Struise Mikkeller (Elliot Brew)

Bottle. I’m worried about the large amount of chunks floating around. Nobody else recently mentioned that. Super hazy dark amber, thick head that settled down to a thin dense head.Smells more fruity like a Belgian than it does hoppy/piney like an IPA. Hmm. Interesting. The tagline says "... hop bomb addict will not understand...", and they may be right. Fruity like Belgian. Hoppyness starts to peek out when Mr. Alcohol grabs Hoppy by the neck and pushes past. This, to me, would NOT be a good beer for a taster party, because it took me a good 3-4 pulls off this before I started to "get it". If I were to get this in a pub billed as an Imperial/Double IPA, I’d be seriously disappointed. If it were down as a strong Belgian with hops, I’d be pleased with it. And now that I’m looking at the tail end of this glass, I’m pleased with this beer, and disappointed I don’t have another lined up. Still not sure about the MAJOR sediment.

Hazy amber pour with a thick fluffy white head. Citrus and earthy hop aroma with hint of pepper and sweet malt. Big spicy citrus hop taste with touches of fruit and pepper, this is a big and chewy hop beer. Good malt presence, never feels too out of balance with the hops. The hops could have been very harsh in this, but it is very drinkable. Excellent beer.

HUge poury nice hazy amber color, big thick head, sticky lacing, and a huge aroma of hops. Sharp pungent hops. This beer to me tatses like a mix of a VERY hoppy tripel, and a double ipa. Along with the huge amount of hops, there is quite a bit of malt to balance, and it adds a smooth caramel flavour. The alcohol is there in the finish, and its quite prominent with the intense bitterness. An interesting beer, a nice sipper.

Bottle into Corsendonk tulip; purchased at Discount, Milwaukee. Pours with a fairly large off-white head over an opaque reddish-brown orange beer. Head leaves a nice frilly lacing and dissipates slowly. Smells more malty and cider-y than I expected; the citrus of the hops are there, but they are submersed below yeast, creamy malts, white pepper, and some other spiciness that I can’t identify. The alcohol comes through a little bit too. It’s probably the yeast, but this definitely smells Belgian. Smooth and full, wow; this is thick. Overall impression: like a heavily hopped Belgian Strong. The malts dominate, are fruitcake and spiced apricot, round and refreshing and slightly overripe. Finish starts peppery, then the IBUs emerge from the thick body and start to bitter it and dry it out. The hops add a tang on the end that I like, approaching the grapefruit citrus of a west coast IIPA. Ultimately: weird. I think Chouffe’s IPA Tripel might be a more successful blend of continents. The Belgian characteristics swamp the hoppy goodness that IIPAs usually front; maybe a casualty of its own ambition.

Bottle; poured a hazy orange color with a huge off white head with strong lasting power. Aroma of citrus, flowers, beligan yeast and fruit. Flavor was dominated by flowers and yeast; some fruit. A bit dry; lacking a whole lot of sweetness. Some fruit and citrus as well. Easy drinking for the style, but not quite as flavorful.