Alpine Beer Company Anniversary Pure Hoppiness

Formerly brewed at Alpine Beer Company (CA)
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Alpine, California USA

Date: 12/02/2005
Mode: Draft
Source: Strong Ale Fest 2006

dark yellow, frothy white head, big grassy hop aroma, lots of hop flavor, light malt base

Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 5/10; Flavor: 6/10; Palate: 5/10; Overall: 12/20
Rating: 3/5.0
Drinkability: 6/10
Score: *4

Tap at Liar’s Club. Clear orange-gold pour with a frothy white head. Big nose of pine and citrus, but light. Taste was exceptionally clean. For an IIPA, a malt-muted bitterness but huge hop flavor. Lots of grapefruit and resin, without the stickiness. Excellent balance with a nice bitter finish.

Draft at O’Briens: Nose of oranges and pine, very fresh and clean. Clear golden amber color. Creamy hop filled flavor with a big body and peach notes. Nice finish, fresh and drinkable for this beefy of a DIPA.

Draft, 2005 PP Strong Ale Fest. Clear golden yellow pour with a decent head. Large very fresh hop aroma, grapefruit and citrusy, and a little grassy. Man this beer smelled great! Sweet caramel malts with a lot of grapefruit hops. Decent bitter finish.

Very Very clear AND I am told it is NOT filtered. That note ensures the full mouthfeel and excellent hop aroma. Nice malt flavor with a slight sweet malty flavor, I like the way that adds to balance of hop to malt ratio. Exceptional Brew

Awesome clear straw copper color. Lemon citrus Cenntenial type of hop aroma great pour nice bubbly head and perfecto carbination which brought out the hoppy nose. Dry thick mouthfull that matched the hoppy nose. Great to NOT have that caramel burnt flavor in so many of these styles. The malt was there but did not overdue the hops. A characteristic that I enjoy in this style. I give this brew an A+++++++++++++

Pours with an amber gold body topped by a thin to medium thick head with some lacing. SLightly sweet to start but full of hoppy bitterness with notes of pine and grapefruit throughout. Medium bodied, slightly dry and smooth.

9th Annual San Diego Strong Ale Fest: Clear light golden amber color with a large off-white head. Huge hoppy aroma. Hops smelled so fresh. Like I was smelling the actual cones. Pine and grapefruit. Flavor started with some malt but the bitterness, while mild, seemed to start way to soon. The flavor did have a good length to it. I just would have liked to have a little more malt sweetness out of this to balance the flavor. That would have been perfection.