I am now finally able to leave a comment on this brew. I brewed an extract version of this up over the spring, and followed the directions with one difference; I added 1 lb of local florida honey to the wort w/ 5 minutes left in the boil. This raised the OG and the beer came out right at about 10.5% (roughly what HopSlam comes in at). It was bottled 7/7/2013, and by September there was still absolutely no carbonation! I guess the yeast pooped out with such a high ABV. I added 1mL of rehydrated dry yeast to each bottle and after 2 weeks it is perfect! Great mouthfeel, hop aroma and bitterness. I can tell it won't take many of these to make the girls look pretty, and this should be gone in no time. A few pointers to make this more HopSlammish: I would encourage everyone to add 1 lb of honey, this will get your ABV near HopSlam's and it seems more authentic. Second, I would recommend that you change up the hops used. Probably go with some simcoe and maybe some other more citrusy flavored hops. There are several posts online that give hints about what Bells uses for its recipe; the hop schedule for this recipe is very different. I found the only difference between my homebrew and Hopslam to be a lack of citrus and floral aroma and taste, which is present in HopSlam. I didn't do this and now regret it, however don;t get me wrong this is still a very drinkable IIPA and I will definitely brew again. Lastly, repitch some yeast at bottling for this big beer! Cheers!
