Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company Double Identity American Double / Imperial IPA at 9% ABV | 85 IBU (C$6.23 at NLC Stavanger, 600 ml, packaged on 1-Nov-2017, acquired 30-Nov-2017, reviewed 1-Dec-2017)
Appearance: slightly hazy medium gold with loads of chunky sediment, one fat finger of creamy white head, good retention and chunky sticky lacing. (3/5) Aroma: citrus, dank resiny pine, caramel, herbal, fruit esters. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter slightly oily finish. (4/5)
I’m getting lots of typical starts-with-C hops here, but I can’t say the Nelson Sauvin is coming through particularly clearly. Certainly, I’m not getting any of the white wine or kiwi notes I usually associated with that hop. Not a complaint, as such, just an observation – though a decent hit of Nelson Sauvin is always welcome, in my opinion. No real complaints otherwise: the maltiness level is up there, sure, but at an appropriate level to support the massive and pleasingly dank bitterness. Pretty easy drinking despite the huge bitterness and near-double-digit ABV (and again, that 10:1 ratio seems to be key). Lots of heavy particulate, but that bothers me not at all, especially not in a high-ABV West Coast style DIPA. I bought this winter mix pack pretty much just for this beer alone and was not disappointed. (The other two new ones in the pack are an ESB and a Wee Heavy, so I’m not sanguine about them, but frankly if they’re even marginally better than average I’ll consider the pack a win overall.) (16/20)
8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
