 Dogbrick (2165), Columbus, Ohio, USA
May 14, 2008
Sample in the Alaskan tap room. The beer pours a clear orange-amber color with a thin off-white head that dissipates quickly. Stringy lacing. Aroma of hops and fresh peppers. Medium-bodied with a solid hops foundation and the jalapeno pepper flavor more subtle than expected. Touches of sweet malt here and there as well. The finish is bitter with a slight pepper aftertaste. I am honestly a little gunshy with chili beers (as anyone who has ever tried Cave Creek will attest). Still, while I appreciate the experimentation that goes into a beer like this, it is not something I would go out of my way to try again.
AmazonMatt (257), Panama
May 9, 2008 On tap at the UAF pub. This is first and foremost a PNW IPA, fairly well hopped. The peppers are hinted in a very subtle way, and I think that if I didn’t know that they were in there I wouldn’t have noticed. Good, much better than Alaska’s IPA. Good, but fairly light, which is a positive, me thinks.
BlackDonald (696), On a beer trip all over the USA, California, USA
Apr 18, 2008 Draft @ Humpy’s - I found this to be quite interesting, even though I was skeptical at first because I have had other pepper beers that were absolutely horrid. Cave creek anyone? This was actually quite tasty for one pint. The nose has a slightly herbal green pepper element, with some floral notes as well. Upon tasting the pepper bitterness is only slightly a smack that melds very nicely into the hoppy bitterness, with a somewhat sweet malt background, that finishes quite dry but suprisingly well balanced.
Braudog (3461), Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Jan 27, 2008 Draft glass at Cafe Amsterdam. Warm and rosy red with a full sticky top. The chili pepper’s are quite evident in the aroma to me, but not to my wife. This drinks with quite the earthy dirtiness you’d expect from a pepper-laden brew. The jalapeno is well disguised in the beer, just a hint of tany pepper skin in the initial intake, but the overall impression was outstanding! (#3304, 1/20/2008)
DarkElf (2453), La Jolla, California, USA
Jan 22, 2008 17-Jan-08 (Draft: Café Amsterdam in Anchorage, AK) There’s no mistaking the jalapeno in this beer. It’s certainly not shy in the nose, as the slightly sweet and caramely malts struggle to fight through, remaining in the background. The jalapeno is less prominent in the flavor, where the caramely malts set a solid base for a reasonably balanced approach. The pepper is most obvious retronasaly, and on the palate, it ends up displacing the hop flavor which is more or less lost. Long spicy pepper aftertaste without any significant burning on the lips or throat. The beer is medium-full in body with medium carbonation and a clean and crisp finish made dry, bitter and spicy by the jalapeno. Clear golden-amber in color with a half-inch off-white head that settles to a wide ring, leaving some patchy lacing on the glass. Overall, one of the better examples I’ve come across of using jalapeno in beer. Relatively balanced without burning. Too bad jalapenos tend to push the hops aside though, and that’s where comparing this beer with their regular Imperial IPA would be very educational.
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