Dicks Bottleworks IPA

Courtesy of... someone at Levi’s hop harvest party. 2 year aged bottle. Dark copper color with no head. Strong brown sugar aroma. Lots more sugar and sweet malts, caramel in the flavor. Hops have completely vanished. As an IIPA, it sucks; as a beer and American Strong Ale or Barley Wine, it’s pretty damn tasty.

Interesting stuff. Pours a dark honey amber with a smallish head that leaves great lacing. Smells more like a barleywine than an IPA - it has a huge malt contingent to offset the hops, almost going as far as some dark fruit notes. Big flavor with lots of hops, but that malt presence is still really strong - this is seriously like a barleywine without quite the burn. Totally belies its ABV. I’m digging the deep, earthy flavor that offsets the hops - the rye works a lot better than oak to complement. Not a great brew, and it came out a little undercarbonated, but definitely worth a shot.

Picked up a 12-oz bottle at Bottleworks in Seattle back in 2007 and cellared it for two years. Pours a semi-hazy copper/amber colored brew with a thin off-white head that quickly dissipates to a thin ring. Aroma of orange and lemon zest, a hint of caramel some vanilla and a touch of mild spice. Taste is medium bodied, some powdered caramel malt flavors with light grapefruit zest and a touch of caramel. Finish is a tad more malty than hops. Some alcohol burn and a powered caramel aftertaste. Aging smoothed it out compared to the rating back in 2007.

Aroma is pretty malts with a good deal of caramel and pale malts. Hops come across as earthy, piney, and somewhat cheesy. Pours a hazy shade of copper with a lasting fluffy head. More maltiness in the flavor. Malty but not overly sweet notes of caramel, pale malts, and brown sugar perhaps. Decently bitter earthy and piney finish. I still get that salty bitterness that reminds me of stinky cheese. Nice smooth creamy body with medium carbonation. I know that it wasn’t stored in the most ideal conditions at room temperature on a shelf at the store, so that must have something to do with it.

Nice ruby copper, fluuy fading head leaving alsting ring on the glass. Thick molassess malting caramel, dusty pine aroma. Upfront piney in-your-faceness move way for floral light flatterning notes which dance well with decent malt buoyancy

I bought a bottle and held onto it for a while out of fear that it wasn’t being made anymore, but since Dick’s will resume brewing I’m free to enjoy this. Clear amber, thin pale tan cottonball head. Faint earthy hop aroma. Where may IIPAs are srictly hop bombs, this one ebbs and flows as the caramel malt and aggressive hops rise and fall as they fight for attention. Chunks plopped out with audible splashes as i poured the last of the bottle in the pint glass and seemed to bring out some more of the sharp bitterness. This must have been at least 6 months old, perhaps it would not be as harmonious when fresh. I love living in the NW!

Amber, thick lasting beige head, intense bead.Fresh hop/crystal malt nose.Huge body, big hop profile, but the alcohol heat is slightly unpleasant, detracting from the overall impression

Bomber Bikesandbeer and I bought on our road trip in January drank on the 4th of July. Pours dark orange with a two finger tan head. Nose was slightly hoppy and to me smelled like dogs but then again i had just been playing with them. Taste was bright and very front ended.