brewing and appreciation....in some quarters, gone is the mindset that equates the perfect brew character with absolute balance or the complexity of malt mix...or the compliment of hop mix to the malts chosen......no siree Elmer, gimme pure grain al-kee-hol and a shot of pure alpha oil fer a chaser bar keep....yahooooo specialty ales rock!!

[Rob Creighton]

gimme pure grain al-kee-hol and a shot of pure alpha oil fer a chaser bar keep....yahooooo!!

Isn't that a shot of Vodka with a Red Bull chaser or is it Labatt Schlok/Molson Schtick!

[pootz]

gimme pure grain al-kee-hol and a shot of pure alpha oil fer a chaser bar keep....yahooooo!!

Isn't that a shot of Vodka with a Red Bull chaser or is it Labatt Schlok/Molson Schtick!

More like freebasing rendered down triple Bastard

[Jon Walker]

I'm personally a fan of "hop forward" beers especially Imperial India Pale Ales from the U.S. many of which are around 10%. Can a beer have too much hop taste? Sure. But I still believe that balance can be achieved in a beer with greater than 6% alcohol and over 60 IBU's. I'd offer the Dogfish Head 90 minute IPA as a glowing example of just that. Hops aren't for everyone, especially lots of them and there are some mad scientist brewers out there going a little crazy. But I would rather see brewers take some risks and explore the boundaries than crank out another generic lager. And for those that really hate hops in their beer...there's always Corona.

[lister]

I don't mind a higher alcohol content but I want something that tastes good. These extreme hopheads seem akin to people who eat insanely spicy foods. You can't taste anything because your tongue is overloaded.

[pootz]

I'm personally a fan of "hop forward" beers especially Imperial India Pale Ales from the U.S. many of which are around 10%. Can a beer have too much hop taste? Sure. But I still believe that balance can be achieved in a beer with greater than 6% alcohol and over 60 IBU's. I'd offer the Dogfish Head 90 minute IPA as a glowing example of just that. Hops aren't for everyone, especially lots of them and there are some mad scientist brewers out there going a little crazy. But I would rather see brewers take some risks and explore the boundaries than crank out another generic lager. And for those that really hate hops in their beer...there's always Corona.

I won't argue with you Jon, that there are some big brews out there that deliver flavor in balance....most of the imperial stouts do this, as well as many well made imperial IPAs like Dreadnaught and Dogfish Head....the alcohol is up there because the malts are pumped up and the hops are as well to balance...actually I quite enjoy these and buy them when available (and I'm not particularly an ale fan). The dase line here is the brew's profile seeks balance.

What I have an issue with is these beers that make no pretense of attempting a balance....they just pump the hops to them to get the bitterness to cover the big alcohol whack. A 9, 10 or 12% beer that can't mask the alcohol with rich flavorful malts and complimentary hop mix in balance ( like the Belgian tripples) really has no place in my cellar.....of course, it does in some people's ( if in fact the do cellar beers as opposed to guzzeling to get gooned) but there is no accounting for taste.

The beers I was refering to are the so-called "double" or "tripple" IPAs where the marketing buzz for these beers is the big hop smash and the big alcohol rush. Seems like they have no redeeming factor ...to me at least and IMHO.