Mendocino Winter Ale (05/06 - IIPA)

Formerly brewed at Olde Saratoga Brewing (Mendocino Brewing Co.)
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Saratoga Springs, New York USA

Dark amber with a large frothy white head. Aroma has some toasty caramel malts accompanied by peach and grapefruit hop notes. Grassy bitterness, apricots and some orange peel balanced by a light malt back bone. Finish is long and bitter.

A great value beer! Pours dark amber color with medium head that dissipates quickly. Hoppy aroma. The flavor is not overly complex - taste of hops and citrus, with very little malt. Bitter finish that maks the relatively high abv.

Recommended by KP while at the Atlanta cask Ale festival. And rightly so. Pours an orangish amber with a light white head. Very clear with carbonation present at the turn of the glass. Sweet malt aroma, lightly sharp citrus and metallic hints. A bit creamy on the nose. It’s a big beer right off the bat. The flavor is not overly complex, just big. Alcohol, metallic hints, bitter pine and nut shell with malty caramel underneath. Bitter pine finish. Body is full. This is a fine brew. Great price and very enjoyable. This would be a standard if I could get it all the time.

This Imperial IPA pours a dark amber gold from a 12oz bottle. Medium sized white foamy head. Aroma is piney, grapefruity and citrusy hops. A medium bodied Imperial IPA. Malts are caramel and sweet. Hops are grapefruity and piney. This beer is full of big juicy hops. A fairly bitter IPA, that is very much in the west coast style. Lots of big fruity malts, but lots more grapefruity hops. Balanced a little more to the hops side of the sheet. Hides the 9% alcohol very well. Nice beer. Mouthfeel is full. Finish is clean and crisp. Aftertaste is slightly bitter.

1/8/06: Bottle.
Red-orange-brown body with a thick off-white head. Lace. Fresh hop aroma accompanied with a refreshing hop flavor and hints of floral.

Holy crap! This stuff is awesome. Big but short lived head. Nice citrus hop aroma. Big sticky hop,citrus with a hint of pine taste. The best part is the bang for the buck factor. Under $7 for a sixer of tasty as hell 9% beer. Best beer value in a long time. Buy a case today.

02.17.06 6 12oz bottles. Darker amber color with sturdy beige head that laces in sticky sheets. Aroma is mostly dirty t-shirt, hints of pine, and some caramel far in the background. Overall, the aroma is lackluster, not at all enticing, at times repulsive, and generally one a dimensional mess of stinky hops. It’s a dimension that I’m not loving at all. Cascades take a more prominent role in the flavor (thank god) and there’s a decidedly citrus note on top of crackery malts and some cigarette ash. Very little backbone to support the muddled hops and massive alcohol, which is not too present except for a retronasal burn and slight peppery finish. Thin bodied, even for a regular IPA...can’t say I’m too excited about this stuff. At least it was cheap. I was surprised I found it so unlikable, so I didn’t even rate it until I’d had six of them.

Dark copper pour with a big and lasting frothy white head. Some active carbonation as well. Huge hop aroma, and I can tell this one is going to be good. Very bitter. Cascade taste, lots of pine and a bit of grapefruit. Medium bodied. Sweet malts come through in the finish, but still mostly hops. Dangerously drinkable at 9%. Bit of floral hops in the finish, which lingers for a while. I’ve had better doubles, but this is unbeatable at 6 bucks for a 6 pack... extra point for that!