Tree House Brewing Company Doubleganger American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.2% ABV (Gift – thanks, Norm!, 473 ml, packaged on 28-Aug-2019, acquired 1-Oct-2019, reviewed 3-Oct-2019)
Appearance: opaque medium gold with two fat fingers of rocky pale ivory head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (5/5) Aroma: juicy citrus, tropical & stone fruit, pale malt, resiny pine. (10/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter, light tart. (10/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate-soft carbonation, off-dry medium duration lingering bitter mildly warming finish. (4/5)
Oh, that is good. Maybe it’s just the long day and stratospheric stress levels talking, but that is really hitting the spot. Just about everything is perfect here: The appearance, though opaque, is clean and juice-like, instead of muddy. The aromas are intensely fruity and juicy, with just a hint of resiny pine keeping things interesting. The taste is fruity without being excessively sweet. And, the malt bill is perfectly balanced against the aromatic hops, so that the somewhat hefty ABV drinks easily. To the extent that I have any complaints here at all, it’s that it could stand to be just a hair dryer in the finish, which is otherwise stellar. It might not be perfect, but it’ll do until perfect comes along. (19/20)
9.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
