Shorts Anniversary Ale Part Deux Grapefruit Version

Brewed by Shorts Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Bellaire, Michigan USA

12oz bottle from Sarcastro on BA - thanks!!! Wow, what an aroma. As soon as the cap is off there are soft ruby red scents everywhere. I mean even when my nose is almost 2 feet from the beer it’s there, floral and pungent. Awesome. The pour is a bit thinner than you might like, given the style, and I’d have to say the same for the mouthfeel. But whoa, what flavors. There’s certainly some bourbon-barrel in there, but it’s soooo subtle that it almost entirely meshes with the grapefruit. That’s just so damn odd, but somehow it works. And oh yeah, there are some wonderful hops in here too, making it a solid IIPA with a very memorable additional set of qualities. I tell you, Shorts is out there and I dig it mightily.

I only had a few ounces of this, and it was a bit odd. Tasted nothing like an IIPA, similar to the other Shorts IIPA we drank this night, and the tart grapefruit seemed to be the dominant presence. I definitely need to find and try this again in a larger quantity to give a little more time and attention to, as we drank many other beers this night and it may have been spread too thin.

Wow. That was my first thought upon smelling this creation. Huge grapefruit rind in the smell with sweet bourbon back there. Can’t wait to dive right in and taste it! Bitter grapefruit/grapefruit rind, bourbon vanilla and some hoppiness against a relatively thick caramel/toffee malt body. The grapefruit though definitely steals the show. So creative and unique - and well pulled off to boot. Mouthfeel is pretty rich with low carbonation - something that suits this beer well. Drinkability is not amazing, but, given what it is, is not bad. Recommended. Every single brew from this talented brewer I have loved in one way or another - sometimes because it tastes really good, sometimes because the flavors are so unique, sometimes because it just works for me - this beer continues that trend. Please, Joe Short, whatever you do, don’t stop making offbeat beers like this.

Pours a pretty clear amber color color with a small head. Aroma had some bourbon in it but this actually meshed well with the rest of the beer. Not overpowering really at all. I could distinguish some grapefruit at the end of this as it warmed. Had a lot of carmelized malt notes similar to a barleywine. Still had a solid bitterness to this one. Flavor was a little sweet but still good. This was a really good sipper. I dont really know if it can be considered a IIPA though.

bottle from mibirder. Definitely more sweet, citrus flavor and more noticable bourbon compared to the dry hopped version. A very good, complex iipa. My new favorite brewery?

really great aged ipa. I love grapefruit so i enjoyed that aspect alot. It was plenty sweet though. Not offensively so but i enjoy things a bit bitter. Overall a great ipa and Am very glad to have tried it thanks to incutrav!

Cloudy orange color, with some tasty floaties in there. Lots of grapefruit, as you would assume, and sweet. Not a lot in the way of hops, as the barrel adds a bit more sweetness, and probably drowns out some of the hops. This was a great mix for the barrel. Glad to have gotten this, but a bit to much on the sweet side for me to really go crazy for it.

12 oz. bottle shared by barleyPops. Thanks! Clear copper pour with a small head. Aroma is oak, bourbon, fresh cut grapefruit and light malt notes. Flavor is similar: an interesting mingling of flavors that I wouldn’t think would go well together. Grapefruit, some other citrusy hops, oak tannins and vanilla, bourbon, and some light caramel malt to round it all out. Really an interesting beer that I’m glad I got to try. Excellent use of a bourbon barrel.