Great Lakes Imperial Dortmunder - 20th Anniversary Beer

Brewed by Great Lakes Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Pils/Strong Pale Lager
Cleveland, Ohio USA

Serve in Lager glass

This was a great beer; I drank a few on the day they released the 4-pack. Very good; it was well worth the money.

Dusky n color, slimmwhite head, a torrent of carbonation rush ever to the top. Perfect pilsner appearance. Aroma starts big and hoppy, sharp and strong, grain and vegetal aromatics meets fusel alcohol. Taste: buttery sweet meets the stinging heat of the high alcohol. I’m just not an Imperial Pilsner nut, see it as oxymoronical anomaly. like "Imperial Mild." Let’s taste again and see if my opinion changes. Yep, it’s still there, oddly sweet, then hit the heat. Doesn’t hang well on the tongue., either. After bad first impressions, I’m liking it a little better, mouthfeel seems cleaner, booze never really sticks out too much, the harsh contrast doesn’t destroy it. And I can finish it okay, goes down pretty well. But I’m still not crazy about it.

A- body is a crystal clear golden yellow color that pours with a fizzy white head that immediately dissipates. No lacing is left behind in the glass. S-Sweet pale malts are most dominant followed by an alcohol astringency. The most hidden are the hops in the nose. T-Sweet pale malts upfront with a hint of hop flavor. A bit more (piny) piny hops come out for the finish...but this is nothing like dortmunder gold. A malty sweetness and a hint of hop bitterness linger along with a twinge of astringency. P-Medium carbonation and light, drinkable body. O- It was great to try this one...but I had much higher expectations for it. I love dortmunder gold and this just isn’t as good. It’s much sweeter and not as hoppy. This has the same flavor profile as most Munich Helles that I have had. Doesn’t seem very unique to me. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 09-14-2008 01:56:24

bottle-sampled fresh in late 08. bright orange witha small sudsy white head. alcoholic grassy/grainy nose with some light pale malt sweetness. flavors are dominated by grainy alcohol-really bad! Has traits that just dont work well together-needs more hops and a better yeast strain to dry this one out. some veggie notes on the finish.

12 oz bottle. Pours a golden orange with a small white rocky head. Aroma is strong bready doughy. Small light fruity presence, some berries and caramel malts. Flavor has sweet malts and sugar in the start leads to a quick bitter hop finish. Light notes of fig and again really dough, light grain. Medium body and an moderate carbonation. Didn’t really get a whole lot of depth in this beer, but it was ok.

Bottled. A dark golden beer with a thin beige head. The aroma has notes of malt and caramel. The flavor is sweet with notes of malt and caramel, leading to a dry and lightly bitter finish. The body is thick. Thanks Papsoe for sharing.

roasty molasses and candy sugar make my teeth hurt. pours blacky black with quickly disapating tan head. nose of sugary sweet wood burn. taste is much of the same, little smoked wood, little molasses and lots of sugar. a great imperial.

Pours a clear golden color with a thin white head. Aroma of malt, some honey and hops. The flavor is very sweet, honeyish, and has a balance of malt and hops. The body is medium with a creamy texture and medium carbonation. It’s an interesting beer, but I just didn’t like it that much.

Bottle. It’s a clear, golden beer with and off-white, finger-thick head leaving some lacings. Malty, beef-stock like nose with piney and grassy hops. Sweet, malty flavor with a pleasant hoppy flavor of pinecones and grass. Full-bodied with maybe a bit too much carbonation. Nice bitterness in the finish, and a fine, sweet maltyness. There’s not much resemblance of lager beer in it, but it’s a fine one. (090520)