Alchemist Heady Topper

Vermont Brewers Fest ’07. Fruity hoppy aroma. Pale golden. The aroma is quite fruity with notes of peach, apricot, and pear. Earthy with light orange peel and pine. Fresh, light pale malt. Quite light and easy to drink, defying its ABV. A berryish yeast gives this brew some interest. Sweetish from both the hops and the pale malt. A really nice brew.

Partly cloudy dark yellow body topped by small white head. Conventionally malted body with a malt sweetness residing somewhere between honey and caramel. The beer balance is towards the hops. Generous amount of many types of hops with a resulting hop flavour being 75% citrus-fruits and 25% resinous coniferous. Very nice. Bitterness of medium intensity and finish of medium length. Very good although side-by-side I preferred their regular IPA (Holy Cow). But besides the Holy Cow, few beer can Topper.

En fût. Verre dégusté à la brasserie. Arôme: Odeur d’agrumes et de pin. Apparence: La couleur est blonde voilée. Présence d’un mince col mousseux et d’une fine dentelle sur le verre. Saveur: Goût d’agrumes et de pin. Durée moyenne de l’arrière goût. Palette: Le corps est moyen avec une texture légèrement huileuse. Moyenne effervescence en bouche. (Rating #979)

on tap at the blind tiger grand opening night. dark golden amber color. off white head. aroma is resiny pine, cat piss, wet eucalyptus trees, and a little hemp. flavor is dry and sweet hop, bitter. a little pithy like grapefruit, but there still was a thin caramel malt backbone to tug the other side of the scale. finsih is bitter and warm/faintly hot.

Pint on tap at Blind Tiger. Probably should have been a tulip pour. haha. Pours aslightly hazy deep gold, light copper with a small initial head but fades to almost nothing. That was the only bad part though. Aroma was intense with amarillo and simcoe hops- maybe some summit? Catpiss, mango, and grapefruit all all pretty dominant, some citrus, orange rind, and light pine resin along with a somewhat sticky sweet malt backbone, but obviously skewed heavily in NW hops. Flavor is sticky, tangy and resinous, with tons of amarillo and simcoe hops, catty, mango, citrus, some grapefruit puckering bitterness, and a somewhat tacky bitterness. Smooth mouthfeel and easy to down a pint of this which could be dangerous. Damn fine DIPA esp from an east-coast brewer. Top notch.

On tap at the Blind Tiger Ale House. Light amber in color with a small off white head. Aroma iis pretty complex and very hoppy- apricot, pineapple, grapefruit, and pine. Taste is also very fruity and hoppy, medium bodied, with a lasting firm bitter finish. enjoyed this alot.

Tap at Blind Tiger: Pours a slightly hazy deep golden with hardly any head. (Disappointing, considering this brews name) Very fruity hoppy aroma. Lemony, sherbet like, apricots, perfumy and piney. Flavor is hop juice. This is one of those IIPAs without that extremely malty sweetness, which sometimes makes these style brews syrupy. So if you like assertive hops, this is an IIPA for you. The malts offer just enough back for the hops packed into this brew. It gives it a slightly almond-like background. Very bitter, cascade, with lemony citrus, grapefruit rind, and a long resiny bitter finish. An aggressively hoppy Ale.

On tap at Blind Tiger. Copper in color with a nice fluffy white head. Citrusy flowery aroma. Piney, grassy notes. Hoppy and malty flavor. Earthy citrusy notes. Nice bitter finish. Sweet. Full bodied. Crisp and refreshing. Very nice beer.