Rogue Imperial India Pale Ale (I²PA)

Christ not again. Just didn’t realise yanks could make beer like this. Guess much re-evaluation is needed. Cloudy orange. Appealing white head. Hoppy nose, bit of citrus. Beautiful dry pale ale, high alcohol not evident, in perfect balance with some intense hops. An absolute cracker. Expensive?? Who gives a monkeys uncle? It’s bloody fantastic.

On tap at BT. Pours a deep orange, slight cloudiness, with a small white head. Aroma is quite citrusy, also some grapefruit and tropical fruit. Flavor of bitter hops initially. The malt doesn’t kick in until it warms a bit and then gets a bit tastier. Some tropical fruit, although I’d like a little more. Citrusy finish. Pretty awesome, although a little bit more malt/hops balance would improve this beer.

Tap at Blind Tiger. Aroma of citrusy, floral, perfumy, tropical notes with some sweet malt. Flavor of the same, hops just a touch too harsh, and I’d like just a touch more malt, but really splitting hairs there. Overall quite tasty.

22oz Bottle. Pours a dark and hazy orange with a big whiteish head that leaves a ton of lacing and a bunch of sediment. Aroma is really big with tons of citrusy hops, some pine, and hints of malt. Taste is fantastic... sticky sweet hops at first then fading into some thick malt flavor and finishing tart and clean. Mouthfeel is thick and sticky and leaves you craving another sip almost instantly. An excellent Imperial IPA that I would recomment to anyone.

On tap at Tyler’s, Durham. Tap is the way to do this brew, as opposed to $20 for a ceramic nightmare. In this context, you can really appreciate this one for what it is: a rock solid West Coast DIPA. Orange/amber pour, slightly cloudy, with a big sticky head on it. Sweet sticky hops in the aroma, nice and bitter to taste (though the sweetness dominates just a tad too much). But it’s very good stuff overall and dangerously drinkable.