Hoppin’ Frog. That is the name of the brewery I’m sampling today. Weird, huh? Why not name it ‘Limpin’ chicken’, or ‘Runnin’ donkey’? Maybe they were high? Or, maybe it’s because they are from Ohio. That’s it, they’re from Ohio! Those wacky midwesteners are always coming up with kooky stuff. Hoppin’ Frog is the brainchild of brewmaster Fred Karm. He apparently has ‘designed and prouced more award-winning beers than any other professional brewer in Ohio since 2000’, according to their site. He’s also a lifelong resident of Akron OH, which is second only to Beirut in ‘Bombed out and depleted-ness’. Dubious at best. I heard that you get tetanus from going within 5 miles of that place. Anyway, they have a college and he graduated from it. So that’s something.
Today I have a 22oz. of Hoppin’ Frogs IPA, Hoppin’ To Heaven. What the shit does that even mean!? I just don’t get the name scheme. Maybe after a long night of huffing paint and gettin’ loose on the mean streets of Akron, Fred finally hit his point of toxicity, tore off his clothes and started screamin’, ‘HOPPIN’ FROG!!!!!!!! ARGGGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!111’. And then a midwestern legend was born. I dunno, maybe it was the chemicals in the water. Seriously, everything I’ve heard about Akron makes dinner and tummysticks with R.Kelly sound like a free trip to Disneyworld. On the bottle the damn frog walks on two legs like a biped, and is able to hold a mug of beer. Frogs don’t have opposable thumbs! Stupid frog, there is no way you could hold a mug of frothy beer! It’s got one hell of a smile on its face though, so maybe it knows something that I don’t.
H2H is 6.8% ABV and 68 IBUs. The gigantic loose head starts to form as soon as the beer leaves the bottle and almost jumps out of the glass. The color is a cloudy russet with a hazy golden hue around the edges. It smells orangey/lemony as all get out, but is countered with some nice subtly placed maltiness too. Faint, like the towel brushing against your junk as you are drying off. Almost gets you hot and bothered, but you gotta go to work, so… Man, that head just hangs around. It’s kind of like the one night stand that ended up being as cool as your drunk ass remembered last night. She just lays on your couch watching TV in your T-Shirt lookin’ all cute while you make breakfast; you are all feelin’ like a million bucks because you just had sex, and you are now about to have bacon too. Pleasant. This beer is a citrusy blend of malty scrumptiousness. The first sip tickles your tongue like butterflies and foreplay, and then settles into a sensual balance of hops, ethereal citrus fruit and the faintest caress of clean malt sweetness. It’s not super hoppy and just sticks it to me with righteous flavor. Excellence. No doubt, this brew is unique in its ability to ride that fine line that denotes the apex of the style. Medium bodied, quenching, no aftertaste. Hits all the right buttons, and even touches me in my no-no place a little bit. I’m so glad I have a 22 of H2H, b/c I want more than one glass. If someone said “What is a great example of a textbook IPA?”, I would hold up a bottle of H2H and start jumping around in my best imitation of the beers namesake. Awesomeness scale? Hopefully I’ll be greeted at the pearly gates with a glass of this tasty beverage.
9.5. Stonkin’ good show HF, I’m pleased as punch to have an IPA blow me away like this one has. If it’s on the shelf at your beer store, buy it.
Check em’ out here: http://www.hoppinfrog.com/