Filed under: Imperial/Double IPA (snifter, tulip), Victory | Tags: beautiful presence, brown sugar, dust, favorite, fern, inviting, lemon, light caramel, oil, orange, peach, rye, sour cream, star anise, tea, tea towel, toast ed peanuts, very hoppy, wheat, Wondrous, zest
Victory Hop Wallop
Glass: snifter, tulip
Originally Purchased at: Laurenti’s ShopRite, Hamilton, NJ on July 3rd, 2008
Today: A gift from Bryan K and Angel B – Thanks!
Price: $1.83
Size: 12 fl oz
ABV: 8.5%
Estimated Calories: 250 C in 12 oz
RateBeer Rating: 93
Aural: quiet opening, good carbonation, simple pour
Aroma 9 out of 10
Intensity: medium
Balance: sweet
Impression: very nice
Malt Aroma: wheat, rye, brown sugar, toast ed peanuts, light caramel
Hops Aroma: dust, fern, star anise, lemon
Other Aroma: tea, peach
Notes: An absolutely amazing, if faint, aroma. Wondrous and inviting.
Appearance 5 out of 5
Color: copper
Clarity: brilliant
Head Retention: persistent
Lace: intricate
Notes: A beautiful presence, nicely retained white head, simple lacing, and a deep copper body.
Flavor 9 out of 10
Intensity: strong
Balance: bitter
Impression: nice
Malt Flavor: wheat, rye, cane sugar, roasted peanuts, light caramel
Hops Flavor: dust, lemon, orange, zest,
Other: tea, oatmeal
Notes: Likely the best feature of this delicious brew – very hoppy, not well balanced, likely on purpose. Bitterness is key.
Palate 5 out of 5
Mouthfeel
Sensation: sour cream, oil, tea towel
Body: full
Carbonation: faint
Finish
Length: long
Intensity: strong
Balance: bitter
Notes: A delicious and richly textured finish.
General Impression: 18 out of 20
Craftmanship: excellent
Freshness: fresh
Personal Taste: loved
Notes: One of my favorite beers.
Filed under: IPA (shaker, tulip), Sierra Nevada | Tags: active, Alcohol by volume, amazing, basil, beautiful, beer, Beer rating, blood, cardamom, cloudy, creamy, curry, deep, Drink, dry earth, drying, excellent, Food, fresh, grains, grapefruit, grass, India Pale Ale, orange, peanut oil, pine, Recreation, red, rye toast, sawdust, strong, white
pourn: Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale 2008
Glass: Shaker, Tulip
Purchased at: Oaktree buy rite, South Plainfield, NJ
Price: $16.99 for two 6 packs.
Size: 12 fl oz
ABV: 6.8 %
IBU: n/a
Estimated Calories: 170 C
RateBeer Rating: 96
Aural: quiet opening, active carbonation, nice pour
Aroma 8 out of 10
Intensity: strong
Balance: sweet
Impression: nice
Malt Aroma: rye toast, peanut oil
Hops Aroma: dry earth, grass, basil, grapefruit
Other Aroma: pine
Notes: A great active aroma. Very mindful of a strong IPA.
Appearance 5 out of 5
Color: dark
Clarity: cloudy, bottle conditioned
Head Retention: average
Lace: intricate
Notes: Beautiful beer. Deep red orange hues with a white head and lace.
Flavor 9 out of 10
Intensity: strong
Balance: bitter
Impression: nice
Malt Flavor: grain bread toast nut
Hops Flavor: curry, cardamom, grapefruit
Other: orange, grapefruit, pine
Notes: Sawdust and blood. Like an accident happened, but in a good way. How do they make such a commercial beer so very good?
Palate 5 out of 5
Mouthfeel
Sensation: creamy drying
Body: full
Carbonation: average
Finish
Length: long
Intensity: strong
Balance: bitter
Notes: Perhaps the best aspect of this very good beer. Leaves you wanting more.
General Impression: 18 out of 20
Craftmanship: excellent
Freshness: fresh
Personal Taste: loved
Notes: An amazing beer for the brewer and price. Just fantastic.
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Filed under: Barleywine Style Ale (snifter), Dominion | Tags: alcohol, bitter, brilliant, caramel, citrus, crisp, dry, fruit, grapefruit, orange, red, resin, ruby
Dominion Millennium BWSA
Style; glass: BWSA; snifter
12 fl oz x 10.5% ABV = 126 / 60 = 2.1 beers * 150 C = 315 calories (est.)
Purchased at: The Beer Outlet for $1.25
Filed under: IPA (shaker, tulip), Sierra Nevada | Tags: amazing, beautiful, bitter, brilliant, citrus, clear, crisp, delicious, dry, golden, grapefruit, high quality, hoppy, hops, long finish, nice, orange, pine, resin, well balanced
Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA
First tasted on 2/21/2009
video added 3/25/2009
Style; glass: IPA; tulip
12 fl oz x 7.2% ABV = 86.4 / 60 = 1.44 beers * 150 C = 216 calories (est.)
Purchased at: Canal’s Lawrenceville, NJ for $1.12
Aroma: hops, citrus, stinging, and pine needles. Invigorating.
Visuals: beautiful brand safe packaging, summer sunset, brilliant golden orange clarity, thinning white yellowish head, exquisite lace.
Taste: starts sweet and bitter simultaneously, middle is dark with some roasted notes and lots of citrus, which lingers as grapefruit, resin, and tar.
Palate: peppery, stinging, and tart, middles dull to a warming and a throb in the back of the mouth, the finish is dark, warming, and delicious.
Overall: This is a spectacular, delicious, and superlative achievement. At this price, intensity, and quality, I have found my go-to daily bread. Sierra Nevada, you’ve absolutely done it. You are so hired.
http://www.sierranevada.com/beers/torpedo.html
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Filed under: IPA (shaker, tulip), Troeg's | Tags: bitter, citrus, crisp, deep, delicious, dry, golden, grapefruit, long finish, orange, pine, resin, sweet, well balanced
Troegs Nugget Nectar
Style; glass: India Pale Ale/Imperial Amber; tulip
22 fl oz x 7.5% ABV = 165 / 60 = 2.75 beers * 150 C = 412.5 calories (est.)
Purchased at: Canal’s Burlington, NJ for $5.99
A beautiful deep amber body under an off white head. Full of sweetness and bitterness so very nicely balanced. Pine, citrus and rind all meet in a deep and delicious beer.
Filed under: Barleywine Style Ale (snifter), Sierra Nevada | Tags: alcohol, beautiful, bitter, brilliant, caramel, cherry, citrus, crisp, delicious, dry, grapefruit, hoppy, long finish, nice, orange, pine, resin, strong, sweet
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot BWSA 2009
Style; glass: BWSA; snifter
12 fl oz x 9.6% ABV = 115.2 / 60 = 1.92 beers * 150 C = 288 calories (est.)
Purchased at: Super Saver Pennington, NJ for $1.99
Aroma: Tea, cherries, alcohol, oak, hay, smoke, agitation brings out the hops
Visuals: well designed packaging, inviting, funny, and brand-strong, A deep pool of tea, orange to red, brilliant and clear, thin gray head, very nice lacing.
Taste: Overtly sweet and malty, some roasty flavors, high gravity, caramel, sharp crisp hoppy bitterness.
Palate: Starts heavy with sweetness, syrupy, quickly moves to tea and caramel, followed by slow descent to bitterness and hoppy overload.
Overall: Delicious and amazing. I have to grab it when I first see it each season. Great stuff. An absolute go-to fave. Value is amazing for the craft involved. Despite the macro overtones of what Sierra Nevada is doing, on their scale, you have to give them credit for delivering on flavor and quality on their brews — they do macro right.
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Filed under: Lost Abbey, Saison [farmhouse ale] (tulip) | Tags: beautiful, citrus, crisp, fruit, golden, hazy, mold, orange, sweet, wheat
Lost Abbey Red Barn Ale
Style and Glass: Saison; tulip
ABV, Volume & Calories: 6.7 % in 25.4 fl oz. estimated at 300 C
Purchased at: Newportville Inn, Bristol, PA for $8.50
Aroma: peaches, fruit, hayfield, dirt, dust. Inviting, flowery aroma.
Visuals: Beautiful packaging, though I feel similarly about religious iconography on my beer as I do about fish. I’d rather not see it right there, in particular. Hazy golden sunset, with a bright white cloud of a head. Lace is intricate.
Taste: A very nicely done saison — tea, some spice, cloves, but what really sets this apart is the rather hoppy finish and depth. Some corn and wheat, but heavier than most of the saisons I’ve tried, which is a good thing as far as I’m concerned.
Palate: Beginning is sweet and malty, middle is darker, and dries quickly, with a slightly bitter finish that lasts for about half a minute. A very nice example.
Overall: This was my first ever Lost Abbey brew, but it certainly won’t be my last. If they can make a very enjoyable saison, I believe they can do just about anything.
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Filed under: Breckenridge, Imperial/Double IPA (snifter, tulip) | Tags: bitter, citrus, cloudy, golden, hazy, hoppy, long finish, orange, pine, red, resin
Breckenridge Small Batch DIPA
Style and Glass: DIPA; Tulip, Snifter
ABV, Volume & Calories: 9.2% in12 fl oz. estimated at 200 C
Purchased at: Hulmeville Inn for $7.00
Aroma: A pine forest with a grapefruit juice truck spill. Delicious.
Visuals: Very nice packaging, inviting, well designed. Hazy thick orange deep body with long lasting, thin white head and thin soapy lace.
Taste: Grapefruit, pine, resin, and hops.
Palate: Thick start with a bitter middle and finish. No crispness. Very much an IPA, and extremely so. Delicious.
Overall: A very good beer, a great example of an DIPA, and a delicious pairing compliment.
Filed under: Founders, Imperial/Double IPA (snifter, tulip) | Tags: alcohol, amazing, beautiful, bitter, brilliant, citrus, clear, delicious, golden, grapefruit, hoppy, hops, orange, pine, red, resin, sweet, well balanced
Founders Double Trouble DIPA
Style and Glass: DIPA, Tulip; snifter
ABV, Volume & Calories: 9.4% in 12 fl oz. estimated at200 C
Purchased at: Canal’s Lawrenceville, NJ for $2.75
Aroma: A beautiful, hoppy explosion. Pine, citrus, resin, salt, seawater, and burn of alcohol is very present.
Visuals: design is fun, inviting, and apropos, body is a winter sunset, deep reddish orange with a bright white head, very clear, head is small but withstands the tasting, lace is missing.
Taste: smooth, sweet and burning, syrupy and spicy with savory notes, hops are forefront, bitter and biting.
Palate: smooth throughout. Alcohol inhale on first taste, followed quickly by sweetness, then intense bitterness, then a long dulling battering of the mouth. Delicious.
Overall: An amazing and delicious brew. A bit expensive, but always worth it. .
Filed under: Imperial/Double IPA (snifter, tulip), Russian River | Tags: bitter, citrus, crisp, delicious, golden, grapefruit, hoppy, hops, long finish, nice, orange, pine, resin, sour, sweet, well balanced
Style and Glass: DIPA, Snifter; Tulip
ABV, Volume & Calories: 8 % in 16.9 fl oz. estimated at 300 C
Purchased on tap at the Hulmeville Inn, Hulmeville, PA for $4.75
Hoppy, sweet and delicious. Aroma is hops, sour and mold. A great way to toast the new president, as I had this on inauguration eve. Bright, orange with a small white head. Sticky lace. Pine cirtus and grapefruit in the flavor. Coats the mouth, and finish is long and sweet, then bitter. A truly great brew.
