Brooklyn Blast

Brewed by Brooklyn Brewery
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Brooklyn, New York USA

Draft at Dilly Deli in Cincinnati,OH. This beer needs to be at the proper temp to really open up. It was served too cold, had little aroma and a dry/bitter flavor. BUT, when it warmed up a little, the aroma came around and the flavor was excellent. It was dark golden/slightly orange in color, big hop aroma, and a full hop flavor( not just hop bitterness), but never over the top, enough malt to keep things just right. At 8+% it would be a stretch to call this a session beer, but I could drink it all night. It is called an American strong pale ale, I would consider it to fall between an IPA and an IPA2. VERY SOLID release from Brooklyn!!!!!

Slightly hazy deep copper colored pour with thick, oily looking white head. Aroma is very piney, with notes of apricots, peaches, bready malt. Flavor is very dry in the fore, tastes of resiny hops and more ripe apricots, peaches and some mango and cantaloupe leading into a really sticky finish of solid hop nectar. Malt does play second fiddle here, but is present from beginning to end, providing a nice balance and making this delicious beer very quaffable. Alcohol is noticeable but unintrusive. Good strong ale. Similar characteristics to Victory’s Hop Wallop, but more malt and less grassiness. I wish this were available in bottles, time will tell.

Medium orange and gold body with a nice head. Big hoppy aroma, plenty of grapefruit. Flavor was also hop driven, loads of grapefruit, a bit of pineapple, and some other random citrus flavors. Enough malt to balance without impacting upon the overall flavor profile too much. IIPA in my opinion, if you want to get all style oriented. Good stuff, pleasant surprise. Draft at Capital Ale House.

On tap at Capital Ale House - Innsbrook. A nice golden bodied beer with a medium volumed head. A rather complex taste that I personally think is more in line with an IIPA than an ASA. Citrus with a nice bitter hoppiness in the ending.

Draft at the Dilly Deli. Poured cloudy copper with an average frothy off-white head that was mostly lasting with good lacing. Moderate complex citrus hop and sweet malt aroma. Medium body with a smooth texture and soft carbonation. Medium balanced bittersweet flavor with a medium bitter finish of long duration. This is a standout beer.

I didn’t think that I would ever get the privilege of trying this brew since according to the Brooklyn Brewery web site, it’s "only sold here is our tasting room". Regardless, I had a couple glasses of this on draught at Dilly Deli in Cincinnati (Mariemont), Ohio today! This is good stuff and very underrated... According to RateBeer this is an American Stong Ale. However, its characteristics remind me more of an IPA/IIPA... The color is light orange and hazey with a large ivory head and moderate visible carbonation. The aroma is slightly sweet with grapefruit hoppiness. The flavor has a nice light caramel maltiness with a great orange peel flavored bittereness. It really reminds me of eating the peel of a fresh sweet orange or tangerine, but it isn’t over done or too bitter. It’s just right and quite a unique flavor. The beer is pretty smooth on the palate. The alcohol is well integrated as well. I really enjoyed this beer and, in my opinion, is probably the best Brooklyn brew!

Tap at macgregors-- arrived in a neat chalice type/snifter. golden, cloudy. It smells, pine at first, giving way to citrusy scents a bit of caramel or vanilla, something creamy almost, and sweet. In taste it comes out with those hops at first, and than a taste of clementine, or tangerine, quite good. the palate is kind of rough sandpapery feel but I like it. The finish is questionable.

In short: Well malted body, citrusy and pine-cone tree hops, very bitter, clean and crisp. Another archetypical American IPA.
How: Re-rate for a tap glass directly at the brewery
The look: Clear golden body topped by a long-lasting medium off-white head
In long: Nose is a mix of pine-tree, citrusy and earthy hops. Well malted body. Half caramel, half honey, no sugary notes. Well balanced. Lots of hops with a citrusy, pine-cone and spicy character. Quite bitter and pleasantly dry. Very good beer. This was a great experience to be able to drink that beer fresh while visiting the brewery, I had a Blast.