BrewDog Hardcore IPA (9%)

Formerly brewed at BrewDog
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire, Scotland

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

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Finally an IPA that combines the style of a classic UK IPA with slight nuances of the "new" American--style IPA. IPA originally was pale ale that was aged slightly; Hardcore IPA is a Double IPA in that style, but updated of course, with modern twists. With this said, if you are seeking a West Coast, heavy carbonated, heavily hopped IPA, this is not your bottle of beer. Hardcore, had little carbonation, no substantial head, even with a sloppy pour. The color was dark orange amber so slightly darker then most modern IPAs’. The Smell was rich; I could tell much of the flavors of the IPA from the smell. The smell is hard to describe, but has a rich malt smell to it that is balanced off with slight citrus overtones. When I first tasted a sip no bitter hop taste punched my palate, instead a bold rich creamy malty taste with a mild almost unnoticeable taste of citrus tasting hop. The after taste does hit you with hoppy bitterness though it hits in a way unlike any ale I have ever drunk. The malty first flavor seems to fully develop and then disappear as a hoppy bitterness appears. It s very sticky in the mouth and the taste lingered on my palate for around thirty minutes. Hardcore contains more malt then most IPA’s which gives it a slight barley wine type taste though without the sweetness. It seemed like BrewDog did it in the traditional UK classic way, but with more hops. Over all one of the best unique imperial IPA’s I have ever had; it truly is far different from any Imperial IPA I have had, it’s a shame I only had one bottle.

550ml brown bottle purchased at The Liquor Shoppe in Tygsboro, MA. Pours a bit hazy golden amber body with a half inch of off-white head that dissipates rather quickly. Grapefruit and toffee equally share the aroma, hinting at a good malt backbone for this DIPA. Orange, lemon, grapefruit hit the palate first, with toffee and chocolate malts shortly thereafter to help balance and bring some complexity to the show. Full-bodied with moderate carbonation. This is a very easy drinking DIPA and is disappearing much faster than I’d like. This beer is phenomenal - bold but balanced, complex yet approachable. I’m impressed.

Just had to delete previouus rating after drinking 2 pints of handpulled cask at the Rake C/O Tom. I had just tried a second batch mail ordered from the brewery after reading that the hoppage had been upped dramatically. It didn’t taste too different to me. I rolled up late at the Rake last night and was delighted to see this beer on handpull at a bargain £4 a pint. It was superb! I sank 2 in no time and would have had more if closing time had not iintervened. The best cask beer that I have sampled since Sheps/Stones California Double IPA last year. This is a F**king monster! Get down there and neck some if you possibly can. It is so much better than the bottled offering.

(Batch # 190, BBD: 29/10/10; new recipe) Nice piney hop nose, with a touch of caramel in the back end. Pours a clear amber, with a fluffy white head that leaves great lacing behind. Very visible carbonation in the beer itself. The flavor of this is amazing, crisp bitter hops, with a long bitter finish. A touch of caramel sweetness, but this still showcases the hops. One of the better IIPA’s I’ve recently tried.

Serious bitter hop aroma. Both oak and cat-piss. Tangerine and grapefruit. Tremendous. Appears hazy yellow, like a hefe. Little to no head. Tiny, stray, upfloating bubbles. Pale amber/gold. Flavor is blood orange and tangerine. Bitter grapefruit aftertaste. All citrus with a mild okay aftertaste as well. Roasted burnt cookie malts. The palate is thick and creamy. A nice bitter fizz. An outstanding beer. Hops of a harvest ale; malts of a burnt nature.

UPDATED: MAR 27, 2010 I have had from Draft, but more recently had from Cask. The Cask is the way to go. Don’t let the carbonation get in the way. The floral balance o in the cask is phenomenal! The aromas of citrusy hops and malty goodness instantly put you in a good mood. Freak’n wonderful alchohol balance. Nicely balanced IPA. The draft version has a geat citriusy hop profile with the expected bitter ending. Moderately carbonated with a golden color. Very drinkable and excellent with spicy food. rate the draft version a 4 overall.

Bottle from Stirchley Wines and Spirits, Birmingham. BBD is 15/2/11, can’t see batch no, but the label looks like the one in the picture here, and the strengh is 9.0%. Delicious woft of plastic banquette seating and penny sweets, coupled with greasy hops in the aroma. Hops in flavour - we all know that. Delicious feel on my tongue and down my froat. Hard, peppery dry hops, shouldered with the sweetness of alcohol. Obviously delicious.

UPDATED: APR 26, 2009 Bottle at Blackfriars. Now my problem with this was that I got distracted from it for about 2 hours by Chris and Stephanie from Toronto. Stephanie described it as reaching down into your throat and bringing the bitterness up from your stomach, or something. Certainly very very bitter. Very toffee. Nice though. Could do with a bit more floral hop to balance the bitterness. 3.4/5.0 Re-rate bottle batch 037. Always thought the first time round it was a bit metallic and just too bitter. Hop character definitely seems to have changed, far more aromatic real hop flowers on the aroma. Simcoes and or Amarillos I would suggest. Far better balance of biscuit/toffee malt that has some sweetness with the lasting hops on the finish. Whopping huge hops, but no where near as bitter as it was, better balance. Far more likeable DIPA. Love the aroma. Just so drinkable. And those hops. The resins build and build on the finish. Superb.

Thanks to a rep for leaving our store a sample. Gold color with a medium head. Big tangerine aroma, finishing with grapefruit and a little acidic bitterness. The flavor is fantastic... A buttery smooth grain base completely awash in rich tangerines. Light bitterness. It seems that all the hops were added as flavoring, not bittering. So friggin delicious and horribly underrated.

A pretty tasty aroma-citrusy and flowery. The flavor on this is quite dry, but a tasty dry and some citrus. Great finish. I believe this was the new version.