HeBrew Bittersweet Lennys R.I.P.A

Shmaltz Brewing Company
Brewed at Olde Saratoga Brewing (Mendocino Brewing Co.)
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
San Francisco, California USA

Bottle. Heavy malt aromas of roasted and caramel, heavy hops of pine and orange zest, modererate dough note of dough, and date, wood, brown sugar and alcohol in the background. Head is creamy/bubbly, off white, has excellent lacing and is mostly lasting. Flavor starts moderately sweet and bitter and lightly acidic, and the long finish is moderately sweet and acidic and harshly bitter. Palate is medium to full, creamy leaning towards syrupy, and has a soft to lively carbonation. It finishes heavily astringent, moderately alcoholic and a bit sticky on the lips. This beer smells and tastes a lot like barleywine, not a bad thing. The flavors, while packed full of diversity, was a little out of balance.

22 oz bottle. Clear topaz with a tan head. Orange caramel with underlying rye. Full body, almost thick. A brief burst of carb leads to a sticky, oily mouthfeel. Vegetal, earthy bitterness, not too assertive. Some toffee followed up with dry rye.

Pours an orange body with a reasonably thick head. Hop aroma, along with fruits. It wasn’t that hoppy really, but it was hoppy enough. I didn’t sense any of the rye there. Alcohol taste covered up by complex flavour. I enjoyed it.

(Draught) Sampled at Duck Island Saloon in Seattle, WA, on October 20, 2007. Foamy white head with a deep orange brown body. Nose of bourbon, peach candies and flowers. Very powerful. Alcoholic, malty and sweet. Good stuff

amazingly hoppy, drink it everyday. This was my intro to double ipa’s and i’ve been a fan eversince. for me this the hallmark.

Deep bronze amberish with full head. Powerful hop aroma and resiny and onslaught of wave after wave of flavor undeniably full of amarillo, simcoe, and crystal hops. Quite bitter, but it melds well. This was very strong, but perfect for the whipping cool, wet weather, however; I was stunned to see it is a whopping 10%. Between the IBU’s and the ABV % this is a behometh.

The beer pours from the 22 ounce bottle reddish amber with a large creamy of vanilla-white head. Nice lacing down the side of the glass. Nose is rich in sweet malt, the big hop flowery aroma underpins the malt, citrus like in its crispness, yet warm and smooth. Nice malt presence, Body is full, most certainly a belly warmer. At 10%, it’s the biggest DIPA I’ve had so far. WONDERFUL.

22 oz bottle. Poured a clear copper color. Head was two fingers high and light tan with good retention and lacing. Lovely beer. Aroma was of nuts, toasted bread, caramel, husky grain, and citrus/resiny hops. There was also a hint of brown sugar. Sweet on the tongue and and very fruity with pineapple flavor. Alcohol flavor was fairly assertive and there was a toasted coconut note that was interesting. Only mild to moderate hop bitterness of about 4 out of 10 came through. Good beer.