Redfish Double Vision DIPA

Sampler at the Redfish New Orleans Brewhouse, Boulder 12/10/2008 Very hoppy and fruity pine aroma. Golden amber coloured very strong in alcohol and hoppy with a little dryness in a crisp and very bitter malt finish.

Tap @ brewpub. Clear orange color, short head. Hoppy aroma. Quite bitter. No grapefruit or pine though. More malty. Quite nice.

Copper pour with off-white head. Hoppy and sweet malt nose. Flavor is sweet of honey with a bite of hops. Body is medium with a stickey texture. Hops finish out with a bang.

Draft at BJs in Boulder. Mostly clear dark honey/copper body. Smooth, oily texture, some nuts, some sticky but mellow hops, bready notes, nuts, etc... a little bit of cedar wood shavings as well... there’s a honey orange note that develops as it warms, some sort of fruit cocktail hop combination that seems to work fairly well. Nice, smooth, even mouthfeel. It does have some of this wet bran and bread flavor, but overall it’s quite delicious, and next to Pliny the Elder it actually hold it’s own.

Draught, BJ’s Boulder. Head is initially huge, creamy, off-white, fully lasting. Body is light to medium amber. Aroma is moderately malty (cookie, caramel), moderately hoppy (apricot, resin), lightly yeasty (dough), with notes of peach, cantaloupe, mango/papaya, and alcohol. Flavor is moderately to heavily sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly to moderately sweet, lightly acidic, moderately bitter. Medium to full body, velvety/creamy texture, lively carbonation, moderately alcoholic. Quite a surprise, very tasty and remarkably fruity in the nose. Hop heads may not find enough of the ordinary grapefruit or resin onslaught to be to their liking, and admittedly I would like a little more bitterness in the finish, but overall this is a great example of how double IPAs can be much more interesting when there’s other stuff going on besides raw hops for aromatic appeal. Looking forward to seeing what Chris’s other eponymous brews will be like.