 ElJefe (506), Rochester, New York, USA
May 5, 2008
Light amber colored with a creamy tan head. Fruity aroma of pears, mandarin oranges, and grapefruit. Aggressive citrusy hops presence is balanced by a sweet, almost honey-like malt flavor. Grapefruit rind sticks in the back of the throat in the finish. Just the perfect amount of sweetness to balance the hops, the sweetness never gets cloying, the hops take center stage, but never completely overpower. Full, creamy body, with the perfect amount of carbonation. Dangerously drinkable.
CapnJazz (12), Boalsburg, Pennsylvania, USA
Oct 6, 2008 This rating is mostly from memory, but I’ve bought cases of this so I think I have a grasp at this point. Big pour of clear orange with a pillowy white head. The nose is epic. Huge grapefruit, pine, and citrus, woodsy, floral, and fresh. Exceedingly bitter flavor, the beer’s biggest flaw. The hop presence comes across too much as bitterness and not enough with citrus, fruits, and there’s little sweetness to accompany the hops. Still, an awesome brew, big in every sense, must be fresh, can’t wait til the next batch.
Moggman (40), Columbus, Ohio, USA
Oct 2, 2008 Pours golden with off white head. Citrus and pine aroma. Flavor is citrus hops and bitter. Finishes dry and light with lingering hops.
radiomgb (1776), Peterborough, Ontario, Canada
Sep 28, 2008 Golden-orange in colour with a thin but lingering off-white coloured head, good lacing. The aroma is quite hoppy with lots of orange citrus, grapefruit, pine, highly sweet with a bit of alcohol. The flavour is juicy with lots of hops, high bitterness, orange zest, some pine but at the same time just a bit thin. Thin but bitter mouthfeel, medium body, medium/high carbonation. Finishes dry, lengthy and hoppy.
The more that I drank this the more thirsty I became. Very chewy but I can’t help but feel that this was a bit too thin. I much prefer the stouts that Bells produces.
355ml bottle obtained in a trade with miketd, thanks Mike.
Opened on April 20, 2008
Batch #8277.
Alraomon (63), Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
Sep 27, 2008 Clean, golden/amber pour with a rich and foamy pale orange head.
A lot of citrus hops, predominantly grapefruit on the nose. Sweet aromas, like other soft fruits or floral scents.
A huge hops flavour, a lot of evergreen taste that doesn’t come out so much in the smell. Citrus notes, and a dash of sweetness, presumably from the honey comes through.
Thick and slick... quite an oily consistency that leaves its residue like a thin film before slipping into a clean finish. Makes it very easy to drink, but the alcohol is amazingly well hidden, so restraint needs to be exercised to avoid getting clobbered by it. Respect it, and it will treat you very well.
kegbear (101), Orange, California, USA
Sep 24, 2008 Bottle batch 8283. Citrus and pine aroma and taste. This was a bit sweet for my liking, but still a great IIPA. I think a fresher bottle would be much better as this one was 8-9 months old. Hope to re-rate with a fresh one.
|
