Karl Strauss Big Barrel Double IPA

Brewed by Karl Strauss Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
San Diego, California USA

Serve in Shaker, Snifter

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Clear orange color/ fleeting beige head. Grape fruit rind, tooty fruity hop aromas. medium body. Good grapefruit and dank grassy hop flavors on a solid caramel base. Nice bittersweet finish.

Thanks to overlord for the bottle. Reviewed from notes. Poured into a tulip. Color is a moderate amber with a bit of an orangish tint. Two-finger white head falls somewhat quickly with an average amount of lacing getting left behind. Nose is very nice with a pretty hefty dose of both tropical and citrus fruits. The taste scales back and doesn’t hit as hard as the nose, but there’s still a bit there and a nice bitterness. Small malt presence. Drinks quite well and I was glad to be able to try this. Thanks again, Mike. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 11-12-2010

This smells like flowers with some fruit too. Okay. This is not as good as the regular IPA to me because it has too much fruit characters.

Thanks to bman1113vr for sharing this bottle. This is beer number 2500 for me. The beer pours a golden-yellow color with a white head. The aroma is very fruity. I get a lot of grapefruit, pineapple and papaya notes. The tropical fruit notes in the beer really stand out, with very little else coming through. The flavor is more of the same. I get a little biscuit malt, but I also get a ton of pineapple and papaya. The beer is full of hop flavor but the bitterness is fairly low. Overall, the beer is very drinkable, Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation.

Very hazy, chewy looking, orange coloured body with a light copper glow and a dense, thick tan head. Aroma of potent citrus and piney hops with some honey and perfume in the mix as well - nice and balanced and STRONG. Medium to Full-bodied; Deep fragrant and complex floral and perfumey hop presence which draws you in to deal with the good malt backbone and the lingering sweetness and almost fruity character. Aftertaste shows more of the hops than anything else, but when they are this complex and strong, it’s nice. The alcohol is a bit present on the end, with some lingering potency, but not overly so, especially for this style. Overall, a good imperial ipa, bordering on a normal IPA, but still a bit high in alcohol and in palate with the malt especially. Worth trying it if you can find it, especially if you like Nelson hops! I sampled this 65 cL bottle purchased from Olive Tree Market in San Diego, California on 08-February-2011 for US$5.79 sampled at home in Washington on 18-February-2011.

Thanks to IBrew2or3 for the share. Pours hazy orange gold with a white head. Nose is orange creamsicle- malt, caramel, orange, tangerine, vanilla, and apricot with kumquat. Flavor is similar with lots of creamsicle and citrus mixed with vanilla. This medium-bodied IPA finishes with lingering citrus and tangerine hops.

Bomber from Beverages4Less. Was looking forward to this one, having enjoyed a similar brew from KS. The pour was extremely inviting, a lustrous gleaming orange with a two-finger creamy head and abundant sticky retention. Aroma is fairly nice, with inviting sweetness a bit to the fore of the bitter, piney hop smell. Nice creamy mouthfeel. But the taste was a bit of a letdown, with bready malts dominating and some oxidation evident. Seems like this one’s past its prime.

On tap at the Old Columbia brewpub. Has a sweet honey aroma, also some butterscotch to the scent. Light amber with a thin white head. The flavor has delicious hop citrus grapefruit and mango. This beer has an intense malt flavor. A very classic IPA-like palate. It’s good beer but it’s not great.

I’m not sure if this is the correct beer. I had an Imperial IPA on tap at PP Carlsbad. Dark amber pour, off-white head. Citrus, grapefruit, floral hops, caramel malt, and some biscuits. Well balanced and not too overwhelming.

Bottle from Zinister.
Pours an average cheddar orange with a nose of lightly malted grapefruit and organic pine. Flavor is bready grapefruit banana. Oily mouthfeel. Not bad.