Rogue Imperial Youngers Special Bitter

Brewed by Rogue Ales
Style: American Strong Ale
Newport, Oregon USA

Serving date: 2009-03-21. Best before: August 2010. Served in big wine glass. Copper colored with big red hues. Slightly yellow, small and uneven head that looks rather creamy. The liquid is clear at first, but towards the end of the bottle it gets cloudy. The last pour leaves big dark floaters in the glass. A pleasant smell, but not as powerful as I had expected. Nice malty backbone, caramel, toffee. Raisins. Decent amount of hop aromas as well, mostly citric-like. Some aromas of cloudberries as well. At first, I don’t think there’s much going on in the taste. It almost seems boring and uninteresting. But after a while, the beer opens up and things start to happen. Big malt flavors, caramel, butterscotch. Some raisins and fudge. It gets slightly bready for a moment. Then the hop flavors take over. Floral notes, pine-needles, grass and restrained fruity flavors. The hops are quite powerful but never get harsh. Pretty decent bitterness in the finish, but it’s manageable. Some minerals and fading floral notes in the finish as well. Medium body going towards full. Soft carbonation but it still feels somewhat crisp. As noted, this one became better after a while. It gets a bit rounder and develops a decent malty backbone to balance the bitterness that is too dominant initially. In the end, it comes out quite good. But I’m not sure it lives up to the quite hefty prize tag. Serving type: bottle (Copy of old Beer Advocate review)

Liter bottle. Pours a hazy reddish orange with a fluffy/creamy off-white head that did moderate lacing. Smooth aromas of roast malt and fruit/citrus. Even floral. Medium body with frothy carbonation. Flavor is a bit of roast malt with a good amount of hop - citrus, even grapefruit? It is bitter. More than I’d expect from 76 IBU. A very smooth and very tasty beer.

Looks amazing, nice amber hue, kept its head really nicely, Has an odd sensation on the palate, hits only a few spots, doesn’t really coat the tongue. Bitter, citrus hops. I like it though.

22 oz, picked up at rogue garage sale. Smells malty with some hops, starts smooth but the bitterness comes in hard and very overwhelming. the bitter after taste kills any flavor it has. not really my bag

Jeez these things are expensive! I hate to sound like a f’in miser, but $13. This tankard of ale was purchased at Hop City in Atlanta, GA. Nice dark caramel brown color with a fluffy head. The head slowly fades away. Looks pretty good if you ask me. Big pungent malt aroma. Slight hop aroma as well, but it is dominated by the malts. The hops do play a role in the aroma, but they are on the backburner. A very boring ASA if you ask me. The hops become more apparent as the beer warms up, but not to the point where I would like it to be. There is the slight presence of malts and hops at the beginning, but this doesn’t have anything that really pops. In no way is this beer bad, but for $13, I don’t think it is worth it. Slight citrus hop flavor, but again it is too sublte for me. I need a beer that is going to make me think twice about my life. This doesn’t provide that nice bittering hop I was hoping for. Overall, not a bad beer, but I expected more from Rogue.

22oz ceramic bottle. a cloudy orange appearance under a medium sized, creamy, beige head. a blend of citrus and floral hops with some biscuity malts in aroma. unique in flavor by being malt dominated. floral hops add a light bitterness and tea flavors. smooth palate for the abv. creamy as well with mild carbonation. the extra "kick" was produced with much respect to the original YSB and nicely done. delicate and enjoyable.

Source:Ceramic bottle.
Glass:Snifter.
Appearance:Dark red pour with a thin off white head.
Aroma:Caramel, flowers and earth.
Flavor:Fairly malty, caramel and toffee with a citrusy finish.
Palate:Full body with mild carbonation.
Overall:Interesting beer, but lacking complexity.

16 ounce pint - $7.25 at Taco Mac in Kennesaw, Georgia. Appearance: Clear, rich mahogany-hued body with a ½ inch of off-white suds on top. Smell: Lightly toasty pale maltiness with some distinct crystal malt whiffs and, of course, the hops, with earthy, floral notes and a fair amount of Amarillo. Taste: Pale malts with some toasted undertones and a distinct crystal malt sweetness present. Floral, earthy hop flavors along with a hearty dose of citrus pith and line pine. Medium-high bitterness. The malts attempt to rebound late with a smidgen of brown sugar, but it soon submerges beneath the heavy hop tastes. As expected from a Rogue offering, this one wraps up particularly dry and bitter. Mouthfeel: Medium-plus body. Medium-plus carbonation. Drinkability: An ESB crossed with American hops, Rogue’s typically higher bitterness, and a solid bump of alcohol which, I’m continually being told, is what folks are into these days. Personally, I found the full entire sixteen ounces to be a bit of a chore to finish.