Rock Bottom Chicago Anniversary I.P.A.

Brewed by Rock Bottom Chicago
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Chicago, Illinois USA

I love Rock Bottom Chicago so I was really expecting something great for the Anniversary IPA. It was a solid beer, don’t get me wrong, lots of hops, great smell, but nothing special about it. I was actually expecting something a little stronger. Still good none the less

On tap at RB Chicago. Poured clear paler golden with a nice cap of short white head. The aroma picked up sweet grapefruit, tangerine, and floral notes with some fruit beneath.. darker impression overall with very good usage of hops. The flavor was quite bitter with pine and grapefruit standing out.. dried floral bitterness on the back-end.. sweet fruit and toffee backbone. Medium-bodied, dry, and grainy on the palate.. solid bitterness, perhaps a bit too much at times. Very good overall!

growler, pours dense hazed but bright orange with white head. nose is super piney with some grapefruit notes. flavor is fruity with grapefruit and apricot notes, and a good dose of bitterness. the hops are front and center with this one. a bit watery, but a nice piney hop finish. really hopped up. this is probably RB Chicago’s finest IPA to date and for the first time I’m really noticing RB Chicago’s house flavor. nice stuff.

Tap at brewery, I had this post FoBAB after 3 hours of sleep in my hotel: A slight hazy golden hue with a tight creamy head and very good lace. The aroma has notes of resiny, citric, and grassy hops along with biscuity and toasty malts. Slight clove and pepper vapours as well.

The taste has an initial piney biting hop attack but then it became very balanced with a layer of sweet pale malts. The finish was slightly spicy and a touch mineral imbued. The mouth feel was lively and dry. All told a solid brew that I thought was closer to a Double IPA than basic IPA. Nicely done!

Tap @ RB Chicago - Chill hazed gold, creamy white head. Nose bursts forth with deep cedar hop tones that warmed to further notes of pine, citrus, and hints of sweet toasted malt. Moderate hop flavors pound upfront and throughout without a massive bitter overload. Sweet malt follows up in the end ever so slightly, but this was mostly a full blown ode to the hops. Medium bodied, light carbonation, dry, lightly bitter finish. Great hoppy session brew at 6%...

On tap at the brewery. Cloudy orange/yellow with creamy white head. Large aroma of grapefruit, pine, grassy hops, sweet smelling. Grassy flavors big pine and mild cirus take overthis IPA in a good way. Medium to full body, well carbonated with small creaminess. Awesome IPA, hops have almost acidic quality. Thanks Cornfield for adding this.

Happy 12th Anniversary Rock Bottom Chicago! Many, many more!
Great brew for a celebration, and its heavy hopping make it seem more like a DIPA than an IPA. It pours a hazy yellow/amber body with a sizeable off-white head and heavy lacing. You’ll catch some sweet caramel and butterscotch in the aroma, but it’s totally dominated by grapefruit, pine, zest of lemon, tangerine... Nice. The flavor is more of the same, some grainy malt sweetness and a bit of caramel, but it gets overpowered by the strong hop bitterness that lasts long after the drinking is done. Nice job, Bryan and Pete!

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