Phillips Amnesiac Double IPA

Not a really exciting aroma, though you know there is a big hop presence. Oily hop flavour on a dry palate with alcoholic bite coming through, harsh bitterness, dusty finish. A tough drink.

A skinny Canadian Double IPA that lacks the frame to carry those fat flavours. Poured a deep gold with a poor head. The promising piney aroma was big enough to conjure images of Vancouver Island’s vast conifer forests. It also showed some caramel, but not as much as some of the big US IPAs. In other words, this seemed more hop-dependant. On the tongue, it carried its 8.5% abv very lightly. It’s piney and resinous, with orange rind notes, but not as tongue-witheringly intense as some imperials. The main flaw was that the body seemed thin for the style. (Bottle, Sydney RateBeer Xmas gathering 2005 - thanks to Neil Beattie for lugging this one to Africa for pick-up!)

Sydney thingo. Massively hoppy pine aroma belies a relatively light, even pushing thin, palate. Certainly quite bitter, not particularly malty but it certainly wasn’t out of balance. I thought it was quite similar to the Stone IPA, but as it turns out, after drinking the US beers to follow this one seemed a lot better in comparison because of the relative lack of sticky malt and alcohol, and resultant drinkability.

Bottle (RB Sydney XMASG ’05): Clear honey orange without any head. Smells great! Lychee, orange, mango - basically lots of well integrated fruits with just the slightest hint of sweat. In the mouth this is BIG. Fruity orange notes dominate, and a juicy sweetness acts as respite from the huge herbal peppery alcohol. This is pretty good but not completely balanced.

Big long lasting thick brown head on a dark golden copper beverage. Decent hop aroma. Big hop flavour. As is common the hops come across more assertive in the first taste. This leaves you like an addict drinking faster and faster trying to recapture that first rude aggressive buzz. As your palate grows accustomed to the hops you notice a gentle sweetness and a crunchy wheat flavour.

Bottle - old notes from Oct 2005 tasting. Poured copper. Big floral hoppy aroma, with some bready malts underneath. Fairly hoppy floral / piney and even a touch perfumy flavors, kinda biscuity malt body. Lingering bitter finish. Decent, but kinda thin, and I would have liked to see a more malty body.

Pours lite gold w/frothy head. Lite malty notes w/some grapefruit. Very lite body for style. Heavy grapefruit flavors w/ little else. Heavily dry. Very boring.

Poured very well! Big aromatic head, tons of Centennial hops aroma. Head was loose, but consistent, and left deep lacing. I expected more hops kick (esp after trying the standard Phillips IPA) but was surprised to find a balanced hops/malt profile. It tastes alcoholic. Colour was a bit deeper than expected, but well within the style. All in all, a nice brew. Went down faster than I’d like....:-)