569. Lazy Magnolia Timber Beast Imperial Rye IPA

I like that I have friends who feel compelled to bring me back beer from their vacations, because it means that I get to try things like that I would never get on my own, like Lazy Magnolia from Kiln, Mississippi. And yes, I am drinking this beer out of a jam jar, mostly because it goes with the lumberjack theme on the label, and the sweet-ass name. It’s like the Brawny dude finally decided to do something worthwhile with his life: he stopped chopping down trees to make paper towels, grew a beard, and opened a brewery. Get some, Brawny dude! While the Mississippi location did initially give me pause—this is, after all, our first beer from Mississippi—Lazy Magnolia brings it with the beer as well as the packaging. 

Timber Beast pours a hazy orange copper, with an emphasis on the orange. The head is pretty minimal—the last bottle had more carbonation, while this one is a bit under-carbonated—although when I swirl the beer to re-rouse the head, I can see tiny bubbles fighting through the beer. In this case, however, they lose. The nose is spicy rye and resin coupled with orange and grapefruit; there is some bread crust and toast behind this, along with some pine, but the rye spiciness and resin hop aroma do a good job of smothering them under a flannel shirt of love. Flavors start with warm bread and toast mixed with spicy pine resin; bitterness picks up in the middle, turning to orange and pine as the beer heads toward the finish, closing with some lingering orange marmalade—there is a jammy mouthfeel in the finish, too—and bright evergreen bitterness. The chewy, rounded malt body and hop flavors balance well in this beer—it drinks deceptively easy for a 9.0% ABV beer, although there is a hint of warmth on the back of the throat as it warms. Still, a well made and enjoyable beer, one that is far superior to many of the other double/imperial IPAs we’ve tried, rye or not. The bright hoppy bitterness and rye spiciness dance on the palate, with flavor and complexity to spare. Timber Beast, I’m gonna miss you.

From the bottle: “Timber Beast is the first in Lazy Magnolia’s Back Porch Series. A spicy, full-bodied Imperial Rye Pale Ale balanced with a generous does of Zythos hops. Retreat to the Back Porch and be a little Lazy. Big Cheers, y’all.

ABV: 9.0%
IBU: 80
Malt: Rye, Pale, Carapils, Caramel
Hops: Zythos, Nugget, Cascade, Centennial

P. S. Art and Chloe rule!

(7/25/2013)

503. Widmer Nelson Imperial IPA

Alright, it is time to get down to brass tacks. We’ve been in Seattle for a week (yes, we’re in Seattle—I know it is so hard to keep track of our incessant shenanigans), and have been lollygagging around. Much like another Lolli I know. Anyway. Widmer. And the Nelson Sauvin hop. It is all the rage with the kids now-a-days. Or something. This beer comes from the 924 Series, which when I searched the Widmer site came back with nothing. So it’s like the Rotator series, but more secret. Again, or something. Surprisingly, only our second beer from Widmer—the last one being Drifter Pale Ale, way back in ’09. How far you going back? Way back. As we go a little something like this...

Nelson Imperial IPA pours a hazy copper, much like a bright shiny penny, with an eggshell colored head that sticks around rather well. The nose is a mix of hop spiciness and caramel malt, with the caramel standing in for the more delicate aromas. A small amount of fruitiness does peek out from behind the caramel, however. Elli describes it as “banana-like fruitiness—not the banana-clove, but the starchy sweet banana aroma of fruit.” I get tropical fruit, but have little to offer besides that. Aromas are more perfume-y as the beer opens up, allowing the tropical fruitiness to come out in the beer. Flavors start with the caramel sweetness and hop spiciness of the nose, although it is still soft on the palate. The tropical fruitiness starts to emerge in the middle, along with a gentle bitterness, leading to the bright floral finish—there are touches of apple and pear, and more of the tropical fruit leading into the concluding bitterness. Nelson Imperial also finishes lightly spritzy; while it starts rather heavy on the palate, it finishes lighter and brighter. There is a good amount of lingering bitterness, albeit of a gentler variety—no sharpness or harshness. A decent beer overall, but it does strike us as rather unbalanced—there is an abundance of caramel malt that covers over the more delicate components of the Nelson Sauvin hop. Or, as Jeffrey would describe it, this is something of a caramel bomb. We’d like to see someone make a light, easy-drinking APA with a boatload of Nelson Sauvin so we can experience the nuanced descriptors ascribed to this hop. Because a caramel-heavy Imperial seems the wrong route to nuance—this beer doesn’t earn its size. Maybe that’s just us. But I doubt it.

From the Widmer website: “Take your taste buds on a journey to the far side of the world. New Zealand’s legendary Nelson Sauvin hop gives us a powerful hoppy character, but none of the heaviness you sometimes find in Imperial IPAs. The result is a big brew with a sweet, malty character that perfectly balances the intense hop aroma and flavor.”

ABV: 8.6%
IBU: 70
Malt: 2-row Pale, Carapils, Caramel 10L
Hops: Alchemy, Nelson Sauvin, Cascade, Willamette
Bottled: August 29, 2011

Didn’t expect the Cockney rhyming slang angle, did you?

(12/26/2011)

476. Dogfish Head Hellhound on My Ale

It’s been a while since we’ve punched that Dogfish Head ticket. After all the yeast schenanigans and beer dumping on Brewmasters, it is good to see something end up in the bottle again. We can, however, add this one to a long list of tasty and interesting beers, including Raison d’Extra, Dogfish Head/Victory/Stone Saison du Buff collabo, Immort Ale 2009, Chicory Stout, Theobroma, 120 Minute IPA, Festina Peche, Squall IPA, Burton Baton Oak Aged Imperial IPA, and Sah’tea.

Pouring a dirty hazy gold, Robert Johnson’s Hellhound on My Ale has a decent white head that slowly fades to a brief covering, but it does lace up the glass rather impressively along the way. The citrus sourness of the Centennial hops comes through clearly in the nose; behind that, there is a bit of bright candy sweetness and some lemon citrus zest along with a touch of alcohol aroma buried all the way in the back. In the front of the beer, there is a fair amount of spicy malt sweetness; the malt is pretty unobtrusive. Either that, or covered over by the hops. The middle does feature some candy-like sweetness and a whole mess of bitterness mixed with floral, citrus, and spicy hop flavor, while the finish is bright with lingering bitterness and just a hint of lemon and some alcohol warmth. The beer is medium to heavy in mouthfeel, but everything in the flavor profile tends towards brightness and lightness, counteracting a fair share of actual heaviness. There is also some alcohol warmth, but the bitterness, spicy hop flavor, and carbonation does hide a decent amount of it. It does creep in, though, especially after all of the flavors have left the palate, and you’re left with just the warmth on the back of your throat. It is a 10.0% beer, however, and I wouldn’t hold out on this one, as the real strength is the hop flavor and character of the beer. Actually, this is one of Dogfish Head’s more drinkable big beers—there is character and balance here. Elli likes it for its front to back hop presence, and I have to concur—it goes down smooth and easy. Too easy for a beer this big.

From the bottle: “2011 marks the 100th birthday of Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson who, according to legend, sold his soul down at the crossroads in a midnight bargain and changed music forever. Dogfish Head pays tribute to this blues legend by gettin’ the hellhounds off his trail into this finely-crafted ale. Hellhound is a super-hoppy ale hits 100 IBUs in the brewhouse, 10.0% ABV, 10.0 SRM in color, and dry-hopped with 100% Centennial hops at a rate of 100 kilos per 100 barrel brew-length. To accentuate and magnify the citrusy notes of the Centennial hops (and as a shout out to Robert Johnson’s mentor Blind Lemon Jefferson) we add dried lemon and flesh to the whirlpool. To read more about Robert Johnson go to www.robertjohnsonhellhoundale.com.”

ABV: 10.0%
IBU: 100

P.S. Is it too much to ask for a scarier hellhound? It could just as well be good ol’ Barky on fire...

(5/2/2011)

456. Sierra Nevada Hoptimum 2011

Let’s just start by observing that the Presidential portrait on the label where the head is replaced by a hop cone is brilliant. Rather than using the name to drive the image, Sierra Nevada uses the language of portraiture to develop their image. Nice. Well played. Classy, even. One might be tempted to point out that Sierra Nevada is revealing a different face for their brand, what with the new labels provided for beers like Hoptimum and Homegrown Estate Ale. Saucy indeed. Me likey. Anyway, we’ve seen Sierra Nevada before around these parts, with that whole 30th Anniversary and all—including our previous experiences with 30th Anniversary Jack & Ken’s Black Barleywine, 30th Anniversary Our Brewers Reserve Grand Cru, Homegrown Estate Ale, 30th Anniversary Charlie, Fred, & Ken’s Imperial Helles Bock, Southern Hemisphere Harvest, Bigfoot, 30th Anniversary Fritz and Ken’s Ale, Kellerweis, Celebration, Torpedo Extra IPA, Anniversary Ale 2009 and Harvest Wet Hop Ale 2008, Hoptimum makes lucky number thirteen. Straight outta Chico.

Described on the bottle as a “whole cone Imperial IPA” and “the ultimate whole-cone hop experience,” Hoptimum pours a clear orange copper with a light white head that fades to a ring. The nose, unsurprisingly, is a massive hop bomb that pretty much combines everything: citrus, herbal, pine, tangerine, grapefruit flavors, along with a slightly metallic and almost medicinal aroma via the sheer hop volume. Flavors begin with a light malt sweetness before quickly giving way to hop bitterness in the middle, with a slight mineral flavor and pine, resin, and spicy hops flavors combined with a metallic and light medicinal grassiness. Hoptimum’s finish has lingering bitterness with slight warmth from the alcohol; overall, a rather clean, dry finish for the size of the beer. If there is any sweet or stickiness in the palate, it is abundantly covered by the sheer scorching hop volume—and I mean that in all of the good ways, of course. The carbonation is rather balanced, as is most of the beer, which is something of a phenomenal result for this big of a beer. An excellent beer across the board; it is big, but a well executed big beer that has character and depth. We were both more than pleasantly surprised with this beer—I only wish we could find more. Top 10 Best all the way.

From the Sierra Nevada website: “A group of hop-heads and publicans challenged our Beer Camp brewers to push the extremes of whole-cone hop brewing. The result is this: a 100 IBU, whole-cone hurricane of flavor. Simply put—Hoptimum: the biggest whole-cone IPA we have ever produced. Aggressively hopped, dry-hopped, AND torpedoed with our exclusive new hop varieties for ultra-intense flavors and aromas. Resinous ‘new-school’ and exclusive hop varieties carry the bold and aromatic nose. The flavor follows the aroma with layers of aggressive hoppiness, featuring notes of grapefruit rind, rose, lilac, cedar, and tropical fruit—all culminating in a dry and lasting finish.”

ABV: 10.4%
IBU: 100
Malts: 2-row Pale, Golden Promise, Munich, & Wheat
Bittering Hops: German Magnum
Aroma Hops: Simcoe & New Proprietary Variety
Dry Hops: Simcoe & New Proprietary Variety
Torpedo Hops: Citra & Chinook

(2/15/2011)

423. Kevin Lolli Imperial IPA

Yes, I know it looks like I’m drinking a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, but that’s only because someone needs to learn to clean bottles. I’m looking at you, Kevin. I’m also drinking this beer out of a Knoxville Brewers’ Jam tasting glass, which, while a seemingly innocuous and by proxy super-uncool glass, was smelted by hand from the bones of my slain enemies, and then painted with their blood and viscera. So color me bad ass.

In addition to holding beers, this glass reminds me of crushing my enemies, and seeing them fall at my feet.

Pouring a tea-colored copper with a creamy, long-lasting head that provides a fair amount of lacing, Kevin’s Imperial IPA is the second version of this beer that I’ve sampled of late that is based upon the recipe in Jamil Zainasheff’s Brewing Classic Styles. The nose is big hops with a slight underlying candy caramel aroma—I get evergreen, resin, pine, and citrus, followed by a slight amount of grassiness—sort of like if they made a hoppy version of kettle corn. Flavors start bitter with a big caramel front, the former helping to keep the latter in check. The middle has a drop in sweetness, allowing the bitterness to come the forefront, along with resin and evergreen hop flavors. There is a touch of candy sweetness that comes back in the finish, as well as some grassiness, along with a nice long lingering hop bitterness. The beer has a medium to heavy body and a creamy mouthfeel mixed with a touch of astringency from the hops, although nothing overbearing. There is a slight tang of alcohol heat, but it is pretty subdued, and the carbonation gives the beer a bit of silkiness on the tongue, helping to round the beer overall. The grassiness does build a bit as the beer warms (and it tastes like pellet hops grassiness as well—the green sludge mixed with the yeast helps confirm this), especially in the lingering flavors on the back of the tongue, as does the alcohol heat, but this is overall a solid and enjoyable beer. It does have less overall hop complexity as compared to Jeffrey’s version, but this beer also has less alcohol warmth and astringency. And seriously, the head is still hanging around. Thick, too—not some of that thin covering crap. The beer is gone, but there is a layer of foam left in the bottom of the glass. Now, how about cleaning the labels off those bottles, tough guy?

(11/9/2010)

422. Smuttynose Big A IPA

Previously part of Smuttynose’s Big Beer Series, this one has been pushed into full time production to become a regular contributor to the delinquency of children. We found this on tap at South Park, where we got to watch the Seattle Seahawks get absolutely manhandled by the New York Giants. Previously from Smuttynose, we’ve tried Old Brown Dog Ale, Baltic Porter, Imperial Stout, Shoals Pale Ale, Finestkind IPA and Farmhouse Ale,

Elli’s Breakfast Stout is sneaking into the picture...

Served in the ever-ubiquitous pint glass, Big A IPA pours a hazy, dirty straw—it is not quite copper, but almost. The thin white head hangs on tenaciously, and laces the glass for at least the first third of the beer, after which I forgot to pay attention anymore. The nose features biscuit and caramel malt coupled with pine and evergreen hop aroma in the front, and an underlying herbal hoppiness in the background. There is also a slight metallic scent dancing amongst the other parts, but it disappeared as the beer warmed. Big A IPA is all caramel in the front; as it warms, more of the biscuit comes out. Bitterness takes over in the middle, with herbal hop flavors to the forefront that linger on into the finish. There is also a spicy evergreen hop flavor that marries well with the herbal flavors. In this sense, the middle is the inverse of the nose; while the nose was predominantly pine with an herbal background, here the flavors favor herbal hoppiness with pine and evergreen in the background. The finish has a slight re-assertion of sweetness, but is mostly bitterness that lingers nicely on the palate. Big A IPA has a medium to heavy body that is well disguised by both the dry biscuit malt and the big hop bitterness; both work to lighten and hide the slight stickiness of the mouthfeel. Carbonation is medium but bright, helping to round and smooth the beer. Overall, smooth and drinkable for a bigger beer—the alcohol was well-hidden, and there were no discernable alcohol flavors. Big A IPA is better balanced than many imperial size IPAs; while it is more East Coast than West Coast in terms of its IPA pedigree, it is certainly worth checking out for its smoothness and evenness. Well done!

From the Smuttynose website: “Ever since Stash Wojciechowski, the ‘Killer Kielbasa,’ created this Imperial IPA for our Big Beer Series, Big A IPA has gotten a lot of attention. Lauded by the New York Times and Men’s Journal Magazine, it’s been one of the most talked-about beers around. Brewed in very small quantities, it has also been one of the hardest-to-find. Until now. Big A IPA has everything you’d want in an India Pale Ale, only more: more hops, more malt & more flavor. Now it’s available year-round, so you can enjoy this big, flavorful beer any time you want. Na zdrowie!”

ABV: 9.7%

(11/7/2010)

409. Jeffrey McElfresh Imperial IPA

While this beer concludes Jeffrey McElfresh Homebrew Drinking Week, I am certain that Jeffrey has many more excellent beers on the horizon. Thank again, Jeffrey, for all of the delicious beer, and for making this week better.

Jeffrey’s Imperial IPA beer pours the color of bourbon—it is a dead ringer when held up next to my bottle of Old Potrero—and is crystal clear. Like really clear. How the hell did you do that, Jeffrey? The head is eggshell (with some lacing), and the nose is hoppy goodness—I get a spicy, pine-y, and resin-y evergreen with citrus and a bit of grassiness in the back. There are probably other softer aromas, but the big fragrance of spicy pine (Simcoe?) overpowers and drowns them out. Flavors start out hoppy, transition into hoppy, and then finish hoppy. OK, not completely, but pretty damn close. There is a touch of malt sweetness in the front that is hidden by some of the slightly herbal hops flavors dancing around in the front; the middle kicks you in the teeth with the bitterness (but in a good way), as well as bringing the pine, resin, and spice hop aroma from the nose into a living presence in your mouth. There is a brief flash of creaminess and sweetness along with a bit of bite from the carbonation in the turn to the finish, which is a long slow run down bitterness lane—it both builds and lingers pleasantly on the back of the throat. The body is medium to heavy with a clean but slightly sharp mouthfeel. There is a decent amount of alcohol warmth in the back of the mouth along with small amounts of hop astringency and grassiness. While the heat is more intrusive than the astringency, the overall beer is still delicious and enjoyable, although I wouldn’t recommend housing it down—there is a slight flush forming on my cheeks as I finish this delicious tidbit. I’m gonna go out on a limb and guess that means this beer has a solid punch. I’d like to see what happens to this beer with some age. While the hop complexity might drop out, the lessening of the alcohol warmth and the marrying of the alcohol with the other components would further round the beer. But let’s save the philosophical meanderings, and instead offer mad kudos to Jeffrey for being the brewing dynamo that he is. I’ll make you a deal Jeffrey—you keep brewing, and I’ll gladly keep drinking your beer. That certainly sounds fair, doesn’t it?

(9/3/2010)

398. Captain Lawrence Captain’s Reserve Imperial IPA

Thank fucking goodness for home. After yesterday’s fiasco, I was verily ready for something distinctly better. Captain Lawrence Brewing Company is located in Pleasantville, NY; I scored this at Bierkraft while I was visiting Adam and Jenn. Isn’t that what Brooklyn is for?

Pouring a lightly hazy gold, Captain’s Reserve Imperial IPA has a fine white head that laces the glass rather well. The nose is a lightly bready malt that also has a touch of caramel sweetness, and there is a generous amount of pine and resin hop aromas that accompany the malt. The beer drinks light for an imperial IPA; while there is the slightest warming touch in the back of the mouth at the end, it is otherwise smooth and easy drinking. Flavors open with a dry bready and bread crust malt flavor before moving into the bitterness of the middle. The middle also has good hop flavor—there is a lot of hop resin flavor that works well with the bitterness. The finish is dry and bitter, with the bitterness lingering, but only lightly. While neither the malt nor hop profile are very complex, both are well done and exceedingly well-balanced, giving this beer some sweet easy-drinkin’ action. The body is medium to heavy with a sweet and almost chewy mouthfeel, while the carbonation is medium to heavy—the brightness in the final third helps lighten the beer on the palate as well as cleaning and rounding the beer. Quite a nice beer overall—we could happily put down a couple of these, as it is very well-balanced for an imperial IPA, which is saying something. Nice job, Captain Lawrence—you can pilot my evening any time you like.

From the bottle: “Imperial India Pale Ale. Even the name sounds impressive. But what should really impress you is the hoppy nectar that is held within this bottle. A true testament to the ingenuity of the American craft brewers; this style of beer concentrates more hop character than any style before it. Created from a blend of different hop varieties, this beer is the ultimate hop lover’s dream come true. Cheers.”

From the Captain Lawrence website: “This beer is a salute to the ingenuity and creativity of the American craft brewers. A uniquely American style of beer, the Double or Imperial IPA, has become the calling card of many craft brewers who aren't afraid to push the limits of what hops can add to a beer. This beer is big and hoppy - not for the faint of heart! Be prepared to experience sensory overload as you savor this Imperial IPA. Hops, and lots of them. The aroma is bursting with the classic citrus and pine aroma of American-grown hops. The flavor is dominated by a hoppy bitterness, with just enough malt to make you want to take another sip.”

Hops: Columbus, Chinook, & Cascade

Malts: Domestic Pale, English Pale, & English Crystal

IBU: 80

OG: 20° P

(8/2/2010)

388. Heinzelmännchen IGA

We were passing through Sylva, NC, so we swung by the Heinzelmännchen Brewery to check out the scene and to see if Dieter had anything new, which he did. After our sampling, we grabbed a growler to go and hit the road. We’ve previously tried Heinzelmännchen’s Hoppy Gnome. Oh, and Dieter mentioned that the grain from this beer was grown near his hometown in Germany, which I thought was a nice touch.

IGA (Imperial Gnome Ale) pours a ruddy and slightly hazy amber with a minimal white head (well, it is in a growler, and we grabbed it a couple of days ago). The nose is dry and biscuit with small amounts of fruit esters. Flavors start with biscuit and caramel and a touch of toffee; the middle has low levels of bitterness; the finish is rather clean, with a bit more of the biscuit that returns for the finish. Soft mouthfeel, with a bit of chewiness, and the carbonation is light and pretty minimal in the overall presence on the palate. Good, but not as IPA-y as we expected—it tasted more Belgian-like overall with fruit esters and some malt complexity—it was lacking a bit on the hoppiness across the profile. Still, an enjoyable beer, and it is always nice to see how Dieter is playing with the German brewing paradigms.

(7/23/2010)

376. Stone 14 Emperial IPA

More big beers from Stone, and in the case of this beer, it would appear that someone is celebrating their anniversary. I’m personally not down with getting older, as this reciprocally means that I am a year closer to my own inevitable death, but I guess if it gets me more beer then at least there is some compensation to help assuage my looming fears of my impending mortality. The Stone beers we’ve previously sampled include the Saison du Buff “collabo” with Dogfish Head and Victory, Arrogant Bastard Ale, Pale Ale, Vertical Epic 09.09.09, the Kona Coffee Macadamia Coconut Porter “collabo” with Maui Brewing and Ken Schmidt, and the IRS ’05-’09 vertical tasting.

Pouring a bright hazy gold, Emperial IPA has a grainy malt nose coupled with a grapefruit and spicy citrus nose—it smells bright, clean, and eminently drinkable. In regards to the body, flavor follows the nose, opening with light maltiness coupled with grassy hop flavors. The middle has a dry biscuit malt flavor couple with a big fat chunk o’ bitterness—it is bright and tangy on the tongue, and has citrus and floral flavors that build on top of the bitterness. The finish is dry, slightly sharp, and has a fair share of lingering bitterness coupled with hop grassiness. Emperial IPA has a bright and almost slightly sharp mouthfeel that is a combination of the hop bite and the fresh tasting carbonation that is lively on the palate. Coupled with the alcohol warmth at the back of throat, the overall effect is that of a young beer, one that needs some time to mature and allow the parts to marry. There is also a fair share of hop bite on the palate, giving off a tangy and bright effect that both dries and lightens the mouthfeel, even as it leaves a slight amount of hop astringency. While the bottle tells us to consume this fresh (well, that, or “age in the hull of a seafaring vessel for a year or more”), we might be inclined to sit on this for a bit, even if it is not in the hull of our favorite seafaring (I am not sure we have a favorite seafaring vessel, let alone a seafaring vessel to use as an aging system, although we would possibly laud the very attempt). After all, pirates are cool and all, but we like beer better. That’s right, beer trumps pirates in this, and every other random make believe world. So pound one down now just so you can feel like you haven’t missed anything important, and then throw another in the basement to see what happens. Because my seafaring days are way the fuck over, and so are yours, tiger. Let’s just drink some beer and have a good time, and not feel the need to pretend we are epic seafarers.

From the Stone website: “We went to England this past spring as self-styled ‘IPA Hunters’ on a mission to learn more about the confusing and often contradictory history of India Pale Ale – to look for some certainty where those before us have found mostly mystery and mercantilism. While our success in this pursuit is open to debate, there can be no question that we returned home inspired by the ghosts of Burton and by the experience of poring over 150-year old brewer’s logs handwritten in (India?) ink. Stone Brewing Co., after all, traces its lineage back to the British Empire’s brewing history: we make ales, and all of our original offerings used traditional British styles as a jumping-off point. If this seems a roundabout way of letting you know that, yes, we are in fact brewing another IPA to mark our Anniversary, well, so be it. This one however, promises to be different! From the imported white malt to the ‘Burtonised’ water to the rare yeast strain to the most pungent hops Kent has to offer, we used all British ingredients to brew our ‘Emperial’ IPA. While we may have brewed Stone 14th Anniversary Emperial IPA with our own distinctively modern, San Diego-style touch, what good is history if you can’t rewrite it to suit your tastes? In this case, our tastes called for highly intemperate quantities of Target, East Kent Goldings, and Boadicea hops, bestowing upon this dry-bodied ale a powerfully spicy, earthy aroma. On the palate, peppery hops assert themselves early and often, with malt sweetness making a brief appearance before being beaten back by a long, complex, and decisively bitter finish. What better way to contemplate the fate of empires past, present, and future?”

ABV: 8.9%

You know, on second thought, maybe I like my beer better without uber-narratives...

(7/11/2010)

367. Founders Devil Dancer

More from Founders. This one is listed as a Triple IPA, which really is just a fancy way of saying it is an Imperial IPA. As well, this is lucky number 7 from the pearl of grand Rapids; our previous encounters include Founders Pale Ale, KBS (as a bonus beer), Centennial IPA, Black Biscuit, Harvest Ale and Breakfast Stout.

Pouring a reddish orange darker copper with a minimal white head, Devil Dancer has a spicy hop resin nose with piney and herbal hop aromas in the back. The hops are accompanied by biscuit and caramel malt aromas, but they are dominated by the hops. Flavors start sharp and spicy with the hops and possibly some alcohol—there’s hoppiness across the profile—followed by a sweet caramel maltiness in the front; the middle has good hop flavor, with resin, pine, and grassiness, and a decent dose of bitterness than runs into the finish and beyond. As the grassiness recedes, a sweetness return, although the bitterness continues, and the finish has a light metallic alcohol tang that merges with the bitterness—there is a lingering alcohol warmth in the back of the throat along with some bite from the bitterness as the flavors leave the palate. Devil Dancer has a medium to heavy body; the hop bitterness and the alcohol lighten the mouthfeel, although the alcohol bite does leave a too much of a residual burn and heat, especially as the beer warms. The carbonation is medium, but is lost a bit behind the hops and alcohol. There is a bit of a bite as the hop flavor fades and the beer turns towards the finish. Flavors are good overall, and there is a nice balance between malt and hops, although this is certainly balanced towards the hops. It could a bit more aging to mellow and marry the alcohol flavor and heat, and to round the beer a bit more, although it would reciprocally minimize the hops, specifically the aroma and flavor. Nonetheless, we’ll probably sit on the second bottle for a while, and see what it does.

Found this here.

From the Founders website: “When you dance with the Devil the Devil don’t change. You do. Massive in complexity, the huge malt character balances the insane amount of alphas used to create it. At an incredible 112 IBU’s it’s dry-hopped with a combination of ten hop varieties. This one can age with the best of them.”

ABV: 12.0%
IBU: 112

(7/2/2010)

341. Iron Springs Casey Jones Imperial IPA

This marks our first beer from Iron Springs Pub and Brewery in Fairfax, CA. It is also another beer with a dog on the label, which means Elli was pumped for the beer. Unfortunately, the beer didn’t live up to the dog-label-hype-theory—we’re not sure if the beer is old and has lost all of the hop flavor, or if it’s just not that good.

Described on the label as “a well balanced, well hopped double IPA,” and as “an homage to the OLG,” Casey Jones pours a reddish-orange caramel with a light white head that quickly reduces to a ring. The nose has a big caramel punch with some hop spiciness and grassiness in the background. Opening with a whole bunch of caramel flavor, Casey Jones moves into some hop bitterness in the middle, but without much in the way of hop flavor, and some biscuit malt flavor that is reminiscent of the malt flavor in a red ale. The finish is moderately bitter, but with too much lingering malt sweetness. The body is heavy and a bit cloying, and the carbonation is too light—there is not much effect from the bit of carbonation that is present. While there is a fair amount of puckering and dryness from the hops, it is still fighting an uphill battle with the heavy malt load. Or, put another way, the caramel backbone is overly aggressive; it is too sticky and chokes out the hop flavor across the flavor profile. While not terribly flawed, it is not the most enjoyable beer—it is certainly not a shining example of the style. Maybe with a couple more years it would make a nice barleywine, but as it is right now, not so interesting.

From the Iron Springs website: “This double IPA has twice the hops and grains as its counterpart. Significant floral, citrus, and peppery notes on the nose, yet even with the enormous hop profile, the huge grain bill results in a very well balanced brew.”

ABV: 9.0%
OG: 1.079

Malt: Pale, Maris Otter, Wheat, Victory, & CaraPils

Hops: Amarillo, Summit, Simcoe, & Cascade

(6/6/10)

335. Port 3rd Anniversary Ale

This is our fourth beer from Port Brewing; I brought this back to Dayton via my recent trip to San Francisco—after all, travel means more beer fun, right? Previous beers from Port include 2nd Anniversary Ale, High Tide Fresh Hop, and Hop-15. I’m sensing a hop-based theme, aren't you?

Pouring a hazy orangish copper, Port 3rd Anniversary Ale has a very minimal white head and a big citrus and spicy hop nose along with a light backbone of caramel and biscuit. The beer starts with a dry caramel and biscuit malt flavor before turning to a spicy hoppy bitterness in the middle—there is more spiciness than bitterness, and smaller amounts of citrus hop flavor as well. The finish is hoppy, with a spicy fresh taste and only a slight amount of bitterness. As well, the biscuit flavors from the front return, but are more bready at the finish. With warmth, there are some grassy flavors that emerges in the middle and the end. Port 3AA has a medium-heavy to heavy body with medium to light carbonation; there is a fair amount of puckering on the back of the tongue from the bitterness, and some dryness on the palate via the hoppiness. A restrained and very well balanced beer—neither the malt nor the hops are overbearing, and work together in a fantastic union. While this is not a fast-drinking beer via the body, it is an easy and smooth drinking beer. There is not much in the way of alcohol flavor or warmth, which is pretty impressive for a 10.0% ABV beer. Port 3rd Anniversary Ale is a delicious and enjoyable beer—I’m glad I brought another bottle home with me to enjoy.

From the bottle: “In your hands, you are holding yet another hop monster of a beer brewed in San Diego County. Yes, we know this is hardly original. Butm we love hops as much as you do so let’s party! This beer oozes hop oils, aromas and flavors. We hope it’s a worthy addition to the riches that is the Port Brewing family of beers. We look forward to the annual release each May and hope you will too.”

From the Port website: “A massively hopped strong pale ale brewed to celebrate our anniversary each year. Anniversary Ale is light gold to pale orange in color and offers a potent aroma of fresh pine and citrus with some warming alcohols present. The taste is a thick, chewy hop presence only barely contained by balancing malts. The finish is pure hop expression with a moderate warming alcohol sensation.”

ABV: 10.0%
OG: 1.090
Hops: Columbus, Amarillo, & Simcoe
Dry Hops: Columbus & Amarillo
Bottled: 4/28/10

(5/31/10)

333b. BridgePort Hop Czar

Our third beer from BridgePort; the last two were Hop Harvest and their IPA. As the label informs us, “This robust golden monarch requires a king’s ransom of hops.” However, none of them seem to have been used in the last five minutes of the boil—it’s all bittering hops with this one, which seems the most irresponsible part of their irresponsible hop usage.

Hop Czar pours a crystal clear copper (I can read these words on the screen through the glass—it’s that crystal clear) with a minimal ivory head and a bready malt and spicy hop nose accompanied by grassy hints. The front is a dry biscuit malt that quickly moves into bitterness along with some grassy and slightly medicinal and/or metallic flavors. Hop Czar finishes dry and lightly paper-y with some slight return of malt sweetness and much more of the lingering bitterness. There is a fair amount of drying and tongue curling on the palate, along with some grassy astringency. While the carbonation is rather low, the bitterness does help dry the beer out. Hop Czar has a solid malt profile and good bitterness; it could use more in the way of flavor and aroma hops, since without them the Hop Czar seems a little too one dimensional—Hop Czar is interesting, but the lack of larger payoff comes from this being more British than American in the hop profile.

From the bottle: “Hop Czar is brewed with an irresponsible amount of hops and balanced by a robust malt backbone. Bridgeport revolutionized the IPA style and this Imperial India Pale Ale is a worthy bloodline to our award winning heritage.”

From the Bridgeport website: “BridgePort Hop Czar, an Imperial IPA brewed from our award winning IPA recipe, first introduced to rave reviews in 2008. It is a triple-hopped bottle-conditioned, Imperial-style IPA that carries a deep malt background with enthusiastic citrus and floral notes paired with high hop bitterness. The newest in our permenant 6-pack line, the Hop Czar recipe blends copious amounts of Nugget, Chinook, Cascade and Centennial hops. ”

ABV: 7.5%
IBU: 87

As today was my last day in San Francisco, Bill and I took our usual walk up to Coit Hill to see the view, and then down through Washington Park to visit the Rogue Brewpub, and their delighful on tap list. I got to have Rogue John John Juniper on tap, and also New Belgium Lips of Faith Eric’s Ale. We then went out with my friend Scott for a nice South Indian dinner. Ah, San Francisco...

(5/29/2010)

318. Great Lakes Lake Erie Monster

Only our second beer from Great Lakes (we tried the Oktoberfest back in August); we actually kinda feel bad about this, being that it is late in the year and all. Don’t worry, though—we’ll start spreading the Ohio love around soon, Great Lakes.

Who doesn’t love monsters?

Described as an unfiltered imperial IPA on the label, Lake Erie Monster pours a middlin’ copper with an ivory head. The nose is composed of orange, citrus, and resin hop aromas coupled with a few stray malt hints. Beginning with bready and biscuit malt flavors, Lake Erie Monster quickly moves into bitterness accompanied by spicy and resin hop flavors. There is some rising fruity sweetness at the end, along with some lingering spicy bitterness. The body is medium with medium carbonation, and the mouthfeel is slightly sticky. Overall, Lake Erie Monster is well balanced for an imperial; while not particularly complex, it is nonetheless easy, enjoyable drinking.

Did some one say well balanced?

From the Great Lakes website: “Double India Pale Ales are a strong, very hoppy style of pale beer. Also known as Imperial IPAs, these beers are essentially India Pale Ales that are brewed with higher amounts of malt and hops. While still relatively new, it is one of the fastest growing styles in the craft beer industry, and a favorite among ‘hopheads.’ A beer this distinctively hoppy inspires many a tall tale. And they don’t come taller than Bessie, the legendary monster that roams the shallow depths of Lake Erie.”

ABV: 9.1%

IBU: 72

(5/14/2010)

264. Midnight Sun CoHoHo Imperial IPA

Back in the day when I was a teenager, before I had status and before I had a pager...Oh wait, that was something else. This beer here is our second beer from Midnight Sun—the last one being Sockeye Red IPA. I’m sensing some sort of theme with the whole salmon thing they got going on.

CoHoHo has a heavy caramel malt nose with a slight sappy or piney quality; the color is a reddish copper with a creamy ivory head that sticks around and laces the glass. The beer opens with a sweet thick caramel malt that is mixed with some slight spiciness; the middle has brown sugar sweetness and bitterness from the hops, while the finish is piney—either from the juniper or the hops—as well as dry and slightly harsh, but with a good amount of residual sweetness—the finish is not very clean. The body is medium, but a bit sticky on the palate. While the head retention is good, the carbonation is medium to low; as Elli observes, any carbonation is “fighting an uphill battle against this beer.” I think she is referring to the stickiness and residual sweetness, which does give CoHoHo a heavier presence on the palate than it actually has. While CoHoHo has potential, there is not quite enough pay off in the flavor in regards to the thickness of the body. We may need to drink this in more appropriate weather—it is described as warding off winter woes on the label—but we’re not sure the temperature would improve our ability to enjoy CoHoHo, and we’re pretty certain we’re not trekking to Alaska in the middle of winter to try it there. We do (or at least I do) like the label—the crazy coho salmon with a Santa hat and psychedelic eyes is totally awesome. We’re (or at least I am) making this one a Top 10 Best Label contender.

From the label: “CoHoHo Imperial IPA is a true American Double India Pale Ale, designed & crafted to ward off those way North winter woes. While exuberant hops add punch to an abundant malt base, bonus ingredients—like brown sugar, hoeny and juniper berries—boost character, complexity and holiday spirit. Make merry all winter long!”

From the Midnight Sun website: “When the loveable ‘hopheads’ at Humpy’s Great Alaskan Alehouse requested a winter version of alehouse favorite Sockeye Red IPA, our brewers instinctively spawned CoHoHo Imperial IPA. CoHoHo begins with generous measures of pale two-row and specialty malts along with spirit-boosters like brown sugar and honey. Hefty doses of Cascade, Centennial and Simcoe hops beautifully balance that outrageous malt bill while juniper berries heighten the festive character of this exuberant beer. Make Merry all Winter Long...”

ABV: 8.0%
IBU: 85
Malt: Pale 2-row, Various Special Malts
Hops: Cascade, Centennial, & Simcoe
Other: Brown Sugar, Maple Syrup, Honey, & Juniper Berries

(3/21/2010)

242. Three Floyds Dreadnaught Imperial IPA

In our never-ending quest for beer nirvana, we’ve decided to embrace Three Floyds “It’s Not Normal” mantra. Dreadnaught marks our third Three Floyds beer; we’ve previously rolled through Black Sun Stout and Blackheart IPA. We grabbed this when we were down in Louisville, and we took it over to record night at our friend Jeffery’s and Tracey’s. My one mission for the evening was to make sure that everyone had to listen to my single of 19 by Paul Hardcastle. Mission accomplished. Yes, I bought it when it came out. And I still have it. It is that awesome.

Dreadnaught pours a lightly hazy copper, although it is almost more gold than copper. The head is thin and white, and the nose is dominated by hoppiness—there are citrus, floral, and grassy aromas—with just a touch of malt in the background. The front opens with a soft malt sweetness that has bits of breadiness and biscuit before moving into the big hoppy middle; there are fruity and citrus hop flavors all over the place as well as some citrus fruitiness before the bitterness starts to kick in. Dreadnaught finishes bitter and sweet—there is a nice lingering bitterness mixed with citrus and light grassy flavors than sit well on the tongue. The body is medium and so is the carbonation; while the beer starts soft, the carbonation picks up in the final third, finishing rather bright and sparkly on the mouth. There is also a fair amount of tongue curling in the back of the mouth from the big bitterness, although the bright citrus does minimize it a bit. The bitterness also helps covers over any potential alcohol warmth; a bit did emerge when the beer got warmer, but even then in very minimal amounts. Overall an excellent and very drinkable Imperial IPA—Dreadnaught is smooth enough that it would be hard to peg it as an Imperial without the prior knowledge. We just wish that Three Floyds would hurry up and get that distribution deal going in Ohio so we could drink their beer all the time.

From the Three Floyds website: “A hophead’s dream beer. This Imperial India Pale Ale has an opening salvo of mango, peach and citrus hop aromas that sit atop a pronounced caramel malt backbone. Although Dreadnaught is a strong and intensely hoppy ale, its complex flavor is both smooth and memorable.”

ABV: 9.5%
IBU: 99

(2/27/2010)