Saturday night.. what better to do than invite my boy over, throw the B's game on and share some beers! He just got a new job, so he brought over his 2010 Utopia we've previously shared to celebrate the event! And.... a few others for good measure!
Been sitting on this guy since last summer... Boulevard Collaboration #2 - White IPA (with Deschutes Brewery from OR). 7.4% ABV and 42 IBUs, this pours a perfect sunny hue with a massively light and fluffy head. Just what you would expect in a nose from a 'white' beer.. very citrus/herb forward.. lemon peel/lemongrass, wheat, coriander and a nice Belgian yeast. Very light and crisp, almost sharp. The taste starts of with the White side.. yeasty, nice malt profile bordering on sweet and some coriander.. then the IPA side kicks in, but a muted IPA. Citrus notes blend with floral and grassy hops, just a hint of spice/herbs near the finish... any more hoppy and this may not have worked. An awesome melding of styles!
If the last one was a bit of a muted IPA, this guy is far more predominant.. Tröegs - Perpetual IPA. 7.5% ABV and 85 IBUs. An almost identical sunny pour and jumbo-sized pour, huge, fluffy and thick. The nose is immediately different.. far more fruit notes - grapefruit, lemon, orange even pineapple.. only a hint of hops here. Not the hop bomb I was expecting, but a subtle hop profile persists with fruit notes changing from start to finish. Citrus and tropical fruits on the front, more orange and floral towards the finish..not much bitterness. Sweeter, crisp malts take a back seat here, just enough to back up the finish so it's not fruity hoppy water. Maybe I waited too long.. maybe it's meant to be more subtle.. just not the IPA I had expected from Tröegs...
Finally.. the one my buddy brought over - Samuel Adams Small Batch Series - Cinder Bock a 9.4% ABV 25 IBU Rauchbier/Bock combo. A very nice mahogany pour and the nose just jumps outta this one.. crazy smoky/roasty like stuffing your nose in a big pile of hickory chips.. sweet malts, toffee to the extreme and a hint of booze. Oh man.. this is like drinking liquified deep-smoked hickory bacon with a slab of BBQ briskey thrown in for good measure! And in a good way! The smoke on this is unbelievable.. yet well under control. Caramel malts..super sweet toffee with an apple crisp-type fruit profile..some peat and charred wood lingers here and there..finishing clean, smoky and sweet. Very, very impressed by Sam on this one!
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