HeBrew Bittersweet Lennys R.I.P.A on Rye (Rye Whiskey Barrel Aged)

Shmaltz Brewing Company
Brewed at Olde Saratoga Brewing (Mendocino Brewing Co.)
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Brooklyn, New York USA

Serve in Shaker, Snifter

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Pours dark reddish ruby brown with green-tinted off-white head. A malty, but still fruity crisp bite, with boozy bitter finish. A lot of malt, as expected, and the alcohol presence is obvious. For some reason, this reminds me of a stronger version of Three Creeks Hoodoo Voodoo IPA both in appearance and flavor profile. Decent, but it’s a big brew for more than one or two.

Still too hoppy, but not completely foul. The end is a bit much. Probably would not get again.

UPDATED: MAY 2, 2013 Bottle. Pours a dark copper with some white head. Aroma is hoppy whiskey, yes, hoppy whiskey. Incredible whiskey flavor with a great IPA following up. This beer is incredibly unique, very good.

A nice medium brown pour with a light head. There's a nice contrast between the bitterness of a IPA and the chicolate sweetness of a darker brew. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Sampled at GABF on Saturday October 13, second session
As "Coney Island/Hebrew Bittersweet Lenny’s R.I.P.A.".
Clear golden color, off-white head. Sweet, rye scent. Sweet, hoppy, dry taste. Medium mouthfeel, high bitterness.

Batch one, bottled 4/9/10 A: Pours an auburn with a 2 finger off yellow head leaving behind a solid lace. S: Sweet rye whiskey fills the nose off the bat followed by some roasted malts. Slight hops come through, but I feel the woody, whiskey smell is too overpowering. T: Again, full rye whiskey with a woody undertone. Finishes with a sweet, almost boozy note. I can sense the hops trying to shine, but I’m just not picking them up as well as I would have liked. Especially with the disclaimer on the bottle about the brewing with an insane amount of both malt and hops. M: Nice smooth finish with a medium body and decent carbonation. O: Too much whiskey and not enough hops. I feel this would be much better fresh out of the bottle. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 05-12-2011

Bottled on 8/3/2010, batch 2/304 cases.

A: This pours a slightly hazy lighter mahogany body showing as much red as brown with sparse carbonation bubbles in the body, those that are there are lazily floating. No head, only a small off-white ring. This reminds me a lot of a barleywine in my snifter and looks nice.

S: This has one strong aroma that’s pretty enticing. Oak is the first thing I smell and it comes through strong, on second sniff I’m picking up toffee, molasses, caramel, and vanilla, a wonderful sweet blend that’s very barleywine reminiscent.

T: At first a strong caramel sweetness hits with some vanilla and molasses, this leads into a complex mid-taste adding oak and rye spice with a mild presence of whiskey on the finish leaving a mildly warming sensation down my throat. Boy this is quite excellent, great sipper beer.

M: Thick with a surprising presence of carbonation given the age of this, very nice.

O: I really enjoy the heck out of this beer, this has transformed into a nice spicy barleywine with just the right amount of presence from the oak and bourbon. Well done.

pours a clear maroon with a large off-white head and good lacing. smell is of rye, spice, malt, caramel, and a touch of whiskey. taste is smooth, of malt, rye, some whiskey, and wood. ends strong.

Poured into a pint glass with very little head and the color a very clear copper. The nose is strong with caramel & rye malts with quite a bit of alcohol present. Slight floral notes in the aroma as well. The taste has a stong caramel almost liquorice taste which masks the hops in this beer. The aftertaste lingers on the tongue and the alcohol is very present. A little disappointing for a double IPA to have the hops masked by the rye whiskey. If you like rye whiskey and english strong ale, this is for you. It’s not for me.

On tap at Dexters, pours a very dark orange/copper almost with a sticky white head, the aroma has a little bit of booze mixed in with a good amount of rye and hops, the flavor has a decent hop front but the whiskey really takes over the beer in the finish, not bad but I personally enjoyed the non BA version more.