Samuel Adams LongShot Double IPA

Brewed by Boston Beer Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Boston, Massachusetts USA

Pours a hazy coppery orange. Aroma is big hops and strong maltiness. Flavor is big hop bitterness. Pine, citrus, floral, you name it hop flavor. Almost overwhelming even to a very professed hophead. Different and a bit unbalanced..

From a bottle poured amber with a fair amount of head. Strong hoppy flavor with a little alcohol flavor, and a lasting finish.

Bottle at brewery. You’ve got to like hops alot to enjoy this one. It reminded me a bit of the Imperial Pilsner in its intense hop flavor and floral aroma. The hazy yellow color probably won’t wow too many, but if you enjoy lots of hop flavor with some extra kick to it, this is definitely worth trying.

Hazy copper color with a medium off white head. Aroma of pine with a bit of citrus. Very strong mixed hop flavor with hints of grapefruit and pine. Rich taste with a dry finish.

Bottle. Pours a clear golden amber with a thin bubbly off-white head that gathers at the edge of the glass. Aroma is resinous, piney hops. Flavor is floral, piney, but with an overall astringence. Taste seems muddled with nothing really shining through other than the astringent bitterness. Fortunately the hops are still there and the nice upfront flavor makes this decent enough. Full bodied, slightly oily feel. 7 3 6 3

12oz bottle. Pours orange/tan with hints of grapefruit red/pink. It is cloudy with a thin, off-white head. The aroma is mesmerizing: green, pungent, earthy, evergreen, hop oil, and some funk (simcoe?). There is also a note of alcohol in the aroma. There are also delicate notes of orange blossoms, flowers, and honey with a vague citrus undercurrent throughout. The flavor starts very hoppy with lots of bitter grapefruit hops and honey-like malts with a soft malt sweetness. Earthy, catty pine needles accompanied by soft, bready malt. Bitterness at midpalate is strong with a lovely mix of floral, citrus, earthy, and evergreen hops and viscous sticky malts with some crystal malt sweetness. The finish is fruity, floral, and bittersweet with notes of toffee and toast and lots of hops. The mouthfeel is surprisingly medium-bodied with a sudsy, slippery fullness mixed with a frothy lightness from a decent but appropriate level of carbonation. Overall, a surprisingly satisfying double IPA. It makes me curious as to how it would fare side by side with Pliney the Elder - the beer that Mike McDole was apparently cloning when he won this contest, and a beer which I’ve unfortunately never tasted... I imagine that something is lost in translation when going to "Longshot" scale and that perhaps Russian River’s original might blow this recreation away. But I have to hand it to Boston Beer Company: they cooked up a righteously delicious hop bomb with this one.

This IPA is a true American IPA. Hops coming in high & hard. The palate is destroyed. There isn’t much balance to this one. But if you like hops..then you’ll love this, especially with a kick of 9%

"I have waited a long time for this, my little green-labeled friend." --Emperor Palpatine. Appearance: Pours a hazy, dark copper body with a tall, tight, off-white head. Nice splattering of lace on the way down. Smell: The aroma is abundantly hoppy, leaving little room left for the meager malts to shine through. There’s white pine, white pepper-coated tropical fruits, dried grasses, and alcohol-splashed citrus pith. Taste: The pale maltiness, while not exactly plentiful, is ample enough to provide some semblance of balance, though it really only serves as a canvas for the pungent, commanding hop flavors. Then, all at once, it’s herbal, woody, spicy, piney, and chock full of fruit flavors, including tangerine, mango, and white grapefruit. The hops turn over a strong, expansive bitterness, to which the malts and hints of caramel are powerless to combat. Finishes dry and with a strong bitterness that lasts well into the aftertaste. Mouthfeel: Medium-plus body. Medium carbonation. Slight perceived creaminess to the mouthfeel. Drinkability: An enjoyable, well-made Double IPA at a rather compelling price. Samuel Adams Longshot Double IPA paired well with the History Channel special "The Link" featuring the media-frenzying fossil dubbed "Ida". Is it me or did they get this special out in a real damn hurry?