Maltshovel Hop Thief

[scrogster]

I tried the new James Squire Hop Thief Ale last night. It's quite a drinkable beer,
but don't be falling for the idea that it will be keep the hopheads amongst us happy.

It's a little thin-bodied, and not particularly malty, with a medium-gold sort of colour.
The bitterness is pretty low, and the promised flavour and aroma hops are definitely there, but not strikingly so by any means.

I think I'll stick to my own IPAs and APAs when I fancy a hop-fix.

 

[Gough]

Was this from the bottle Scrogster? If so, was it one of the Woolies/Coles chain bottlos you bought it from? Just keen to track it down...

Shawn.

 

[scrogster]

Gough,

it was a 6-pack, bought yesterday from Vintage Cellars in Camberwell (Melbourne).

 

[Gough]

Thanks for that.

Shawn.

 

[KoNG]

Scrogster,
is it of american style or english..? (hop wise.)
wonder if its on tap...? might head down to king st wharf at lunch.

 

[T.D.]

Kong, it wasn't on tap at King St Wharf last Friday night...

 

[KoNG]

fair enough.... i didnt get down there anyway.
anyone with some more info...?

(ps. T.D. i hope the speculator wasnt on..!!) :angry:

 

[T.D.]

fair enough.... i didnt get down there anyway.
anyone with some more info...?

(ps. T.D. i hope the speculator wasnt on..!!) :angry:

[post="113333"][/post]​

Nah, the speculator was not there. Looks like it might be gone forever. Shame, it and the Hop Celebrator Ale were my two most favourite beers and now they are both gone! The Highwayman is quite hoppy though - I drank mainly that and Golden Ale last Friday night.

I might see if I can pick up some of this new JS beer tomorrow at Dan Murphys.

 

[mikem108]

....there isn't enough hops in it then thats possibly why its called "hop theif" someone stole all the hops

 

[Wimmig]

....there isn't enough hops in it then thats possibly why its called "hop theif" someone stole all the hops

[post="113338"][/post]​

At the range tasting we all compared it to the MSB Alpha Pale Ale except it lacks the clear citrus and frontal pallet notes that the MSB offering has.

If you like a super IPA then it might be your thing, but it's not exceptionaly hoppy. I gave the rest of my sample 6packs away to friends after trying 2 bottles and a few keg pours.

Available nationally from Vintage Cellars stores and selected independant operators until the 20th of March when it will go full public.

 

[T.D.]

Thanks Wimmig, that is valuable info given that I was going to go to Dan Murphys to get it. Will try vintage cellars instead. :beer:

 

[mikem108]

Tried a few last nite and its quite a quaffable drop, not spectacular but I like it.
The passionfruit notes mentioned on the bottle appear once its warmed a bit.
Up against MBay Alpha Ale I think the Alpha wins on hoppiness and malt balance.
Just my preference though

 

[Kai]

Scrogster,
is it of american style or english..? (hop wise.)
wonder if its on tap...? might head down to king st wharf at lunch.

[post="113311"][/post]​

Looks like it's an APA.

For the Adelaideans here who don't get the MSB newsletter, it's available at the Worldsend.

 

[T.D.]

I just bought a case of this beer tonight and I am currently on my second glass. I would agree with the general views - ie its a nice beer but to market it as if its super hoppy is a bit of a stretch. Its hoppy by commercial standards but I would be surprised if there was more than 1 gram per litre allocated to flavour and aroma additions.

The style is very confusing to me. Its not the first time a msb beer has done that to me though - I mean, what is Golden Ale - an APA, a blonde ale??? Anyway, this beer is a bit similar, its light bodied, moderate bitterness and moderate hop flavour/aroma. The hops themselves I cannot pick. Potentially because, as the marketing blurb suggests, it uses a mixture of a number of hop varieties. I don't detect too much in the way of those classic American citrussy, fruity hop flavours though. I would struggle to label it an APA, but God only knows what to call it instead! For some reason my brain is yelling out Willamette, but I am not quite sure why...

Anyway, there's my extremely vague and muddy impression of the beer. Its a nice drop. I am not at all disappointed that I bought a full case (instead of the 6 pack I planned to buy when I walked in to the shop), so its definitely a wothwhile beer. Its nice to try a "hoppy" commercial beer for a change, but its got nothing on the hop SMACK of some of the American pales and ambers that I have made in the past!

 

[Trent]

Havent tried this ale, but I dropped in to the James Squre brewhouse when I was in melbourne over xmas, and had the speculator, and was quite impressed, I really enjoyed it. Sorry to hear you guys say that it may be gone forever, they probably shoulda released that commercially. Mind you, it was so full of amarillo it wouldnt be that hard to make at home. Maybe it could be called the Replicator! Will keep me eyes out for the Hop Thief though, just to have a try.
All the best
Trent

 

[T.D.]

Havent tried this ale, but I dropped in to the James Squre brewhouse when I was in melbourne over xmas, and had the speculator, and was quite impressed, I really enjoyed it. Sorry to hear you guys say that it may be gone forever, they probably shoulda released that commercially. Mind you, it was so full of amarillo it wouldnt be that hard to make at home. Maybe it could be called the Replicator! Will keep me eyes out for the Hop Thief though, just to have a try.
All the best
Trent

[post="114522"][/post]​

I loved the speculator, great beer. A case in point though re the hoppiness, the hop theif is nowhere near as hoppy as the speculator. Of course they are clearly different hop varieties so its a bit hard to compare them but that might give you a bit of an indication anyway...

 

[Jez]

where did you get your hopthief from TD & Mike?

I wouldn't mind trying some but am having trouble finding it.

Jez

 

[T.D.]

Jez,

Its officially released on the 20th of March. Until then Vintage Cellars has some "preview" stock. I bough mine there. It was $46 - not bad for James Squire which is usually between $50 and $55 from my experience.

 

[Gerard_M]

TD- Having sampled quite a few of your beers I am not surprised that you are still searching for hop flavours & aromas in the Hop Thief. You are spot on in saying that it is hoppy by commercial standards, but falls short of a home brewers expectations, but that is one of the reasons we brew our own I guess. As a group TD, Doc, & Duff would account for roughly 25% of all hops used in this country. Some of TD's beers actually have a Khaki coloured head!
Doc is currently working on an Imperial Light beer!
I can't wait for that one.
Cheers
Gerard

 

[Doc]

Doc is currently working on an Imperial Light beer!
I can't wait for that one.

It was entered in the Castle Hill show comp. Tasted awesome. Pity the keg is now empty

Doc