Midnight Sun Cohoho Imperial IPA

Brewed by Midnight Sun Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Anchorage, Alaska USA

Thanks to egajdzis 2005 bottle. Pours a slight hazy rusty amber with an average size off white head. Aroma is sweet caramel and orange. Flavor is slightly bitter, pine, dry hops.
8-4-8-4-16

Re-rate 2007 bottle. Pours a deeper chestnut/amber with a large foamy off white head that laced. Aroma of fresh American hops, orange, mixed citrus, some pine, caramel...just nice an hoppy as it should be. Flavor was piney up front with some grapefruit, other mixed citrus and caramel malt. Also getting some cereal grain notes...lots of hop bitterness. Bitterness lingers and it very piney.

Poured a dark amber color with a medium sized, off white head that left light lacing on the glass. ARoma of grassy and floral hops, pine, citrus, and light caramel malt. Taste of citrus fruits, caramel malt, a light nuttiness, and finishing with grapefruit bitterness. Big thanks to ClarkVV for hooking me up with this!

Bottle. Quite caramely and raisiny for an Imperial IPA. Sweet malty staart (this sweet caramel/raisin is also noticed quite evidently in the aroma. The hops are there though, lots of piney, lychee and grapefruit hop flavours. Bit sweet though, but o must admit it got better as i worked my way through it.

22 oz. bottle from Liquid Solutions. Immediately began foaming out the top as soon as I opened it. Poured cloudy, opaque copper-bronze color with a giant, foamy beige head that left nice lacing as it diminished. Rich fruity malts in the aroma, dried apricot and plum, citrus and spruce hoppiness with a little bit of spice evident as well. Sweet, rich maltiness in the flavor as well, a bit of caramel along with the dried fruits, more spiceiness - some pepper and a piney hop bitterness in the finish with a touch of alcohol too. Full body and very gentle carbonation. Pretty good, but much more mellow than I was expecting for an IIPA.

Pour is deep ruby amber with a nice big tan head...smell is sweet with dark fruits, alcohol, and piney hops...a little thin in the mouth...watery...taste is sweet with some prunes and a slightly bitter alcoholic finish...

Bottle. Reminds me of Bigfoot for some reason. Dark amber, bordering on brown in color. Nice off-white head, good lacing. Malty aroma. Initial flavor is sweetly malty with a long hop bitter buildup and finish. Decent.

22oz bottle: pours a slightly cloudy orange/brown with a thick tan, meringue-like head. Big yeasty hoppy aroma. Flavor is hoppy, barleywineesque, malty, slightly sweet and fruity. Bitter hop finish. Really a nice beer.

The Lure:
Yeasty caramel and orange-flavored maple syrup invoke a rich and malty barley-winish persona at times. Citrusy and grassy hops concur, and the dive of the lips is met with considerable anticipation.

The Festivities:
Caramel and oranges are plentiful, and rest upon a freshly-cut piece of bark. Lots of grassy hop flavor and bitterness undermines the balance, but this is a Double IPA! Unadulterated hop glory, this is.

Transcendence:
A bit too much snow fell on the elegantly-decorated tree, but the charm remains.