Middle Ages X Double India Pale Ale

Brewed by Middle Ages Brewing
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Syracuse, New York USA

This beer is what I like to call a hop cocktail. It is the kind of beer that is just perfect to relax and unwind with, and makes for an excellent aperitif beer. X Anniversary comes in at a mighty 10% abv, so you will have to be careful if you want to consume more than one 22oz bomber, or a few pints of this one. X Anniversary Ale pours to a beautiful, bright, deep golden to light amber color with a thick and creamy white head, and a moderate amount of carbonation. The nose on this beer is the first thing that grabs your attention. Very fragrant spicy/citrus hop aromas paired with some earthy yeast aroma, and hints of peppery alcohol flood the nose. The palate on this beer is very firm, with good flavors of pale and biscuit malt along with some citrus hop flavor. X Anniversary Ale finishes with good pale and biscuit malt flavor up front, then ends with a very bitter/spicy hop tang that lingers on the tongue. This is a very well done Imperial IPA with lots of great hop character. This beer is really a bigger, brawnier version of their outstanding IPA, ImPaled Ale. Every thing you expect in an Impy IPA is in this beer and then some. X Anniversary has much more hop character and alcohol, but is as dangerously drinkable as Impaled Ale. Retailing for $4-$5 a 220z bottle, this beer is very well priced, and a beer you should look for if you find yourself in Syracuse, or a market where Middle Ages beers are sold. You would never believe this beer is 10% abv, so be careful with this one. I would not pair this one with food, rather enjoy it as an aperitif, or a beer to sip and savor after a long, hard day at work.

Bottle from Beer Yard. Pours hazy deep copper with 1-finger off-white head, and great concentric lace rings all the way down the glass. The aroma is heavy tropical fruit and citrusy hops, with a solid caramel malt backbone. It tastes caramel malty up front, giving up the huge tangerine, honeydew, canteloupe, and piney hops at mid-palate. The palate is velvety and very smooth, complex, and well balanced. If you can’t enjoy this one, then your limey ass deserves to be keelhailed, ye wimpy assgrabber!

WOW. On my weekly visit to Marcy Discount beverage to pick up some bombers to take back to Atlanta, I picked up a few of these. I honestly didn’t know this was a double IPA until the guy at the checkout told me. Oh, that smell!! I’ve never smelled hops like that before. Seemed very peachy to me. Definitely not your normal double IPA. I never would’ve guessed that this is 10% abv. At least not until I felt the first glass hit me. Almost no alcohol taste or burning.

@ Brazen Head on cask-pours a tan head that bubbles and hazy gold color. Aroma is grapefruit/lemon. Taste is grapefruit/lemon/pine hops, secondary medium malt, slightly thick mouthfeel, some woody. OK/mild carbonation.

On Cask at Mahar’s (anyone jealous?)... aroma: splendid hoppy mix with a farm kinda earthy, swarthy feel to the nose. bitter, smooth, and funky in the mouth somehow in a transformation on the tongue over time. Hop sweet chocolate in a light amber colored ale? Quite complex and fulfilling. Has a nice eggshell head with long retention (like the Germans, I appreciate me some good head. well, not that much head). So many flavors roll through consciousness: vanilla, caramel, citrus, and numerous shades of each and amazing combinations and complexity of flavor. Feel priveliged to have had this on cask, betting the bottles are pretty damn good, but this was a special experience and a great first beer to have as my reintroduction to Mahar’s.

I found this one on cask at Monk’s. Holy hops Batman! This beer came a light copper orange with little head. Smelled of just pineapple and nectarine at first, but as it warmed, there came some birch bark, spruce, and roses. Outstanding! Just a fantastic blend of hops. The flavor was a pure hop cocktail with little or no detectable malt. Just huge pines and bitter fruity citrus flavors combining to make the most enjoyable 2IPA I‘ve ever had. 10% ABV? Not detected at all. The mouth feel was slightly viscous with little carbonation that gives the palate a very upfront experience with the beer. This is an amazing beer and a hop lover’s dream come true.

A: Pours a very nice orangish-tinted copper with a nice, foamy, white head. The lacing is robust and evident right off the bat. S: Another wonderfully hopped scent, this DIPA gives off the aroma of some solid fruity notes and is backed up by a nice, refreshing piney and citrusy flavors. T: No surprises here, this one comes at you full force with massive hops in your face. This is a well-crafted DIPA, complex with flavors of grapefruit, pine needles, citrus and even some well-balanced sweet breaded malts. But the best part is the bitter, bitter finish, that lingering hoppy goodness we all love so much. A superbly crafted beer. M: Much like all else with this beer, the mouthfeel is well-balanced. The perfect amount of carbonation (read: not too much) and that classic oily, slick, hoppy residue hopheads tend to dig. It will make you want to keep drinking it. D: The high ABV will prevent excessive abuse of this beer, but it’s still damned easy to drink. If you like DIPAs, this will NOT disappoint. If you don’t, try this one anyway. It’s good. Darned good.

This was so freaking amazing. Gorgeous lasting glaze of foam gave way to an aroma of buttery herbal cream with a very controlled, soft ringwood yeast prickle. Lovely floral bitterness with almost indescribable complexity. Almonds and honey throughout. Lasting piney hop finish. Can’t wait to have more at the GABF...hopefully Middle Ages will bring some.