The Establishment Brewing Company Strange Powers – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.4% ABV (C$4.81 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 19-Nov-2020, acquired 26-Nov-2020, reviewed 30-Nov-2020)
Appearance: opaque pale gold with one fat fingers of rocky pale ivory head, good retention and moderate chunky lacing. (4/5) Aroma: juicy citrus, green onion, caramel, oats, tropical fruit, earth. (9/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (9/10) Palate: medium slightly creamy body, moderate-soft carbonation, off-dry moderate bitter finish. (4/5)
The Imperial NEIPA is a bit of a tricky beast, in that you need to try and balance juiciness and reduced bitterness with emphatic ABV. This… well, to be honest, doesn’t completely succeed in that regard. For example, there’s a pronounced green onion / catty note (Simcoe, perhaps? The brewer notes don’t specify the hops, other than “Yes.” – helpful, that.) that isn’t necessarily out of place in a DIPA, but might not be completely appropriate to the NEIPA style. I like it a lot, but it’s very much a personal preference with which others might not agree. Powerful, absolutely, and yeah, maybe a little strange. So what? Go get it. (17/20)
8.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
