Harpoon Leviathan Imperial IPA

Brewed by Harpoon Brewery
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Boston, Massachusetts USA

In short: An easy to drink honey-sweet and hoppy (well balanced) american IIPA like many others. Typical but good.
How: Tap at Vermont’s Brewers Festival 2009
The look: Clear golden body topped by a long-lasting medium white head
In long: The nose has pleasant citrusy and grapefruity hops. The beer is very sweet and the malt profile has a old-honey-turning-sugary flavour. Really crunchy sugary pils-like malts used in a way I’m not too crazy about. Fortunately the hops save the day with a fruity and slightly resinous smooth bitterness. Despite its alcohol level, sweetness and amount of hops I found this beer to be surprisingly not very tasty. I can’t imagine anyone truly disliking it nor can I imagine someone finding it fantastic. This is the kind of standard sweet American IIPA like we’ve all had one million times before and at the Vermont’s Brewers Festival it won gold medal in the category Most Likely Not To Win Gold Medal.

Pours gold with 60 second head that started two inches tall. The aroma is up front grapefruit hops, some mild pine hops, grassiness and aged malty sweetness. The taste begins with a fresh pulse of grapefruit and tangelo hops. The sweet malts are there the whole time too but take over midway as the hops recede into the background. It ends with fading malt and caramel sweetness and a persistent grapefruit and orange peel hop bitterness. Pretty nice malty IPA below average IIPA.

Location: 12 oz bottle from Norm’s, 7/30/09

Aroma: Grassy hops, citrus, grapefruit, caramel, really dominated by the citrus hops
Appearance: Orange color, creamy white head, lots of lacing
Flavor: Nice juicy hop taste (orange, citrus), a good amount of hop bitterness, light caramel/honey malt backing, just a bit of yeast character as well
Palate: Relatively full body, decent duration, hides alcohol well, kind of a silky mouthfeel
Overall Impression: This is an interesting beer, I really like the citrus character this one brings to the table. A nice beer, enjoyable, and does a nice job of hiding the fact that it is 10%. Pretty tasty beer, and something a hop heads and non-hop heads alike can probably enjoy. (Though hop heads admittedly more.)

A golden beer with little head. Aroma was very nice with fruit, grass, citrus, & pepper. Taste was the same as the aroma with a big juicy hop taste. The aroma & taste is so boldly fresh making this an impressive beer.

Bottle as shown. Pours a clear copper gold with a medium creamy white head that diminishes quickly leaving behind good sticky lacing along the glass. The aroma is a piney hops with grass and caramel. Thin mouthfeel with a nice bitter hop taste with citrus and floral with a nice sweet finish. Hides the alcohol very well making it very easy to drink. A very impressive IIPA from Harpoon.

Thanks kiefdog for the share. This beer kicks ass. Pours yellow gold with a white head. Nose is caramel, grass, honey, floral hops, and mellow citrus. Flavor is nice: caramel, sweet citrus, and a nice hop blend. medium-bodied and beautiful. Very nice IIPA. Mounds of sweetness offset the hops that have a tremendous citrus character complimenting the hops.

12oz bottle from Whole Foods (Tampa, FL). Pours a generally clear golden amber with one finger white head. Aroma is sweet and malty with notes of citrus, grapefruit, spice, honey, pine, sweet candy sugar, some hints of grain and spice. Flavor is sweet and malty and floral with notes of pine, grapefruit, light floral esters with notes of grain, yeast, bread, and hints of honey. Generally medium body with a sweet floral finish.

Pours a clear, light copper color with a medium sized bubbly canvas head. Nose of grapefruit, brown sugar, and paul mitchell hairspray. Tastes of burnt apricots, envelope glue, and some lemongrass. Mouthfeel is creamy and medium weight with a slightly acidic finish. Heavy hopping hides the above average quality of this beer.