Three Floyds Dreadnaught Imperial IPA

Bottle from WLV Liquors in Chicago. One of the reasons I flew to Chicago for a short break this week was to get hold of this beer. I had been salivating over the reviews and knew that I’d like it. Great sweet, hoppy, fruity aroma. Tastes of peach, hoppy, grapefruit, incredibly smooth and luxurious, bloody hell there is load going on in this DIPA. An incredibly well balanced luxury beer. I managed to bring some bottles back to the UK with me, well worth the 8 hour flight from London. Possibly the best beer I have ever had. Awesome as you say in the States.

Poured amber orange, balanced, citrus hops, apricot, caramel, little pineapple, little honey.

Bottle courtesy of cexshun. Holy disappointment Batman. Let me say I love FFF and I think my expectations of this beer may have been slightly inflated. Poured a deep amber color with a dense white head leaving drippy lace on the glass. Nose is citrus, pine hops and caramel. Medium to full body with an oily mouth feel and soft carbonation. Flavor is sweet caramel malt, toffee, honey, and citrus hops. Not nearly the "hop bomb" I expected actually bitterness was pretty mild throughout.

Good ol’ "hannont" let me sample a bottle of this a while back. Colour... cloudy orange-amber with a thick head. Nose... citrus extractives, pine resin and tropical fruits. Palate... cloying in the front, floral, sugar sirup, quince, citrus boiled sweets, Scottish toffee, extraordinary balance between malt and hops and sweet and bitter as well as being quite coating and having an especially long finish!

Pours a hazy orange. Nose is resiny hops, sticky dank pine, citrus and flowery sweet hops mixed with some hints of sweet sugary toffee and caramel. Flavor is a bit less than the nose. Sweet sticky hops, and loads of caramel. More on the dry side. Slightly bitter. Good beer, but was looking for more in such a high;y regarded beer.

22oz bottle. Pours a very cloudy orange. Strong bitter and hop taste, tingles on the palate. The very slightest hint of the alc.% tingles on the tongue. Damn tasty though. Very solid beer. Wish I had more access to Three Floyds.

Bottle from brewpub. Had it on tap too, but in a whirlwind of beers and was just in it for the enjoying then. Wow, no joke on the peach and mango of the label’s description. I’ve never smelled a beer so accurately described. Nice active carbonation. Cloudy, which I had not remembered. Citrus aroma as well. Just a gorgeous smell. Ever so slight textile scent, some pine. Oddly, as was true at pub, I find the flavors slightly muddled at first. Lemony-er than other IIPAS. Malt a bit more roasty than I prefer. I enjoy the flavor more as it warms. Woody, complex. Honey, even peanut butter. Soooo citrusy. And me still with 2/3 of the bottle remaining. This has already been a journey. Butterscotch. Over the course of drinking this beer I went from not being that enamored of it to thinking maybe it’s the best beer I’ve had. But the circumstances affect it too. I’m sitting on my deck in beautiful pre-fall weather, a gorgeous sky, thinking about the fact that I’ve got more vacation days left for the year than I know how to use. That kind of peaceful evening is to a beer’s benefit, if I’m rating it. I’m really glad it’s not raining, and so is the Dreadnaught.

22 oz. bottle. Great, appetizing, floral hops aroma. Pine, citrus, and sour smells. Fresh, herbal, and grassy. Exactly like an IPA / double IPA should smell. Also cookie and dark bread malts in the aroma. Pours a clear, rich gold with a large amount of fluffy, cream-colored head. Long-lasting effervescence. Good lacing. Sweet, bready malt taste surprisingly makes its presence felt before the hops. Fruity malts; peach. Very dry hoppiness, especially in the finish. Smells like an American IPA, but the taste is surprisingly English-influenced. Long, sharply dry, citrusy aftertaste. Easy to drink. Medium body. Smooth, oily, and lightly lively in the palate. Not particularly remarkable palate effects aside from the aftertaste. This beer blew me away the first time I tried it at the Great Taste of the Midwest 2009. Also, it’s in my favorite style. That said, I find it to be very good, but it’s not the mind-blowing beverage for which I was hoping.