Blue Point No Apologies Imperial IPA

Brewed by Blue Point Brewing
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Patchogue, New York USA

OK, had to go for this. Even though I’m not a fan of IPA, I keep tasting in the hopes I’ll find one in this style that I can appreciate. This was on tap at the Mad Mex in Robinson so I couldn’t pass it up. Color is slightly darker than your ubiquitous pale yellow American lager. Aroma is really floral hops. Very bitter first taste. A quality that only an IPA lover could love. I would swear that somebody looked for the most bitter grapefruit rinds they could find then ground them up and added them to this brew. Has a bit of earthiness that I normally don’t detect in IPA. This stuff was way too much for my girlie taste buds, it just mowed them over like a John Deere. Barely any carbonation, almost flat. Finish is back of your throat terrible bitterness that just keeps going and going and going like the energizer bunny. Somebody give me a Weyerbacher Old Heathen to chase this down with, yeeow. I’m not making any apologies for this rating.

My Bottom Line:
Wet herbal, earthy hoppiness flavors and bitters this efficient Double IPA’s honeyed maltiness. A very flavorful and complex hop bomb from Blue Point which offers exactly what you expect from this bold American style.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A veil of foam covers the clear pale bronze.
-The nose could have been better defined, but it remains highly competent in attracting the hop lover into this alpha-potent brew.
-The hop flavors range from orangey to leafy to wooden and dry.
-Maltiness offers some sweetness, but is mostly there to support the hop fireworks display.
-Alcohol is well concealed.

On tap at Tap NY.

On tap. Clear orange, off white head. Aroma is citrus, floral, slight pear. Flavor is tangerine, taffee (Sugar Daddy Candy), band-aids, hops.

Sampled from a growler: Pours a transparent copper orange with a nicely-lacing frothy white head. Has a nice, fresh citrusy and piny hoppy aroma with good sweet malty notes. Starts with a decent caramely malty sweetness but has a touch of phenolic, almost rubbery flavor before showing some grapefruity flavor. Would be a real nice double IPA if not for the off-flavors.

Tap at BP and growler. The growlers aroma had faded a good bit but at BP the hops were fairly strong and fresh. The growler had some yeasty phenols that stood out. Pine and floral hop start and fiish. Malty middle with a moderately bitter semi-dry finish. Medium to full bodied.

Draft at HDG. Orange with a small head. Orange citrusy buttery aroma. Buttery plastic flavor. Hops are bland. Finish is bland. Buttery bandaid notes. Not a great beer.

Draft @ HDG. Orange with a small head. Aroma is tangerine, orange and band-aid. Taste is a bit plasticy with a sharp alcohol sting. Hops are a bit bland and muted but tastes like they were fresh at some point. There should be some sort of appology for this but at least they are trying.

Cask @ Goodbar. Rich gold, thin white head. Nose is caramel, piney resin, some citrus, brown sugar. Flavor is caramel, resin, very bitter, orange rind. Lots of caramel in the bitter finish.