I went over to Sidetracks Bar & Grill last night for a tasty burger with goat cheese, sweet potato fries, and spinach, artichoke, and crab dip. If you’re not from the Ypsilanti area, you are really missing out. Visit their website and if you’re ever in the area, you need to make a visit. During the Winter, my go to beer is Bell’s Winter White, which is a delicious wheat beer that has some citrus and spice flavors. If you don’t live in an area that distributes Bell’s, I feel sorry for you. It’s based in Kalamazoo, but I have heard people from as far away as North Carolina say they have seen Bell’s beer for sale there. Anyways, Sidetracks was advertising Bell’s Hop Slam, which is on very limited release during the Winter season only (January and February, keg only).
Bell’s Hop Slam is an I.P.A. that is advertised to contain more hops in a pint than 8 pints of Budweiser. If you’re not familiar with “hops”, they are to beer what lemon is to lemon aid. It is a bittering ingredient without which, beer would be coyling sweet. Hops also add the aroma to your beer. Pretty much all you need to know, is hops create the balance between bitter and sweet. If you like sweeter beer, less hops. If you are a fan of bitters, more hops.
The beer was almost what I expected, but so much more. The amount of hops created a perfect balance between sweet and bitter. The strong taste of BEER existed, but it also contained a delicious citrusy sweet flavor. Add in the fact that it’s 11% alcohol, and you have a pretty impressive beer there.