3.6 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 16/20Pours a beautiful amber-orange. Off-white head barely lasts, leaving a trace of lacing. Aroma of grapefruit and alcohol dominates. Flavor is sour and bitter, driven by hoppiness, alcohol, and little else. Palate is characterized by moderate carbonation. Overall, this beer is definitely an IPA on steroids, but where was the oak aging? I suppose I could taste a little woodsiness, but I was a bit disappointed. But, if it’s a strong IPA you’re after, this one delivers the goods.
4.3 AROMA 10/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20
Golden amber pour. Medium fluffy off white head. Highly complex aroma. Dank hops. Pine. Alcohol burn. Yeasty. Lots of bready toasty malt aroma. Dried dark fruits like raisin and plum. Big mouthfeel. Yeast and alcohol hit out of the gate. British style from open fermentation. Relaxes into a more traditional big ipa with lots of dank hop flavors and caramel malt sweetness. Pretty dry finish with some roastiness.
---Rated via iPhone
3.6 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 11/20
Apesrence a clear amber with a slight white head. Aroma of dried fruit and caramel overtones. Taste citrus with dried fruit and caramel. Palate lingers long with a strong bitterness
3 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 10/20
Bottled 10-16-2009
As you would expect there is no hop presence remaining. It's malty and a bit fruity not unlike some vintage barley wines that I have had. I prefer fresh to this but I don't have vintages in between to compare. Maybe I will crack a 2012 in 2014 and revisit this review.
---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone
3.9 AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 15/20
Really nice beer. Pours amber with a quickly dissipating head and no lacing. Clear. Nose is toffee and earthy. Aromas of dark fruit, toffee, earthy hops. Tastes are medium sweet with medium to heavy bitterness. Leaves nice sweet and bitterness in the mouth for a long time. Very full body with lively carbonation. Very solid effort.
4.1 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 15/20
A - Hazy burnt orange/brown with an off-white head that dissipates into a thin cap with a thick collar.
S - Creamy orange wrapped with soft oak wood. Sweet caramel malt blankets over citrus and passion fruit. Sweet scotchy alcohol.
T - Rich malt surrounded by nutty oak along with an acidic citrus fruit. Alot going on all at once. Sweetness comes out in the middle. Sugary peaches, muted mango, and hints of apples and vanilla. Hops start to build back up toward the finish and provide a tame bitterness. Finishes with leafy green hops dipped in alcohol with the oak adding dryness. Aftertaste is of citrus and hints of oak.
M - Full, rich, moderate tight carbonation, silky in the middle, heavy and light at the same time. Perfect!
The oak has good presence from start to finish. It seems to really help mask the alcohol. Oak doesn’t always work but really brings the flavors and aromas together here. Hops play there part and aren’t overdone. Very well done.
Serving type: bottle
03-26-2011
4.1 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 17/20
12 oz bottle. Pours a murky amber color with a quickly dissipating almond colored head. Aroma of pine and citrus hops and some tropical fruits and caramel. Taste is loaded with pine and citrus hops. A bit of oak and tropical fruits. Full-bodied. Very thick and rich. Like a syrup almost. Very dry bitter finish. A pretty nice DIPA.
3.9 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Poured from a bottle. Amber orange color with offwhite head. Disapates to a thin cap with some heavy lacing that lasts for a while, but eventually disappears. Heavy citrusy hops in the aroma with a touch of the oak. The taste is hops, hops, hops - more earthy than in the nose - however, this is not a hop-bomb and the 10% abv is well hidden. It goes down smooth with a bit of a slick/oily mouthfeel. Overall, very good beer. Learned recently that this was a blend with 90 minute IPA, which is one of my favorites.
3.4 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 15/20
Nose has pine, caramel, and tropical fruits. Taste follows with the same structure, but with oak apparent throughout, and everything somehow much larger, grander, and rounder than in the nose. The finish is long, tropical fruits, fading finally on tangerine. While certainly a little sweet, astoundingly not overly-so for the gravity, just a little tacky. Fruit-dominance may help hide alcohol. Smooth and actually not as complex as I was expecting, but nicely done DIPA.
3.6 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 14/20
Bottled 11/12/12 pours light orange amber with a thin off white head. Nose mixed of flowers, oak, light malt, and some booze. Taste adds some element of fruit. Body is thick, bitterness slightly cutting.
3.8 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Good IPA. Nice hop character. It’s not as balanced as 90 minute but definitely a quality beer.
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