McNeills Warlord Imperial IPA

Brewed by McNeills Brewery
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Brattleboro, Vermont USA

Date: 09/08/2007
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting, Cellar Party

hazy burnt orange, wispy off white head, streaks of drippy lace, huge sweet pine and caramel aroma, big sticky creamy body, lots of sweet caramel and pine flavor, light bitterness adds some balance but lets the sweet malt and hops shine,

Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 8/10; Overall: 15/20
Rating: 3.7/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: **4

(PPSG09, 22oz bottle) Medium beige head atop murky amber body. Aroma is moderately sweet, grapefruit, some pine, caramel/peach. Taste is moderately sweet, grapefruit, some caramel, pine. Medium-full body, light stickiness.

22oz bottle acquired in trade with 46er3498 (thanks!). Poured a medium and slighlty hazy amber color with an averaged to larger sized off white head. Aromas of pine, toasted caramel, floral hops and a little earthy. Tastes of caramel, citrus, and lighter pine. It’s not bad, but I just felt I wanted more from an IIPA.

@Pilsner Petes East Coast Gathering-22oz bottle–pours an off white head and amber color. Aroma is herbal hops and bad. Taste is bad an herbal hops. Thanks dogfish120love for sharing. 090723-McNeills Warlord I2PA–22oz bottle-pours a dissipating off white head and cloudy amber color. Aroma is lemon/pine, some medium malt. Taste is lemon/pine hops, some medium malt. OK carbonation.

Objectively speaking: Straightforward, big IPA with less bitterness than you’d expect from Mcneills.
I like: Classic looks. Floral. White grapefruit. Hop complexity. Balance between pale bready malts and crystals. Expanding carbonation. Big bubbles. Diplomatic on the bittering hops for a Mcneills. High drinkability.
I dislike: Not very original/memorable.

Pours a slightly hazy copper bronze with a thin well-lacing wispy white head. Aroma of nice, fresh piny grapefruity hops and a good, lightly sweet caramel malty presence. Starts with a good sweet caramel maltiness and fresh grapefruity bittering and flavor hoppy balance. Finishes crisp and bittersweet with decent complexity of flavor. A nice IIPA.

My Bottom Line:
Grapefruity, floral, spicy hoppiness thrives atop minutious honeyed maltiness, leading to a leafy, wooden hop bitterness. This is not a Double IPA which will destroy through tastebuds, but rather one which commands you to drink more of it. What a novel concept.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A slice of foam tops the hazy peach golden.
-The body is slick and healthy, leading to effortless drinking.
-The crunchy pale maltiness does not quite balance out the hoppiness, but that’s not the purpose of this style anyway.
-Alcohol is not apparent in the flavor profile.
-This is well levelled and not agressive at all; pure, drinkable hop glory.
-The bottle was almost as tasty and fresh as the tap version.

On tap at the brewpub and from the bottle.

Thanks to notalush for leaving this bottle for me post-tasting. Deep cloudy amber/orange beer with a thick white head. Fresh bright orange hoppiness, moderate grapefruit and a nice piny bitterness. Lean pale malt aroma with a hint of brown sugar and honey as well. Flavour is solid, sweet citrus with nice tropical mango flavour as well. Slight earthy dankness on the back of the hop note but otherwise a solid brew. Moderate but resiny bitterness. Thanks Brandon... I enjoyed this one.