Russian River Pliny the Younger

Brewed by Russian River Brewing
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Santa Rosa, California USA

Served in a 10oz glass. At 10.5% alcohol I was expecting a very pronounced tone of alcohol. Nope. Hop aroma is dramatic. Of course this beer is all about hops. It will sneak up on a person who is not expecting so much in a beer. Truly outstanding. Very dry & bitter. Hazy from the hops. Just the way it is supposed to be. Here and gone. Can;t wait till next year when it comes back on tap.

Georges Unauthorized Home Bottling Project... Hmm, can’t be choosy! Short-lived yellowish head over hazy orange-amber beer. Typical grapey hops, oranges, but less overpowering than expected. Actually quite restrained and aromatic. Also something slightly cheesy, as a young fresh hard cheese, laced with oranges and kumquats. Orange marmalade, extremely intense as taste, with an extra aromatic component as from fresh lytchees - yeast feature? Sweet, bitter and even a (citrussy) sour glimpse. Perfect balance. After some time, there’s a noted resiny flavour retronasal, as from a tree as cypress or Douglas fir. Slick, well-bodied; extremely long, slightly burning, bitter aftertaste and mouthfeel. Even in this form, a deservedly Gold medal winner - makes me wonder how it must be on draught form. Great, Vinnie, and big thanks to Eric, and his colleague and my namesake.

From tap pours golden with light head. Smell of floral citrusy hops. Taste is incredibly smooth a caramel smooth, slightly sweet start with a following of floral, apricot-like hoppiness. There is some bitterness but it blends well with the sweet smoothness. The alcohol is not very noticible over most other beers. This beer will not last long at most pubs. Jump on it while you can. It’s great.

Tap @ Bistro - Hayward: Gold color with an apricot aroma as well as greenery. The flavor is sweet and hoppy followed by an extremely smooth feel. The alcohol is completely masked which is impressive. You could easily throw back two pints of this and be in big trouble without realizing it until you puked your guts out. Yummy! That is, the beer, not the puking.

growler contributed by drewbeerme. mega huge thanks for finally be able to try this and let me tell you, it was well worth the wait.....poured a semi opague orangey brown with a soapy milky white head......a nice tropical hop nose, grapefruit and other citrus notes contributed to a very alluring aroma. there was some nice sweetness to go along with it as well.....this had a fantastically smooth flavor. a huge dose of tropical fruit, very clean throughout. this had a sweeter flavor profile than most iipas w/ very little bitterness at all (just a tad in the finish)......after two full pours of this, i was definitely ready for another growler. exquisitely tasty.

Enjoyed this op tap at Flanigan’s Boathouse in Summer 2006, just rating it now for some reason. Maybe I’m just sobering up from that strange, Mid-afternoon event, held on Monday of all days. Fresh bursts of pinecones and grapefruits on the nose, with a lingering sweetness. Orange body, slightly darker than its elder kindred. Just such a wonderful flavor, an explosion of the aforementioned, more candi sugar than the Elder, swirling lighter fruits mingle into an extraordinarily balanced, large, and impressive IIPA.

Right up there with the best. You’ll have no idea how much alcohol you are drinking. The smell, flavor, and texture are astounding.

Growler filled 8 days earlier, with a HUGE thanks to Drewbeerme. I never thought I’d be able to try this one. But now I got two full pours. Clear orange with an off white head. Caramel malt backbone with tropical fruit. Mangos, grapefruit, lemons, pine. There is a slight sour note as well as perfume. Flavor is sweet and smooth. More of that tropical fruit. Creamy and balanced well. There is no hint of that 11% until this really starts to warm up. Dangerously drinkable. Finishes with a drying bitter sweet pine finish. The tropical fruit really reminded me of Big Eddy IIPA. An excellent excellent beer. Thanks andrew!