Tyranena Bitter Woman From Hell Extra IPA

Formerly brewed at Tyranena Brewing
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Lake Mills, Wisconsin USA

Bottle. Substantial head on a robust dark red/brown body. I don’t care for IPA’s--it’s just not my style--o.k.? But, I’ve now had over 100 IPAs and IIPAs, and truly some are better than others. This is among the best I’ve had. It does so by providing the usual profusion of citrus, but of course builds the IPA on the back of the malts, so the color is attractive, the nose has wood and caramel, and the flavor wraps a blanket of malt around your tongue before slapping it with hop venom. I disagree with others (esp. muzzlehatch) in that I never found myself drinking this--only sipping--and I left a substantial portion in my glass that was simply "more than I needed", partly because it was so dry and partly because I was tired (and the 6.25% abv was a bit more than I needed at the time). Very well done beer.

12 oz bottle from Trig’s in Eagle River, WI (August 2006) served a bit below cellar temperature in a Chouffe tulip. A largish very slow-decaying off-white smooth head laces thick and beautifully atop the dark, hazy-oily orange-amber body, promising untold mysteries.....very potent, juicy hop-oil aroma, resinous and sprucy, spicy and hinting of bitter oranges along with pungent wet branches and mosses.....explosive, hugely bitter body, juicy and tart-fruity (cranberries, Seville oranges, grapefruit) shading to very dry and intensely bitter, even harsh at the finish....somewhat sticky mouthfeel, low but distinctive carbonation, bitterness is absolutely unrelenting but tempered by enough malt to make ready drinking as easy a task as sipping....perhaps just a bit too dry, woody and hard at the finish to be truly "refreshing", but beautifully complex and eye-opening, and just about as good as any IPA I’ve had. Gorgeous.

Medium sized tan head with very good retention and a coating lace. Copper colored IPA. Nose is piney, citrusy and a touch rubbery. Med/full body, seriously bitter on the palate, nicely resiny. An overload of hop flavors, pine, grapefruit, tangy citrus notes and some overipe fruits, caramel malts, ash and some metallic notes. Finish is dry, hoppy and bitter, DUH! Many thanks to footbalm for this one! Thanks Eric!!

Bottle. Pours a dark amber with a white head that fades slowly. This brew is very aromatic, but not on the level of a solid IIPA or anything. There is plenty of grapefruit and caramel in the nose. The aroma is quite juicy overall, and everything just meshes together perfectly. It’s very dry in the mouth, hitting hard with a cutting, piny acidity and a vinous sweetness. The hops linger for a while and eventually fade on a semi-chalky note. Flavors of peach, citrus, and caramel are evident. After a few sips, the chalkiness is not noticeable anymore as the other flavors are much more up-front and intense. The mouthfeel is very medium. It’s not thin and it’s not viscous either. This is one of the more gnarly 6% IPA’s I’ve had. It’s very well done and the hop burn is decently potent. This isn’t what I was expecting from the label claiming wildness, but I am definitely enjoying it.

Bottle from degarth. Pours a medium to deep amber color, a bit of haze. Smallish off-white head forms and fades out rather quickly. A smattering of lacing is left behind. Malty, caramel aroma with a very decent dosing of hops. Medium bodied and well carbonated. Very quick burst of sweetness is erased rapidly with a drying hop bitterness. Perhaps a bit piney, definitely dry. Lacking a bit on dry hop aroma. Fairly nice IPA.

Poured in to a shaker. Copper with a thin white head. I’m pretty much with El_Burracho with this on. The aroma is rich with hops and cara malts. Good and bitter. Certainly not over the top. Thanks 1FastSTi.

Bottle. Not so sure this one should qualify as a "brewers gone wild" IPA but it is bigger than some. Pours a copper color with a fine white head and some sediment floating around. Solid hop bouquet and caramel malt background. Very good but... wild?

I am impressed with my first beer from Tyranena. This beer does everything well. The aroma is loaded with hops; fairly floral, and you know this is an ipa but the aroma doesn’t suggest intense bitterness. A dark gold beer, good lacing. This is an extremely drinkable beer; in fact it is hard to put it down. Exceptionally smooth. Flavor is loaded with hops but the balance is excellent. Mostly bitter, but not overly so, and soft and floral all at the same time. Pleasant aftertaste of bitter hops.