Arcadia Hopmouth Double IPA

Brewed by Arcadia Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Battle Creek, Michigan USA

Bomber. Thanks, Luiss! Pours a deep cloudy burnished copper with a tall, thick, bubbly off-white head. Big bitter nose of pine and resin and, alas, a confusing sour note that’s not far off of urine. Or maybe horseblanket and foot...perhaps a slight infection. Seems to blow away after it’s been in the glass a while. Assertive attack, but nothing unsettling by the standards of a DIPA: highish body, active carb, assertive flavors. The pine and resin carry throughout the palate right to the finish. But for the weird olfactory notes this would be a pretty solid DIPA on the pine side of the hop flavor spectrum.

On tap at Capone’s. Pours mostly clear orange with a huge head. Head retention is medium and left good lacing. Aroma of grapefruit hops and a little oily resin
Flavor is pine, citrus, caramel malt. Malt backbone is present, but doesn’t really balance the intense hops. Long, bitter finish. This is really very good.

Bottle. Pours a slightly hazy copper-orange, with a quickly diminshing off white head, some lacing. Aroma is light caramel, honey, brown sugar, citrus, pine. Flavor is pine, hops, grapefruit, sweet. Palate is medium with medium carbonation, bitter finish. Better than I expected.

22 oz bomber. Pours a golden orange color with a thick foamy white head. Aroma is floral with rose and perfume overtones. Taste is perfumy hoppy, with hints of pine. Not bad, but the perfume taste gets to you after a while.

22 oz bomber. Pretty hazy amber color. Heavy notes of citrus on the nose; especially grapefruit. Slightly musty as it warms. Very creamy on the palate. Floral, dry, notes of orange rind. Only mildy hoppy initially. All leads to a fairly hoppy finish. It gets longer as the beer warms.

Tap at Village Publick House. Deep amber beer with a thick creamy head. Aroma is quite fresh with loads of spicy pine hop aroma. A touch of resiny character as well. Some spicy hops as well. Malts are quite light and lean with a touch of sweet toastiness. Flavour is piny but a bit more muted than the aroma might suggest. Still, this is much better than I recall it being. Tap at HDG. Golden coloured beer with a thin white head. Aroma of earthy hops, along with some pine and grapefruit. Quite wet and dank tasting, herbaceous and earthy with a touch of cologne, earthiness and light fruit. Flavour is quite good, loads of earthy wet hops behind a pale malt base with a touch of honeyed sweetness. More IPA than DIPA, but it’s still very good. 7 3 7 3 15

Arcadia Hopmouth Double IPA 22 oz bomber Medium pour in a tulip glass Unknown bottling, mouthed 11/06 Poured a clear brownish orange with a huge mostly lasting creamy off-white head with good lacing. Smelt of moderate pineapple upside down cake, spruce, orange rinds, cookies. Taste was upfront moderate bitter earthy and pine followed by strong bitter mold, toasted dark bread and grapefruit rinds with a light sweet toffee kick on a long bittersweet citrus and grassy finish. Palate was medium bodied, creamy, lively carbonated and strongly astringent. Overall, one hell of a punch to the mouth. Everything flirts with perfection, except the mouth weight, texture and carbonation could be tweaked with a little bit, maybe enliven the malt flavors.

Bottle. Big sweet, hoppy, piney nose that reminds me of Pine-Sol. Dark honey body with a patch of bubbles. Taste-medium to high bitterness, lightly metallic, “dirty” tasting, green olive, light apple. The malt profile is kind of thin, but the hops are not so over the top that it doesn’t work. Almost a really good balance. Not too sweet or cloying like so many IIPA’s. Very enjoyable.