bomber from G&G poured into snifter. pours a cloudy amber/copper with some hints of red and a short, pure white head. aroma literally jumped out of the bottle. huge floral hops with hints of pineapple, grapefruit, limes, pine, brown sugar, and rock candy. flavor is truly unique in the world of IIPA’s. hop bitterness dominates, but there is a tartness the marks the transition to the malt backbone that i’ve not tasted before in a IIPA. flavors of ginger, caramel malt, orange, and spice are present as well. the flavor gets better and more complex the deeper into the glass you get. very well balanced and smooth with a substantial mouthfeel and good warmth after the swallow. overall, a top notch IIPA that is truly unique in the style. it also gets bonus points in my book for the 10.21%, being that my birthday is 10/21. cheers.

Pours from bomber a clear copper color forming a nice large white head of foam. Aroma of grapefruits, hops, cotton candy sugar and mango. Flavour of extreme smoothness, sweetness perfectly balanced with hop bitterness, both malty and tangy. Wow, Avery has really done it with this beer, I’ve seen it rated hundreds of times before trying it, now I know why its wonderful. Would love to try it on tap, perhaps in volumes, superb!!

Slightly hazy orange body with two fingers of smooth bodied cream colored head with some solid stained glass windows of lacing. Heavy malty aroma, caramel, sweet amber malts and grapefruit/citrus hop aroma. Taste is more nice maltiness. Not quite as brutally bitter as some other IIPAs despite the 102 IBUs. Even has a slight alcohol tinge in the finish. Nice drinker, not sessionable due to the 10.54% but not the palate buster like some others.

22oz bomber. Batch 8, May 2008. Pours a crystal clear red/orange with a huge, two-fingerwidth, creamy, off-white head that sticks around and remains lacy. A less than complex aroma, but lots of it. Loads of dried pineapple hops and sweet caramel malts. There is an earthy aroma to this as well. Straightforward. Taste starts with a rather pine bitterness, then balances and moves to a very sweet and citrusy middle, and finishes with a lime, dry, bitterness that lingers for a long time. Medium bodied. The bottle claims this is 102 IBUs, which is evident, but very well balanced. Overall, this is a really nice ImpIPA that has a lot of taste, but doesn’t stand out like some other ones I’ve had. I’d rather have something more complex. That said, i could still drink these all night.

Amber-red coloured. Clear. Has an off-white head. Aroma is very hopped, crisp. Some malty notes too. Flavor is mainly heavy bitter. Dry texture.