Great Divide Hercules Double IPA

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

August 27, 2008 vintage: Golden amber pours into a thick frothy off-white head with lingering lacing along the sides of the glass. Visible yeasty malt bits floating in the bottom of the glass. HEAVY hoppy aroma with orange-pineapple citrus. Initial flavor of hoppy bite and slight bitterness with hints of sweetness of dried fruit and malts. Hoppy finish lingers on the back of the tongue without being an over the top hop-bomb.

Draft @ Falling Rock, Denver. Pours copper with a small tight head with great lacing. Aroma is of sweet malt, grapefruit and strong hops. Flavor is filled with toffee and hop flavors. A little too much alcohol is present.

On Tap at Double Daughters. Poured coppery with a tannish head. Smelled floral and citrusy, very strong aroma of hops. Tasted hoppy with a slight punch. One of the better DIPA’s I’ve had.

Bottle from Kegs & Barrels in McKinney, TX. Thanks to ericandersnavy and BMan for doing the beer run. Pours a hazy deep amber with very nice beige head. Aroma of strong hops, grapefruit and m,alt. Flavor is sweet malt and very hoppy flavor with nice strong bitter. Mouthfeel is full body with med-high carbonation. Over all, solid DIPA!!!

Poured a copper color with only slight hints to darker ruby. A an average off-white head that produced good lacing. The aroma was mostly pine and floral hops with caramel and nuts trying to cut through. Not enough citrus or overall balance. Flavor followed suit, with the floral and pine hops dominating. Good mouthfeel, super dry finish.

Bottle at Papago in late Feb 2007. Pretty malty, yes, but not in the nutty, roasty way the label says. More of a juicy, berry way. Still helps balance though. Not sharply piney, though, either. Clean and almost harshly crisp as many GD beers are.

22 oz bomber from Canal’s Hainesport. Pours a hazy marmalade orange color with a smaller frothy off white head. Aroma of floral hops, caramel malts, slight citrus...specifically grapefruit, molasses and honey behind the citrus notes. Fuller bodied with stronger carbonation yet it works very well with the bitterness from the hops. Flavor is still showing tons of hops despite the weaker hops aroma. Bread notes, caramel malts and toffee help round this one out. Very nice and a solid beer but needs more aromatic hops or I need to buy a more recently released bottle, probably the latter and not the former.

Bottle. Pours a rich orange-copper, with a miserly head that leaves nice lacing down the glass. Aroma is of sweet malts, fruit and faint American hops. Flavor is sweet and hot with alcohol, though the ABV is not astringent or phenolic in any way, more felt than tasted, just warming down the back of the throat. I would not say this has an aggressive hop profile for a IIPA, but for a barlywine, it really rounds out nicely, perfectly balanced, except maybe including an extra dose of aroma hops in the finish. Just delicious.