Brigadier (1211), Chagrin Falls, Ohio, USA Feb 16, 2007 12 oz bottle
From the description you would expect this to be a giant hop bomb with intense amount of bitterness. Instead it is very mellow, almost most like an American Strong ale than an Imperial IPA. If it did not cost so much for a four pack I would consider buying it but since a single costs over $3.99 I will probably stay with cheaper, slightly inferior alternatives.
Aroma / Appearance - A huge one finger head lingers indefinitely over a body that looks like someone melted a handful of caramel candies into a goblet. The lacing crawls down the sides like sticky glazing. The nose is not nearly as intense as I was expecting. If I had known it would be this mellow I might have tried it a month or two ago. Caramel, oak and a tame grapefruit nose form the highlight of an aroma backed by chocolately vinous scents.
Flavor / Palate - The taste of rich chocolate silk pie fills the mouth upon first sip. Delayed by a few seconds, the next wave brings forth the hoppy notes by way of a lingering taste that is reminiscent of licking pine cones. The second wave adds caramel, molasses and pecans on the top of the bitterness complimenting it nicely. The finish is semisweet and bitter simultanouesly leaving the taste of wood shavings on the throat. The overall experience is very creamy and pleasing with only a few shortcomings. Hopgeek (101), San Diego, California, USA Feb 16, 2007 Updated: Apr 5, 2007Aroma: Rich and intense caramel malts dance with piney, citrus hops. Some boozy alcohol notes. Clean, no diacetyl. Strong balance between malt and hop, both are huge.
Appearance: Cloudy auburn color, thick, swirling makes legs on the glass with belgian lace. The eggshell colored head is stands about half an inch and fades within a minute into a halo of creamy bubbles. This is way too dark for any kind of IPA.
Flavor: Huge caramel, figgy, raisins. Very complex and sweet malt character. Hops are a bit subdued in comparison. Assertive hop bitterness. Pine, citrus, apricots, resiny hop flavors. Clean, no diacetyl. Boozy alcohol shines through again, but is in the background.
Mouthfeel: Thick, chewy and syrupy texture. Medium carbonation. Mild astringency from hop bitterness. Finishes a bit heavy. Huge, full bodied. Strong warmth from alcohol.
Overall Impression: Too much sweet crystal malts in this to call it any type of IPA. I would however, find this to be a great example of an American Barley Wine. So, that said, don’t seek this out if you are looking for something like Pliny the Younger, but if you want something huge in both malt and hops, this fits the bill. mcbackus (724), Merritt Island, Florida, USA Feb 4, 2007 bottle form leopoldstoch: pours a thick ambery orange hue. the aroma is hops and then some more hops with some malt added in. some aroma of alcohol.
flavour is gnarly of hops malt alcohol and just plain bitterness. with that said it is quite satisfying. this is one monster of an ipa i think it needs just aliitle more time to lay down. but about as huge as i have tasted.overall this beer is big it is a little syrupy i am not sure whether to drink it or pour it on my pancakes in the morning, but like i said it is satisfyin to my hop need. DrD (61), Lakewood, Ohio, USA Feb 2, 2007 HUGE! INTENSE! WICKED! To be honest, I found this IPA a bit too "green"; it strikes me as a little raw, a little simple, a little too much special-effects-to-hide-the-vacuous-script. As with any beer of this density, though, all it takes is a little time...I’m tempted to open another this week...but I think I’m going to wait... mjg74 (1995), La Mesa, California, USA Jan 29, 2007 Updated: Feb 8, 2007Bottle from Sprinkle. One year old. Pours a syrupy deep amber color. Little carbonation. Sweet hoppy aroma, quite a bit of malt as well. Reminds me alot of a barleywine. Very thick and well balanced. Alcohol is just lurking outon the fringes. Very good, brew. The one year old definitely has barleywine characteristics throughout. Will give the fresh one a shot.... This beer is even better fresh. Big hoppy character. Lovely 2IPA. Both versions were excellent, but I enjoyed the fresh one best. winegarner (220), san diego, California, USA Jan 27, 2007 Poured a slightly cloudy mahagony with a moderately lasting head considering the alcohol content. Aroma has candied apricots and peaches with caramel. A noticeable spicy cirtic hop aroma is also sharing the stage. Flavor starts out with a real sweet crystal malt base that quickly gets overtaken by the hops in the beer. Quite bitter and plenty of hop flavor. The citric american varieties seem to be mostly represented. Quite an interested beer that begs for another sip as the flavors change so rapidly in the mouth. BuckeyeBoy (1635), Boise, Idaho, USA Jan 23, 2007 12oz Bottle pours out a very nice amber topped with a off white head. Great nose of hops and caramel. The tast is the same. WOW it has been a while since I have had a Double IPA. They are so good. Thanks Buckybeer for this one. EithCubes (2140), Indiana, USA Jan 22, 2007 Bottle. Loads of hops in the nose, similar to Alpha King, grapefruit and orange and pine, yes, but with more sweet floral and candis notes. Lovely blood-ruby pour with an ephemeral beige head. Taste is difficult to process, it took several seconds until I could register any distinct elements. Massive, sludgy hops. That’s the story. Gritty resin, oil, even hop leaves themselves. Certainly demands attention, the mouth really can’t function properly for a while afterwards. Tongue-numbing and wa... no, downright hot. Sweet and sugary and very bitter, though mitigated somehow, there’s no mouth-recoil like with a Jever. Very dry finish and aftertaste, and I’ll be burping hops for a few days yet. Extremely full-bodied with nice breadiness. Dark malts semi-scotchy. I love the extremeness here, but novelty points still don’t bring this up to, say, a Dreadnaught. One to discuss passionately.
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