Back Road Hop Monster IIPA (Specialty Ale)

Formerly brewed at Back Road Brewery
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
LaPorte, Indiana USA

Name: Hop Monster IIPA
Date: 04/29/2005
Mode: Draft
Source: Tasting, Dark Lord Day, 2005

clear light amber, big fresh citrus hop aroma, big hop flavor and and long bitter finish, single thought, another me too double ipa

Aroma: 9/10; Appearance: 5/10; Flavor: 5/10; Palate: 5/10; Overall: 10/20
Rating: 3/5.0
Score: *4
-------- /> The score was calculated based upon the notes and an old scoring system.

This pours a slightly hazed dark amber body with a creamy beige head that coats the glass in sheets. At the base of the aroma are rich malts and caramel. The hop bitterness is a bit of a mishmash, pine, grapefruit and herbs clashing together to create a sharp earthy scent. They become more clearly defined in the taste, each bitter flavor blending in more friendly fashion with the others. The strong malt backbone works hard to support the onslaught of the hops, but they win out in the end producing a prolonged bitter finish. Sounds nice, too. A good DIPA.

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Growler fresh for tap that morning, opened at DL post-release gathering: Golden hue with a firm head and excellent lace. The aroma has a piney and grassy hops note with some toasty malts and grapefruit esters. The taste has a sharp hoppy forefront with a bready malt backdrop. Additional undertones of citrus and minerals. The feel is average, biting. Pretty good beer Chuck, stepping up. I enjoyed it and hoped others did as well.

Bottle as an extra from someone (Mike?). Decent aromas of hops in the beginning, but really this begins to actually smell like garbage as it warms. Like, old nasty trash. Seeping with a mysterious dark yellow-brown liquid. Not cool. I prefer my beers not to smell as such. The taste does not really exhibit that, but one can’t help but smell as you sip. This really isn’t a bad beer, but that flaw is glaring enough that I can’t possibly give this a score over 3. I likely won’t even finish it.

Aroma: Perfumey hops, citrus hops, caramel malts. hint of gingerbread. App: White head. Bubbly and lasting. Clear copper color. Good carbonation. Very good lacing. F: Sprucy hops, bitter grapefruit hops, caramel malts. P: Very bitter, sweet. Thanks Mike!

Thanks to BBB63 for this one. It pours a hazy amber with a very thin head. The aroma is oily/hoppy with pine & citrus notes. The flavor is palate-scrapping hoppy.

Out of BBB63’s growler at the DL release party. Deep orange color with a thin cream colored head. The nose reminded me of those candied grapefruit rinds. It seemed a little thin for an IIPA with flavors mostly of grapefruit and citrus hops.

On tap at the brewery. Poured a haxy amber color witha bit of a white head. Really kind of an earthy mushroom aroma. Lots of spice and herbs wish candy sweet malt. Pretty bitter. Kind of astrigant too. Just okay at best.