Samuel Adams LongShot Double IPA

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

Bottle. Pours orange amber with an off white head. Nice floral and citric hoppy aroma. The flavor follows, with a bit of pine and just enough malt to provide balance. A bit of a dry hoppy finish. Much better than I expected.

Bottle from Party Town, KY. Poured clear copper color with a large frothy off-white head that was mostly lasting with excellent lacing. Heavy complex floral and citrus hoppy aroma. Medium body with slick texture and soft carbonation. Heavy smooth bittersweet citrus flavor with a heavy bittersweet finish of moderate to long duration with a small alcohol burn as it warms. This is a very good beer.

Bottle. Poured into a snifter dark apricot-orange. Small creamy head with moderate lacing. Aroma of pine, soap, and grapefruit, nice and fresh. More fruit in aroma upon deeper sniff. Mouthfeel is fairly full. Flavor starts with soapy hops and caramel. Middle flavors contribute some citrus fruit, but also noticeable alcohol. Finishes toasted, hoppy, and alcoholic. Finishing palate is very dry, leaving mouth clammy. Overall, the aroma, appearance and initial mouthfeel on this beer are solid, but I think the balance and flavor are inharmonious. For one, too much alcohol is present in the body, leaving a sharp, almost astringent aftertaste. This is alright, but below average for a DIPA.

Bottle from SL. Pour was orangey colored, decent initial head and lacing, although I’ve seen better for the style. The aroma was citrus and piney hops, some citrusey sweetness too. The flavor followed the aroma, citrus rinds, resinous notes, and caramel behind it all. Decently balanced, finishing with some bitter punch. I was cool with this, a decent dIPA, even though it’s from what the purests can’t stand, SA. Full dIPA body. Thanks, Sammy!

12 oz bottle from the Longshot 6pack purchased at Spirits on Fischer Blvd. First off let me say this beer would easily be rating a 3.9 or better if it didn’t say Sam Adams on it. If the label read Russian River, Surly, Founders, hell maybe even Sierra Nevada this would have been better rated. Hazy flat orange body with some weird floating protein and a great white head that leaves a good amount of lace. Aroma of citrus rind and piney hops with only a slight undertone of caramel malts. Flavor is actually even better with lots of hops, citrus and pine, coming through with only enough malts to keep the hops from becoming overpowering. Body is smooth with only slight/average bitterness on the finish with soft carbonation. HEY JIM ADD THIS TO YOUR NEW IMPERIAL LINEUP STAT!!!!!!

A beautiful apricot colored cloudy pour with a dense off white head rising to 2 inch and lasting long. Aroma is mild bitter hoppy, with a chestnut, earth, natural sugars and is inviting. Flavor is a delicious hop bouquet of several varieties. Beers like this cant be beat on the river in smoldering weather. Bitter palate. Flavorful finish. Undeniably delicious.

Bottle, 111th rating for this brew. Big floral notes with a little dank funk and woody pine, settles down to some great exotic fruit. Lightly hazy amber with a lovely rocky head. Caramel and earth, lightly woody, with a huge chewy malt body that quickly comes to dominate the hops (a bit strange for a double IPA). Nice little peppery notes. Aftertaste gooey caramel and a butter. Alcohol also starts to show after a few sips. Full, very creamy body, very dry and medially bitter. A grab bag of sloshy pine and weighty caramel, I assume the small batch that won the competition was a bit livelier. Still, kudos to Sammy for something interesting.

Nice hoppy nose with that sweet, fresh fruit juice aroma. Flavor is a bit on sweeter side and bitterness is a bit lacking for an IIPA. The sweetness really wore on me as I progressed through the bottle (surprise!). The palate is a bit dense and chewy, accentuated by rather light carbonation. Gets a bit watery in the finish, though there was sediment in my bottle, so I’m not sure if this was filtered and then had fresh yeast repitched or what. Not bad and certainly will work to get your hops fix, but it it really falls short at all the things that sets PtE apart from the rest namely being dry and very pale which in turn allows the hops to really shine. This beer is just a muddled up version.