Rogue Imperial India Pale Ale (I²PA)

Brewed by Rogue Ales
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Newport, Oregon USA

Looks nice. A golden color that has a nice aroma about it. Initial taste is sweet, syrupy and strong. Flavors tend to mellow in the mouth, but overall this one doesn’t feel completely right. Not bad, but not up to speed with other world class IIPA’s.

On tap @ Maproom - sampled: Pours golden with a nice strong aroma of grassy floral hops. The flavors are of course hoppy: grapefruit, citrus, a little piney but with quite a bit of malt. Medium mouthfeel and good carbonation with a slightly lingering bitterness makes this a very refreshing brew.

Very good and interesting IPA. The pour is a cloudy orange colow with an ok head. The hop aroma is there, but has something holding it back somewhat--maybe some musty type of smell? The taste is very interesting. Again, the hops are definitely present and very good, but you get a very interesting malt profile from this one--fairly bready and earthy as well. I really liked tasting something that made me think as much as this one did.

Very hazy orange with just a little head. Hops are very apparent, but they are not overwhelming at all. Nice malt on the beginning, but then it hits you with hops, hops, hops...and I love hops, however like Immy said, it is a bit rough. Some nice orange and pine flavors in the finish.

Swingtop 750. I remember drinking the XS series beers right before I started rating. I loved the IIPA - let’s see if it holds up to the more refined palate... Hazy orange with a big white head. Hopped-to-hell nose, citrus and pine. Flavor has some malty sweetness, but is obliterated by a suprisingly rough bitter. The finish is, of coures, bitter, but more peppery-herbal than expected. Did it hold up? No, not really. Solid, but sure as hell not worth the $13!

(Bottle at OT, Stockholm) Pours hazy orange. Small white head. Citrus, pineapple and orange. Taste of some pine and floral. Lemon, citrus, grapefruit. Rose flowers. Light maltyness and rasins. Big, BIG afterbiterness. Second try: Green hops in aroma with tones of flowers, pine, apricot, grapefruit and some other citrus fruits. Light malty with toasty and caramelly notes. Undertones of pancakes and roses. Light sweet and medium to full bitter flavour with floral notes and some grapefruit. Long, lingering dry and resiny afterbitterness. Medium to full body.

Swingtop 750 courtesy after4ever. Pours an amber orange with a slightly lacy white head. Medium body. The taste and aroma have oranges, mangos, and malty goodness. Fine stuff!

Swingtop 750. Can’t say enough good things about this beer. Pours orangey amber with some white head, not much lace. Nice medium body with pleasantly near-raw carb. Huge mix of citrus and pine on the nose, and it carries through the mid-palate and the finish. Decent malty sweetness peeks through on the attack and in the mid-palate, but the finish is all gorgeous hops. You can easily see how this is the IIPA that launched a thousand ships.
Tried a year-old bottle at the generous hand of BitBucket. Under no circumstances should you age this beer, no matter how carefully. It falls right apart. It’s getting worse one minute at a time from the moment they send it out the door.