Butte Creek Organic Revolution X 10th Anniversary Imperial IPA

Formerly brewed at Butte Creek Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Chico, California USA

Bottle under the "Rock Hard Ten" label. Also had sampled on draft at the brewery. Red-brown, full of air and rising to a firm pillowtop. The beer drinks wtih a definite burn, full of rich full-bodied maltiness and an astringent piney, sappy, oily hoppiness. This is a biggie. (#3395, 4/9/2008)

22 oz bomber tasted at BrewMasters meeting. Nice orange/amber color with slight head. Couldn’t see head qualities with just a tasting glass. Resin and citrusy hops in aroma and flavor, it balanced well with a sweet, caramel malt backbone. Overall a nice DIPA, not over the top and not world class, just well balanced and worthy of another try.

65 cl bomber. Courtesy of Papsø. Tasted in comparisson with other IIPAs. Hazy, reddish amber colour with a nice white head. Amazing aroma of hops and great sweet burned caramel. Nice and very tasty flavour of hops and caramel. Ends up very bitter, but in a smooth way as well as a notable alcoholic taste. Definately a great IIPA!

Bomber. Poured translucent medium orange with just a spotty dusting of white head and some loose bubbles around the edge of the glass. The nose picked up a bunch of deep, complex, and intriguing orange character.. sweetness came from the meat, which was mildly amplified by the booze factor.. spicy tangerine zest accented, and some caramel backed it all up.. as it warmed, some grassy notes emerged. The flavor didn’t quite do it justice.. caramel, grapefruit, and orange at the core with peppery spices, grainy caramel, and tangerine zest at the edges.. alcohol was sharp especially at the finish, and there was a lot of grainy residual sweetness. Thicker-bodied with low carbonation on the palate.. the grainy sugars and the booze threw off the balance a bit. This was decent, but not a good IIPA.

22oz bottle from mcbackus. With this one being a tad overa year old, its is starting to resemble an American Strong more so than a double IPA. Toffee and caramel malt jsut as heavy on the nose as the wet grass and tangerine hops. Pours clear dark copper with a thick off white head leaving nice sticky lacing. Flavor has lots of pear and peach meat. Citrus zest, pine and a whole lot of sticky caramel and toffee. Medium to full bodied. Not a lot of carbonation with a very lengthy, zesty and dry finish.

[Bottle, thanks Skyview] Pours hazy orange-amber with an off-white head. Aroma has the citrusy hops that I expected, but they were surprisingly subdued. Taste likewise is subdued citrus (mainly grapefruit), but also a good deal of caramel malt. Quite smooth with medium mouthfeel. Not a bad beer, but didn’t overly impress. This is one of the better organic beers that I have tried though.

Appearance: Pours a clear, dark amber body small, frothed off-white head. Smell: Redolent scent of sliced grapefruit, grass, and candied oranges set against malty spiced caramel. Taste: Sweet, toasty caramel maltiness transitions right into the earthy, resinous bitter hop flavors of pine, grass, and grapefruit. Moderate bitterness. The heavy malts try to make a comeback, but this is a Double IPA after all. Plenty of bitterness remains for the long, lingering finish. Mouthfeel: A hair above medium-bodied. Medium carbonation. Slight oiliness to the mouthfeel. Drinkability: For one reason or another these organic beers can be a real organic buzzkill, but this one, for all its barshness, is pretty a-ok.

Thanks to Skyview! Cloudy orange color with no head. Aroma of dried oranges and sidewalk chalk. A very vinous hop flavor. Dry and bitter. Bone dry malt finish. It’s not a screaming hop overloaded as an IIPA can usually be, but it’s nicely balanced and tasty.