Great Divide 15th Anniversary Wood Aged Double IPA

Brewed by Great Divide Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Denver, Colorado USA

Bottle purchased at Friendly Mini Mart in Lakewood. I like the promise of a wood-aged imperial IPA. It really takes the beer out an plays with its boundaries. It doesn’t just have to be a good solid hoppy beer, this can now range from well hoped and mellow, to fruity sweet and strong. This manages to handle several different aspects all at the same time. It is very rich and malty, good caramel flavoring and dark color too boot. Yet there is also this sweet sugary aroma, almost Belgian in nature, but it has decent fruit nature to it, and not overly citrus in nature. This has been nicely wooded, and honestly, preferable to most IIPA’s, since this can be drank without protective gear.

This was actually a rather pleasant surprise. Much better than I’d anticipated. Doesn’t really work as an "IIPA", but it’s a nicely done BA’d beer.

22 oz bomber from Jonathan Ron. Poured a deep orange/amber/red body sitting underneath a large frothy off white head with lots of lasting power and nice lacing. Aroma is woody, slight buttery notes, pepper, dry vanilla beans and a touch of alcohol. Flavor is of the wood barrel with notes of caramel, coconutt, vanilla and butter. Nice beer but I’m still not sure about this whole oak aging a DIPA, seems to be counterproductive.

Dark brown and clear with a light brown head. Creamy hoppy aroma. Lots of bitter hops on the tongue with a cream oak and vanilla finish. A enjoyed this.

the oak makes this lean into the vanilla in the nose and palate. I don’t get the citrus grassyness that i’d expect from a DIPA. instead this has a lot of very familiar notes and tones borrowed from the Yeti. For me, this ends a touch too acid.

22 oz. bottle served in shaker- poured an almost transparent darkened maroon with heavy brown tints, low carbonation, frothy and creamy one finger head very slowly bacame half finger in size and laced very nicely. Aroma of pine, oak, caramel malt. Hits the mouth with a nice medium body, malt is highly enjoyable, vanilla is noticeable at first in the background as some hops come sliding in, holds up fine in the middle, finish is acidic and the wood comes into play here- a great hearty finish from the oak, mildly dry. Definition of how to make a beer with wood. Enough said.

22 oz bottle, bottled 7/2/09. Pours a clear copper amber with a huge creamy white head that retains well and laces the glass.

The aroma is subdued at first with some weird notes but it opens up as it sits. Some piney hops, caramel malts, floral vanilla, soap(?) and plasticy metallic alcohol.

The flavor is woody malts and pepper with a big spicy hop finish. The alcohol is very noticeable and is warming but not too over the top. As it warms, lots of sweet vanilla comes out. The mouthfeel is full bodied and creamy.

Overall, an interesting beer. It has some strange notes that are hard to place and seem slightly off to me. As it warms, the sweet vanilla dominates and becomes slightly cloying.

Sampled on draft at Fat Head’s in Pittsburgh PA this beer poured a dark red-caramel color with a trace white head that produced great lacing. The aroma was tangy, sour, fruity, woody and a bit dry. The flavor was a complex mix of bitter, sour,tart and tangy with strong sour fruity hops and notes of nut, oak, vanilla and a touch of smoke underneath. The finish was long, sour, fruity and woody. The body was thick. Wonderful.