Alpine Beer Company Exponential Hoppiness

Brewed by Alpine Beer Company (CA)
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Alpine, California USA

Handbottle. Thanks to Cbkschubert for sending me this one. Poured a dark orange body with nice head. Hoppy aroma, lots of citrus, some other spices as well. Flavor is sweet with hops and a really nice malty backbone to it. Decent carbonation and a thick syrupy mouthfeel. Overall this was really smooth and could not believe it was 10.5%, was not even tasted. This is a great IIPA.

Thanks to WeeHeavySD for the growler

Aroma: This beer reeks of hops, the aroma jumped out of the growler the moment it the cap came off. The glass holds plethora of sugary pink grapefruit, over ripe tangerine and pine forest floor after a good rain. The smell is overly fragrant but not really aggressive.

Appearance: An unassuming brash copper with a clean feel. Almost no bubble movement inside the glass, only a few strays. Head is full and fluffy, an attractive antique white.

Flavor: Begins with a lot of the same qualities as lemon iced tea; almost pungent and herbal on the front of the tongue, bits of apples around the sides and lemon bitterness across the back. An almost cheese like characteristic comes in next, surprisingly attractive for such a poor description on my part. Citrus moves in next with the same buttery grapefruit sense that the Pure Hoppiness possesses. It creeps around the back sides of the tongue and gently lays down a blanket of soothing bitterness. Finishes murky, almost damp and mossy with hints of kiwi and under ripe green grapefruit.

Palate: Medium body, somewhat hard with just a nip of carbonation sting.

Overall: Very nice with a curious and unique flavor. Not an overly complex or deep beer but quite enjoyable none the less. Highly recommended to hop heads

Growler courtesy of WeeHeavySD. Pours a clear golden orange with medium thick white head. It might be in part because of the freshness of this but the aroma is just amazing! Citrus and pine dominate with some hints of grass. Nice sweet citrus flavors upfront, some caramel, finishes with a slight bitterness. I couldn’t detect any alcohol in this at all. Very smooth mouthfeel, medium carbonation, but leaves a stickiness afterwards. Very nice IIPA.

Had thought once this was as good as Pliny, but a side by side at Toronado showed it lacked a bit in the aftertaste. Damn good beer.

Super-fresh growler courtesy of naven. This is the hoppiest beer I have ever sampled. Bar none. 24 hours after I polished off the growler, I had sanitized it twice w/ warm soapy water and it still had an intense hop aroma. Hops so intense it almost singes your nose hairs. This is a very dangerous brew. I love it.

draft @ obriens - had it next to pliny the younger and it was way milder...but that isnt exactly a bad thing. it was totally different...very unique. citrusy, mainly lemon aroma as well as very herbal. taste was the same...to be perfectly honest...it tasted a lot like sweetened lemon tea. definitely wasnt what i was expecting but very enjoyable to say the least.

Good beer. Milder than Pliny the Younger. Let me take this time to write about the happiness I am experiencing right now as drinking the exponential hoppiness. I’m sitting at Obrien’s, possibly the best beer pub in the world, at the bar (rare for me get a seat when it’s so busy), eating sausages, apples, cucumbers, pears, tomatos, a brie, a cheddar, and crackers (blissful combo). I’m debating on whether to choose Swami’s IPA or Maharaja (chose Swami’s). The crowd is great, the waitresses are beautiful, Tom’s washing glasses, my beard itches, and life is really great. Yes, life is great. and so is the expo!

Some pretty bomb stuff! Had a sampler at the brewery in Alpine with my buddy jarspag. Dark golden color with a medium-sized head and a citrusy aroma with some pine. A HUGE New Zealand hops blast that finishes sweet with defined notes of oak wood, malty grapefruit, and a pretty earthy undertone. Damn good stuff, but agreeing with jarspag, yes the Pure Hoppiness is better, more balanced.