Pisgah Vortex I

Brewed by Pisgah Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Black Mountain, North Carolina USA

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

Pours a hazy dark amber/orange color with a two finger frothy white head that has pretty good retention, slowly fading into a lasting ring. Sporadic lacing left behind. Citrus and floral hop aroma with hints of pine, grapefruit, orange peel and pineapple. Subtle malt backbone with Graham and biscuit. On the lighter end of medium bodied with a blast of bitter and sweet hops up front that linger throughout into a dry finish. Lots of floral and citrus hop flavor with hints of mango, pineapple and grapefruit as well as some pine needle and a spicy, grassy character. Nice malt backbone that provides balance without overpowering. Hints of caramel, biscuit and Graham cracker. Wellmbalanced and pretty quaffable.

2009 Batch was the shit. big malty dry (not sweet) hoppy . well balanced really all around great beer 2010 batch not the same beer at all bubblegum, butterscotch, caramel, heavy cloying sweetness, lightly bitter, medium bitterness, not enough hop to back up the sweetness would love to re-rate this beer when I open one from the cellar!

Draft @ the brewery. Pours a clear amber color with a small off-white hrad. Has a fruity malty strong hoppy piney grapefruit aroma. Sweetish malty bitter hoppy pieny grapefruit flavor with hints of caramel. Has a sweetish malty hoppy bitter piney grapefruit finish.

Der Hopfenantrunk ist bereits deutlich gealteter, er weist brennende Alkoholtöne auf. Deutlich blumig, im Mittelteil wirkt der Hopfen dann doch frischer als erwartet und kann weitestgehgend überzeugen. Angenehm aber nicht übermäßig hopfig, wenngleich die hopfigen Aromen im Abgang bemerkenswert rein sind. Stimmiges IPA ohne größere Besonderheiten. 9/9/9/10/13/10

I’ve been encountering a lot of beers lately that bill themselves as double or triple IPAs that, quite frankly, include so much malt they almost drink more like barley wines. This is the latest. I picked this bottle up while on a visit to Asheville, a great little, picturesque town with a flare for food and beer and the outdoors. It looks like a barely wine (translucent dark amber), smells like a barley wine (tons of sweet malt, a bit grassy, with a note of alcohol), and tastes like a barley wine (reflecting the nose, but with a hint of hops on the tale end). Remind me again why this isn’t labelled a barley wine? I think perhaps the reviews on this one are a bit lower than they should be because the hop heads feel let down.

(22oz bottle courtesy of BgThang!). This one is 9.8% abv. Pours hazy copper color with off-white head. Nice, active carbonation. Aroma has spicy hops that is paired with something that is honeylike. There’s also a bit of cardboard. Taste is bitter with a sweet malt backbone along with a little diacetyl presence. Medium bodied with slick texture. Finish is dry and bitter. This one is probably past its prime, but its still pretty good and alcohol is well hidden.

Reviewed from notes. Pours a nice amber-brown color with a pretty good head and a slight amount of lacing. The nose is really nice with some citrus and pine and with that comes some caramel and sweetness. The taste is light hops with some notes of dark fruit and sugar. Mouthfeel is pretty good with a nice balance between body and booze. Drinks quite well and is a nicely done beer. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 11-03-2010

Poured into a snifter. 3.5 A: Cloudy deep amber/mahogany color. One finger of creamy beige head with below average retention and moderate amounts of lacing. 4.0 S: I think this is supposed to be a DIPA, but it’s listed as an American Strong, which is exactly what it smells like (or perhaps an American Barleywine). The strongest aromas is caramel and there is a lot of it. Next, there are orange and pine hops. The non-crystal malts come off as bready with some yeastiness in there as well. 3.5 T: Taste pretty much puts this beer into American Barleywine territory. There’s a healthy bitter backbone in this, but not a whole lot of hop flavor. This is reminiscent of fresh Old Ruffian. Anyway, plenty of caramel with biscuity malts to accompany. Hops are again dominantly piney with orange, tangerine, and grapefruit. 3.5 M: Heavier medium body. Good moderate carbonation. Could be creamier. 3.5 D: This is an okay beer, but it fails to deliver what it promises. It just isn’t that hoppy in terms of hop flavor. That’s not much of a problem, but it also wasn’t that great of an American Strong or American B-wine. Worth a try, but not another round due to price. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 12-07-2010 04:38:16