Drinking Hopical Storm Pale Ale

Hopical Storm comes from the famous Yorkshire brewer Timothy Taylor’s, the brewery that produces the equally famous Landlord Classic Pale Ale. Whereas Landlord is an old style pale ale, something tells me Hopical Storm is a modern style pale ale, so what’s it like?

Hopical Storm is a decent session pale ale, refreshing, hoppy, juicy and fruity with a smooth body, very drinkable. It pours a slightly hazy pale gold with a one to two finger white top. On the nose it is hoppy and fruity with tropical fruit aromas. The taste is lively with plenty of hoppy tropical fruits like orange and mango. A fruity sweet start ends in a balanced bitterness, I like it and it gets 4.5 out of 5.0.

At 4.0% ABV this is a real cracker of a pale ale, juicy, smooth and very drinkable.

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Hopical Storm Pale Ale Review

Hopical Storm is certainly a modern style pale ale, hoppy and fruity with a smooth body. It is a triple hopped pale ale and I can understand how it got its name with all those hops.

A selection of five hops are used at three different stages of the brew. Up front it is hopped with Cascade and Whitbread Goldings, then at the hop back stage, more Cascade along with Chinook hops are used. Then dry hopping uses Ernest and Jester hops.

It’s a real hop cocktail creating that hopical storm and a very drinkable pale ale.

Drinking Hopical Storm Pale Ale

The first thing that strikes you with this beer is the packaging, it’s a real head turner. A bright orange can with a silver thunder bolt on the front, it’s bright and bold, a design David Bowie would have been proud of.

A Bold design and a great name for a beer, it looks good and sounds good, but is it?

Once poured into a glass, it settles to a pale gold with a one to two finger white foamy head. Plenty of tiny bubbles rise up the beer. Holding it up to the light reveals a very slight haze through the beer.

On the nose it is in your face hops with plenty of tropical citrus fruit aromas. Orange, mango and I detect a slight pineapple too, but it is just a carnival of fruitiness.

The taste mirrors the nose with a hop forward kick of those tropical fruits, the orange and mango are apparent in the taste, but I have lost that pineapple vibe.

It’s a fruity sweetness up front that feels juicy but smooth in the mouth, a balanced bitterness comes in to finish. I think it could do with just a little more bitterness to give it that extra kick.

However it is a really nice beer, hoppy, refreshing, juicy and smooth, but above all very drinkable. I like it, and it gets a rate my beer score of 4.5 out of 5.0.

M’Lady likes it too, saying “It does what it says on the tin, it’s a hopical storm and a really nice beer.” Lou scores it 4.6 out of 5.0.

I might have matched Lou’s score or gone to 4.7 if there was just a little more bitterness. But that said it is still a cracking session pale ale.

Timothy Taylor’s

Timothy Taylor’s beers are brewed at the Knowle Spring Brewery in Yorkshire, England. However the first brewery was opened in 1858 in Cook Lane, Keighley, Yorkshire.

A brewery founded by Timothy Taylor, James Shackleton and John Naylor. Five years later Timothy bought out his partners and built a new brewery at Knowle Spring just a mile down the road in Keighley.

On this site the brewery eventually builds a deep well to access the spring water, which is still used today for brewing.

Ninety nine years on and Landlord pale ale is born, although it didn’t have a name and a competition was launched to name it. A local of Keighley won with the name Landlord.

Landlord is the brewery’s most popular beer and is now over seventy years old. However they do make some other classic beers, and it seems some more modern style beers too.

Knowle Spring Brewery Range

Timothy Taylor’s beer range is by no means vast, but they have a good solid range comprising of some classic style beers as well as some more modern style beers too.

They have brewed many beers over the years, including Black Bess Stout, Le Champion Blonde Ale, Tally Ho and Havercake Ale which they have just brewed again as a special limited edition at the time of writing.

Here are a few beers from TT that I would like to try.

Cook Lane

Cook Lane is an IPA, part of their modern range of beers it is said to be aromatic and hoppy. Brewed with Cascade and Chinook hops, it has aromas of pineapple and other tropical fruits and toasty flavours with mango and lime.

It sounds interesting and is named after the first Timothy Taylor’s brewery in Cook Lane, Keighley. At 5.8% ABV it is not a session beer, but one I want to get stuck into.

Artesian

Artesian relating to the underground water at the brewery is an elderflower and gooseberry pale ale. Brewed with Amarillo, Chinook and Crystal hops it has aromas of elderflower and gooseberry believe it or not. The flavours are a hoppy floral and citrus line up.

Artesian is Timothy Taylor’s first collaboration with another brewery. That brewery is Thornbridge Brewery of Derbyshire. It’s like a teenager brewing with its great grandfather, but it sounds like a good beer.

Coming in at 4.2% ABV it sits well within the session bracket, and it is a beer I would like to test drive.

Dark Mild

Now I do like a pint of mild, and you don’t see many these days, so I am in for this one. A dark ruby beer brewed with Fuggles, Goldings and Styrian Goldings hops expect aromas of roasted coffee and rich caramel malt.

The taste is rich and smooth with toffee and nutty notes, full of flavour and a creamy mouthfeel. It won’t hit your legs either with its low 3.4% ABV. It sounds like a real cracker to me, I do love a pint of mild.

Final Thoughts

Timothy Taylor’s then is a thoroughbred among breweries, a true independent regional brewer with plenty of history.

You cannot fault the quality of their beers, whether it be their traditional beers or their more modern range, just pure quality.

Hopical Storm Pale Ale is no exception, it’s just a delight to drink and it is a beer I will visit again and again.

If you have tried Hopical Storm, then do share your thoughts below, and if you haven’t, then it might just be time to, you won’t be disappointed.