Thomas Creek Up the Creek Extreme IPA

Brewed by Thomas Creek Brewery
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Greenville, South Carolina USA

From a 12 oz bottle. The initial aroma gives some sweet hints of dark fruit with some hops but not much. On the initial taste the flavors of sweet burnt caramel overpower everything else. There is some hoppy bitterness as well, though not strong enough to really stand out one way or the other. Like the other reviewers said, this is really more of a barleywine than an ipa. Of course, double ipas that are this high in alcohol tend to become barleywines its just that this is such even when its fresh. The alcohol is very faint, which is impressive considering the amount. Overall, its very enjoyable and leave a nice sweet taste on the palate, but once again a double ipa should have more of a hop profile.

From a 12 oz bottle at the Raleigh Times - this brews pours a dark amber with a thin tan head. Plenty of lacing. Aroma of malt, hops, pine, spice and caramel. Taste - wow.... lots of malt - pine, some fruit and caramel. This extreme/double IPA comes of much more like a serious Barleywine in my opinion. Great beer just not sure that this monster is a double IPA - it was certainly the darkest double IPA I have ever had and as close to a barleywine as one can get...... Too many of this one will kick your ass before you know what hit you.

Pours a clean copper brown with some ruby highlights and a one finger mocha tan head. The nose is rich and an accurate forebear of the strength of this brew. Sweet caramel malt, intense grapefruit rind, brown sugar and some fusel alcohol all come through in the aroma. Flavor seems confused, very heavy on the malt and leaning barley wine while making a shot at DIPA with a poorly executed hop profile. Sweet and astringently bitter on the palate with an out of place alcoholic bite.

Appearance: Very dark. Looks like a strong ale. Aroma is sweet and hoppy. The malt really dominates between the two. Big taste! But very well balanced. This is a sweet beer, but is well balanced by ample hops. Is this really a 12.5% abv? Finishes like a 7 or 8% abv. Dangerously good. This is really a good beer and I’m happy to see a Carolina brewery finally bringing a huge IPA to the region!

The pour is a deep brown with little head to speak of. The nose is caramel and piney citrus. The palate is more caramel with a beautiful balance of hops and sweetness. This is Thomas Creek’s best effort in a long time.

12oz bottle from whole foods in greenville. pours dark for a DIPA with a burnt copper color, a thin tan head, and very thin lacing. aroma is interestingly good with big floral hop notes, orange citrus, brown sugar, slightly sweet caramel malts, and hints of cherry, red apple, cotton candy, and spice. flavor is a bit of a letdown after the aroma. the big, citrus and floral hop notes come and go in an instant, leaving slightly sour, astringent flavors that give way to big, sweet malts, and a heavy alcohol presence. palate is sticky, medium bodied, and a bit heavy on the booze. i feel like this one may be much better with about 6 months of mellowing out. overall, i really want to like this brew but i think if it was brewed with a bit more class it could be a hell of a barley wine but it’s no DIPA.

Very dark reddish brown color...Tan head...Malty sweet aroma...Thick, medium carbonation...Malty and burnt tasting...Bitterness in the finish...No alcohol flavors...Needs to mellow out the bitter finish...Would make a good barley wine with more sweetness, less burnt barley malt flavors, and less bitterness...Over-hopped and burnt charcoal tasting mess of a potentially good barley wine...But Double IPA?

Bottle from Whole Foods in Greenville, SC. I’m impressed, wasn’t expecting much. The first thing you notice is how damn dark this IPA is. Dark brown in color with a medium tan head. Aroma is stronger in malt than in hops, but quite strong. Flavor is malty, grassy, and piney hops. Not as strong in hops as you would expect from an Imperial/Douple IPA. Leans more towards that balanced side. Sweet malts and moderate bitterness compliment each other well. And I had no idea it was near 12% ABV, well hidden.