Green Flash Imperial IPA

Brewed by Green Flash Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Vista, California USA

Seems like good IIPAs get 4s for me, and this is a damn good IIPA. Reminds me of summer with its floral hops and this west coaster, unlike others, manages to backbone the hops discretely and effectively. This is a world-class beer and probably even a bit underrated here.

Bottle as shown. Pours a clear orange golden color with a large frothy white head. The aroma is a strong hop with floral notes and pine. Good sticky lacing on the glass. The taste is a sweet at first with grapefruit and then balences with a bitter finish while hiding the alcohol well for being 9 percent. A very well done Double IPA from Green Flash.

Another gem from Green Flash. This Imperial IPA comes in at 9 percent and is big bodied and very flavorful with intense grapefruit. More balanced than the West Coast IPA, but it still is a hop bomb with plenty of malt in the background. This beer is one of my favorites because of its over the top floral flavor and aroma and its resiny body. Very, very tasty.

Bottle. Nice head with medium duration. Color is amber golden. Aroma and taste are hops, pine, flowers and malt.

Bottle: Strong hops, piney and herbal, grassy and medicinal, oily but smooth. Huge nose.

Bottle. Light malt notes of roasted and caramel, moderate to heavy hops of grapefruit peel, light soap for the yeast with hints of pepper, coriander and mixed fresh fruit. Head is bubbly, white with excellent lacing and is mostly diminishing. Flavor starts lightly sweet and moderately acidic, then finishes heavily acidic and bitter. Palate is medium, watery with a touch of creaminess and has a lively carbonation. It finishes moderately astringent and fairly dry. A nice fruity aroma, but a little out of balance from a large hop profile without the proper malt balance. Still an excellent DIPA.

Pours what I would call a bright orange. Nice fluffy 1/4" head that fades and sticks a bit. You can see the very lively carbonation that speeds upward. Big nose of a spicy hop with a decent smell of various fruits, some citrus and some not. Apricot, Grapefruit a hint of anise or some other very peppery yet sweet aroma. Still mostly hops though, which is good for an Imperial IPA. But not hoppy enough of an odor for me. I want an Imperial to reek of hops. A nice strong hop front that goes the distance all the way through the beer and long into the after taste. It’s a bit sticky in that way. But like I said in the last paragraph; I wish it had much much more hops. The flavor isn’t quiet overwhelming enough for me to dub this a true Imperial IPA. Very good though. Silky smooth mouthfeel with a stickiness on the tongue, roof of your mouth and throat of this beer. I wish they triple the amount of hops in this beer. It would have been erected into the Beer hall of fame with other like Dreanaught. This beer is crying out to be better than it is. It’s a valiant effort on the part of the Green Flash brewing co. Thanks for the effort guys! A truly enjoyable beer! This beer is very drinkable but don’t let your guard down, she’ll still sneak up on you and leave you on the floor drooling if you’re not careful. A really decent pick up.

Pours a hazy yellowish orange. almost glowing. resinous piney aroma. sweet malty taste. Bitterness is very strong, but hop character is more limited. seems to have a fruity tone to it. I taste peaches or apricots. Bitter, with a heavy dense sweetness; reminds me somewhat of a barley wine but not as much bitterness and harshness. pretty well in balance.