Terrapin Side Project Hop Shortage Ale
2008 will forever be known in professional brewing circles as the year of the Hop Shortage. Brewers everywhere are scrambling to find hops just to produce their standard line of beers. Some are so nervous they are even cutting back on brewing hoppy beers. NOT US! In typical Terrapin fashion we are going against the grain (or against the hops, so the speak). If there is going to be a shortage of hops, why not put them all into one huge hop bomb of a beer? We hope you enjoy our HOP SHORTAGE ALE.
3.6
172 reviews
Athens, United States
Community reviews
Thanks to Strykzone for sharing this one with me. Pours hazy orange / amber with a small patchy head. The aroma has caramel, bits of grapefruit, mustiness and it is somewhat oxidized. Medium / full body with a good amount of soft carbonation. The flavor starts oxidized, but the the age it is holding up well. There is some pine, wood and orange in there. The finish is mushy and woody. This is quite good for its age.
Bottle. Pours a amber orange, small off-white head. Aroma is some hops, maybe some malt. Flavor is subdued hops and a decent malt. Finish is just slightly bitter. Not the hop bomb that they describe, in fact, far from it. That doesn’t make it a bad beer by any means, just not what I was expecting. My guess is this one was consumed too late to enjoy the hop goodness.
Bottle thanks to SpringsLicker. Poured golden color with nice head. Aroma of citrus hops. Taste is hops, grapefruits, and malt. light texture and a little watery.
Bottle shared with tjthresh: Deep golden hue with a small frothy head and spotty lace. Spicy and herbal hop nose (pepper, wild flowers, some catty notes), mineral water, caramel and biscuity vapours but also detected a hint of a soapy off note. The taste starts with a twangy orange peel and grapefruit flavor along with a grassy and resiny but mellow profile. Chalky and biscuity midsection before the peppery and clove like finish. The mouth feel lively but a bit underwhelming. Astringent chalky and grainy finish. Not too bad but I do wish I could have this when it fresher.
Thanks OldGrowth. Enjoyed with Vyvvy. Pours as cloudy an IPA as I have ever seen. Color is orange with a bit of luminescence. Light lacing. Aroma is grapefruit and pine hop with caramel. Flavor begins with big grapefruit notes with plenty of balancing caramel. A bit of orange was tasted. As the beer warms pine comes to the forefront. Throughout the glass there was a steady dry hop bitterness. After the glass was empty a red pepper / peppermint bitterness lasted a good while. Unique. This was not as much of a hop bomb as expected and some of the hops had faded. Still, it was a very enjoyable and multifaceted IPA.
22oz Bomber
received this in a recent trade with beavers, thanks again Mike! Hop Shortage pours a slightly hazed copper with hints of orange throughout the body with tiny carbonation bubbles rising to the surface. A dense fingers worth of creamy white head formed on the pour and eventually fell to a thick cap that left some lace lines on its way down. Good looking beer.
Right off the bat I’m hit with sugar coated grapefruit and a solid dose of caramel maltiness. The caramel and sugary grapefruit, that’s almost candy-like, adds up to be a very appetizing aroma although somewhat simple. Simple is ok in my book if it smells this good.
The caramel is big right upfront but the slightly bitter grapefruit comes along mid palate and adds a quick bitterness before the sugary aspect takes over again. Finishes with a bit more of the hoppy bitterness. A really well rounded IPA with enough bitterness to keep things interesting.
Mouthfeel is moderate but the carbonation is a little too prickly in my opinion. The body moves through too quickly and doesn’t let me taste this beer long enough.
Although the carbonation is a little much this is a very easy drinker. Enjoyable, with a good balance and slight bitterness that keeps me coming back for more.
I really enjoy the things Terrapin’s doing and this is no exception. Not on the list of favorite IPAs but this is a solid, well crafted beer that I wouldn’t hesitate to sample again. Thanks again Mike.
6/15/08
Bottle from Santa. Thanks Santa!! Pours cloudy orange with creamy off white head. Has citrus aroma with some caramel sweetness mixed in. Has a medium mouthfeel. Flavor is grapefruit, pine, sweet caramel, and finishes with a pine flavor that lasts. Overall is a nice IPA. Has a little too much residual sweetness and could have a touch more carbonation. This is still a fine brew.
pours cloudy orange with white head.
Aroma. For a hop shortage beer, this one packs quite a lot of malts. Add some citrus hops to the nose.
Taste, caramel malts with floral - pine hops. Very smooth for an IPA, with a bitter hoppy finish.
There is also notes of grapefruit with faint zest of citrus and a very sweet almost white raisin feel that remains in the background.
Bright amber with plenty of white head. Nose is Juicey Fruit hops with some biscuit malts. Good, but looking for more. Good grapefruit flavor with a citrus peal bitter finish. Medium body with some oil. I have a feeling this was supposed to be some sort of IPA. It is not, BUT it is what I wish most pale ales would be.
22oz bottle pours medium golden orange with an white head. Citrus hop and pine aroma. Medium body with a slight sweetness. A nice IPA that is balanced as opposed to other east coast IPAs that are just hop bombs.
Bottle, Brewtopia. Hazy golden-peach with some off-white head. Rusty, slightly oxidized aroma. Rotting fruit and some sweet overtones. High carbonation. Tastes like a Terrapin beer, and is yeasty thick, chewy, earthy, and dull. Smells like a Terrapin and tastes like a Terrapin...needs a facelift
Tasting at Brewtopia. cloudy yellowish pour. white head. Hops shine in the nose and on the tongue int his one. Full of grapefruit and citrus notes. Terrapin does a good job of sneaking some good malt in between the hops slamming your tongue. Pretty nice.
Chewy Terrapin aroma with vaguely bright fruits. Hazy blonde. Crisp, bitter hops. Decent balance though it still has some of that Terrapin chewiness. The finish is off-dry and the bursting hop notes have more or less disappeared by this point.
Bottle shared by wolf. Orange in color, average head. Classic hop aroma of grapefruit and cirtus. Taste has a nice bitterness to it. The only thing I didnt like about the beer was it seemed a little watery or think textured. But overall an average IPA... Thanks wolf for sharing!
Bomber courtesy of ATLBeerDog poured a hazy orange with a sm all lasting ivory head. Aromas of floral notes, citrus and light bread. Palate was light to medium bodied and smooth. Flavors of bread, floral notes and light citrus with a smooth lingering moderatly bitter finish.
Sampled from a 22-oz bomber, shared by AtlBeerDog at Surly D-Day. Pours a semi-clear orange amber brew with a creamy off-white head that has some nice retention and awesome lacing. Aroma of caramel malt, piney and citrus zest, with a touch of iced tea. Taste is medium bodied, with flavors of caramel malt, grapefruit, roasted nuts, toffee and iced tea. Finish has a dry bitterness that slowly disappears with a light grassy and grapefruit aftertaste.
650 ml. Clear, orange-copper with a quarter-inch of lasting cream overhead. Crunchy, frosty lacing deposited all over the glass. Earth-spiced caramel, orange and grapefruit aromas are nice. Flavors of dirty pineapple, caramel, resin, grapefruit and toasted nut. Light-medium body is a little too fizzy and watery, but well-dried on the finish.
High drinkability for an IPA. With that being said, this beer is very average. Slightly bitter back end, with some slight citrus. Pretty well balanced IPA. Relatively sharp carbonation.
Bottle shared by Springslicker. Poured orange with a frothy white head that left good lace. The aroma had a mix of orange and malts. The flavor had lots of orange with a good backing of pine and malt. Medium body, smooth carbonation, medium hoppiness throughout. Decent!
Fantastic IPA. Had this while watching the Iggles/Stillers game. I thought this would be a hop-bomb monster beer, but it’s actually a finely crafted and delicious IPA. Great.
Bottle... Post RBSG ’08 O-Town/Vero Beach Throwdown Chapter 8... Clear golden ale with a small, wispy, white head. Great retention. Grains, earthy hops and a notation of black tea compose the aroma. Medium to full-bodied with dull carbonation. Good balance. Black tea and toffee. Finishes grassy, bitter, then dry. Thanks to juiceisloose for providing the bottle!
Pours a clear dark orange color with a small off white head that quickly settles to a thin film. The aroma shows big orange and bitter grapefruit hops with a hint of the toasted caramel malt base. The flavor shows the same with a good amount of bitterness from the citrus and grapefruit hops. The sweet and toasty caramel malt tries to balance things out, but still a good amount of bitterness on the backend. Medium bodied and pretty smooth with good carbonation. This one is easy drinking with good flavor with a slight bitter finish. This is pretty good, but nothing terribly exciting,
Bomber picked up while in Florida. Poured a hazy gold in color with a medium sized off white head that left nice lacing on the glass. Aroma of citrus hops and caramel malt. Mouth feel is a little thin and watery. Flavors of oranges, light pine, citrus hops, and caramel. I don’t know what I was expecting but it didn’t really do it for me.
Coming in fresh from Terrapin Brewing is one of their beers known as a side project. This time around it is an IPA which they have lovingly named Hop Shortage Ale. Now the test is to see how much of a hop shortage she really is, or if it is just a farce.
Her colors are a deep almost coppery orange with tinges of amber poking through. A small soft head forms on the top of her brew, fading into a soft ring around my glass. Minor brussels lace tattoo my glass during multiple quaffs, but not as many as I would have liked to have seen for such an alluded hoppy brew. Hop Shortage’s nose is replete with wet hoppy oils, lemon, freshly cut wet grass, and lavender. Her body is a bit heavy with slick sticky oils with a bit of a resinous finish. Much like her nose, sweet grass and lavender notes in her palate. Not as much hops as I was looking for considering the amount of hops purportedly used in Terrapin’s Hop Shortage Age. Her finish is mild, drying, and with a clean resinous bite.
Overall, not a horrible hopped IPA, but I have had better and more balanced varieties. If it was offered to me again, I would drink it, but overall not a lasting memorable quaffing experience. A shame, really. Hops are beautiful.
22oz, bottle, from Chucks in Chagrin Falls, pours a copper orange and smells and tastes like an IPA.. this one is a tad soapy and slippery... gulping this is no problem as the bitterness has faded a bit by consumption time.
Bottle courtesy of juiceisloose. Pours golden orange with white head. Citrusy hop aroma. Mildly sweet caramel with a soapy pine hop flavor. Medium body with average carbonation. This just wasn’t doing anything for me.
Bomber. Thanks to a few generous traders, I have had this multiple times. Clear amber with a big white head. Sweet citrus and grass, lightly malty. Grapefruit and orange flavors, some resiny pine, delightful! Tasty, and not as hop-imposing as the label seems.
Courtesy juiceisloose. Pours a cloudy, gold orange, with a small white head. Smells pretty hoppy, with a decent malt backbone, and some grapefruit citrus as well. The flavor is more on the unbalanced hoppy side. Kind of stinging bitter hops attack the palate. The grapefruit comes in towards th finish to help it somewhat, but it could of used more of a malt presence for some balance. Still a decent drinking IPA.
22 oz bobmber thanks to TBC shared at BCTC 2008. Pours a clear amber brown with a lasting medium sized frothy white head. Big hoppy aroma with lots of citrus, slight pine, caramel malt and some brown bread. Hops are fading slightly in the flavor but the bitterness remains along with caramel and grain. A very nicely done IPA that was perfect on a cool evening.
22 oz. bottle. Pours a slightly hazy amber color with a small/medium white head. The aroma is moderately sweet grapefruit citrus and caramel malts. The flavor is lightly fruity, citrus hops, caramel malts. This has moderate sweetness, but finishes with medium bitterness. Lighter bodied with a short finish.