I've heard a lot about this beer, but couldn't find it in Texas. Finding any Harpoon beer was difficult, but this one was pretty much nowhere for me. So, I was glad to see it at Spec's today.
Pours a light amber with a large-celled tan head that sticks. The color and clarity are disappointing for an imperial IPA, but the big head that doesn't thin tells me there may be more to it than the rest of the appearance would indicate. Almost no carbonation, and what there is is very slow so there might be more body than the looks show.
Great grassy hops smell. definitely bigger than a standard pale or IPA, and it's clean. Not muddled, it's a crisp, bitter grassiness that fades a bit to reveal a slightly sweet malt.
Surprising. Aside from the head, it looks wimpy. But uber-filtration aside, this beer is a great example of the style and lives up to its hype. One of few beers that I can say that about. You get a solid bitter zap that is slightly grassy, a heavy feel to the body, and a sweet malt backbone to finish it off. Probably the most surprising part is that even as it warms, which brings out the sweetness in the malt a bit more, there is almost no hint of the 9.3% ABV that many beers would be absolutely unable to hide. Many imperial stouts with a huge roasted or coffee flavor can't hide the alcohol this well.
Great beer. I had one or two set aside to give to a buddy, but no more. I'm keeping them.
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