Avery The Maharaja Imperial India Pale Ale

9.30.09 Bottle 22oz Pours rich amber with a distinct cloudiness. Gigantic nose full of "resiny" hops and grapefruit notes. Much ballyhooed head lives up to expectations... thick and creamy with solid retention. Incredible balance of bold hop bitterness with a sublte malty sweetness. Despite gravity...does not come off "hot". Piney finish is inviting. Just a well crafted imperial IPA

Sample, Mondial de la bière, savoured on June 3 2009; eye: caramel, dense, no effervescence, light lacing; nose: hops, hops, hops, resinous hops, grapefruit, caramel malt, alcohol; mouth: hops, hops, hops, resinous hops, grapefruit, caramel malt, alcohol, pepper, finale in resinous hops, mild astringency, rather bitter, lightly sweet, not much carbonation, full body; overall: quite likable FRANÇAIS Échantillon, Mondial de la bière, savourée le 3 juin 2009; œil : caramel, dense, pas d’effervescence, petite dentelle; nez : houblon, houblon, houblon, houblon résineux, pamplemousse, malt caramel, alcool; bouche : houblon, houblon, houblon, houblon résineux, pamplemousse, malt caramel, alcool, poivre, finale en houblon résineux, astringence moyenne, plutôt amère, légèrement sucrée, peu carbonatée, corsée; en résumé : bien aimé

This is an exceptionally good IPA- one of the best IPAs I’ve tried. Very balanced, smooth- almost elegant- but still strong and assertive. Medium bodied. Citrus in the aroma and good malt in the flavor. Sweet but not overly so. I’m very happy caught this on tap at the Taphouse in Bellevue, WA.

Bomber. Pumpkin orange, non-trasparent. Medium thick butter head that looks like you could scrape it off and spread on an English muffin. It is very lacy. Swirl it and the head sticks all over the the side of the glass. Aroma is sweet hoppy with lime and lemon citrus notes. Big aroma. Flavor really needs its own paragraph. It is big caramel with lemon and lime citrus hop notes. they tinge like in a gin and tonic through the finish. Finish is also ends spicy and dry with a somewhat balanced but sweet hop dominated finish over big thick malt backdrop. Must emphasize it ends very hop bitter after sweet bursts. Alcohol throughout is prevalent but in some mouthfuls alcohol comes a little too sweet. Pine is also prevalent. Palate is bitter but sticky and slippery. Long lasting flavor, lingering. A fun beer that isn’t overwhelming despite its 112 IBU’s. Great double!

Pours a cloudy golden amber/orange color with golden orange hues when held to a light source and a frothy, pillowy off-white head that had decent retention slowly fading into a lasting ring. Nice sporadic chunks of lacing. Extremely hoppy aroma with a lot of citrus and floral notes. Hints of lemon peel and grapefruit as well as resinous hop oils and pine with a subtle malt presence. Intensely bitter and hop forward with a blast of dry piney floral hops with hints o citrus lemon peel, grapefruit and pineapple. While it is sweet, there are still some earthy dry sticky dank pine notes. With all of the hops there is a decent malt backbone that provides a small bit of balance. Slight alcohol presence but the ABV is still very well masked making this dangerously drinkable.

Bottle at Map Room, Chicago. I had been looking for this for ages. An amber coloured pour with a decent fluffy white head. Citrus aroma. Tastes, hoppy, malty, sweet, grapefruit, caramel. Well balanced DIPA. This is bloody good stuff.

Tap at OT. Thick beige head that last to the last sip. Some debris in the beer. Fresh grapefruit aroma that is strong. Very well balanced hop taste with a fine malty caramell taste. Firm body.

Typical IPA aroma, but somehow glorious. No hops kick on the taste, but lots in the aftertaste. Taste of honey? Whatever. The alcohol is well hidden and the beer is great.