 ClarkVV (3547), Allston, Massachusetts, USA
Aug 31, 2005 Updated: Nov 20, 2006
July 2005 bottle from FlacoAlto, thanks man! Drank this with Eyedrinkale on 8/20/2005. Pour is perfect enough for me. Deep copper-amber color,with an ever so slight hint of auburn. White, creamy head is initially large and dense. Recedes somewhat to one finger high, but is well-retained there and provides for much laing. Bottle has sediment at the bottom, while the beer is lightly hazy. Aroma of straight up citrus hops. Adding to that you get crystally malt sweetness and just a bit of that hard, crystal malt dryness/breadiness. Candied oranges and a fair dose of perfuminess. Flavor begins with a ample but yet not-quite-overthetop amount of hops bitterness. It’s oranges, orange rinds, grapefruits and marmalade, but it dosent make you cringe (or dosent make me cringe anyways). Soft, creamy toffee/caramel supports the hops nicely, while the mouthfeel is fluid and soft, the carbonation being gentle and only making itself known enough to assert that it is not loose or thin. Medium body on the maltiness, surprisingly light, which brings me to my first problem; it’s just not chewy and thick enough for me. I really was expecting a thick, creamy, chewy malt monster with a huge hops flavor. Sure it’s got the hops flavor, but unlike last summer’s version, this one backs off on the malt apparency (I sure loved last summer’s). Finish is balanced and clean, with grapefruit and light spiciness, caramel and some dry earthiness. A wonderfully-made, flawless beer, but I still prefer the maltier, chewier version. 8/5/8/4/15
Summer 2006 bomber consumed on 10/5/06
Still a wonderful appearance, great retention and lacing and all.
Nose seems a bit more alcoholic/harsh than I recall, with LOTS of bitterness and more pine resin than remembered. Still, it’s certainly lush, bold and aromatic. Something lightly sourdough-like creeps in, as if crystal malt has an effect.
The first half of the bottle proved rather harsh, heavy and somewhat overdone in bitterness and it was getting difficult to keep going, but then, somehow, the flavors began to come together and it began to get very enjoyable. Fruitiness emerges, followed by a backing off of the pine and heavy grapefruit. Some light malt sweetness helps soften things, while more alcohol actually seems to work beneficially in drying out the finish and taking some focus off of the heavy hop bitterness. In the end, the fruitiness proves to save the day, though. And the texture, which is always a strong point with AleSmith. 7/5/8/4/14
ironchefscott (246), long beach, California, USA
Oct 5, 2008 great quenching dipa...great grapefruit hop flavor and light mouth feel for the style....wish it was year around brewed
KimJohansen (4294), Copenhagen V, Denmark
Oct 3, 2008 Hazy amber with huge beige head. Sweet aroma with loads of hops and notes of pine, grapefruit and caramel. Powerfull hops in the flavour with notes of grapefruit, caramel and pine needles. Solid bitter finish.
nqualls (422), Tennessee, USA
Oct 2, 2008 Bottle. Love this beer. Poured a hazy orange/gold with a two finger white head. Aroma of caramel malt, citrus and floral hops. Flavor is well balanced and not too sweet. Citrus hops finish the taste. Great beer!
daknole (852), Plantation, Florida, USA
Oct 1, 2008 Bottle graciously sent to me by alexsdad06. Thank you so much. This one is a damn fine beer. Wow. Pours a hazy orangish color wtih a very nice whte head. Aroma is a delicious mix of caramel, malts, fruit and spicy and floral hops. Flavor is just a perfect union of big hops and smooth malt. I get citrus, caramel, vanilla, and man I just loved this beer.
masonjer (452), Holt, Michigan, USA
Sep 26, 2008 thanks to weeheavysd for the chance. This beer kept eluding me. Pours cloudy orange with a nice white head. Aroma is tropical, citrus, pine and mango. Taste is citrus as well, but not as juicy as the aroma promised. Huge pine with a dry resinous finish. Really nice.
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