Avery The Maharaja Imperial India Pale Ale

Bottle. Pours copper with a white head. Heavy pine and citrus aroma. It really has some good balance, because it doesn’t seem like a 10.5% beer. Good malt backing to support the hops. Lots of citrus. Good stuff.

On tap-pours a medium copper color w/a moderate white head. Pine Hop aroma. Has a nice bitter hop bite up front, aggressive, but not so strong it knocks you over. Has some citrus & pine as well. Hard to believe this is a 10+% beer, actually pretty smooth to drink. Reminded me of a Dogfish 90 minute. Long, full finish.

Pours dark copper like a Marzen; huge creamy beige head. Aggressive citrus and herbal hop bouquet overlying a dark toffee malt aroma. The tongue is dominated by the hop bitterness as it mostly occults the amber malts which do manage to produce a hint of apricot sweetness. I like hops but this is a bit unbalanced as the bitterness isn’t backed by much hop flavor. Medium body with a slick mouthfeel, long pleasant finish. This, to me, is more like an overly hopped Amber or Red than an Imperial IPA.

Draft @ Monster B’s. Clear orange body with a thin taupe head. Much more than your typical imerpial IPA, the hops are there but there is a strong orange undertone and despite the high ABV, the alcohol flavor is subtle. Highly recommend.

Sampled on draft at Max’s Taphouse in Baltimore. A clear, dense amber color with a clingy, foamy, average-sized, off-white head with good retention. A rich aroma of good pine and grainy hops, maybe some toasty malt too. Nice bitter flavor with a sour finish, and heavy hops in the taste. A very full initial mouthfeel becoming drier as it progresses. Slightly thick on the palate, with good amounts of carbonation; really good IPA.