Bell’s Brewery out of Galesburg, Michigan is home to some quiet yet extremely amazing beer. I’ve had their Hopslam Ale before and have had a bottle of their Two Hearted Ale sitting in my fridge for some time now. I felt it was about time to give it a shot and it was well worth the wait. At 7% ABV, this marks the high end of a craft beer drinker’s sessionable range, complete with complementing flavor.

For this session, I poured the Two Hearted Ale 12 oz bottle into a small, 10 oz goblet. The initial pour was really vibrant: crystal clear and orange in color. It had a slight tint of copper to it and was finished with a modest, white bubbly head. The lacing was weak and virtually absent.

The nose was fruity although balanced for an American IPA-style. Overwhelmingly the pineapple, peach and lemon peel were at the forefront. Luckily this was greatly balanced by a nice profile of bittering hops. Sweet and citrusy was the dominant profile but the hops, a heavy part of the IPA style were there to keep everything in check.

In the initial mouthful, the immediate flavors escaped my palate. I noticed the bitter bite in the linger first off and then after another sip noticed the citrus flavors which are present. While a bit undertoned, the citrus had a nice, bright hoppy character with some orange and gooseberry to note. The mouthful was light to medium in body and perfectly carbonated. Leaving this beer warm a bit is key, the color became a bit more cloudy as I finished the pour and as soon as you take a sip (when it’s warm) you get an amazingly fun and tart bite up front.

The complexity of flavors in this beer was key and keeping the profiles balanced were spot-on. Citrus and bitter hops combine to create a sessionable (for me, anyway) beer with exceptional taste. This beer is definitely not as bitter as you may expect an American IPA to be, but it’s a great segue for new craft beer lovers or even a session beer for seasoned aficionados.

Overall: 8.8/10