Amarillo Single Hop IPA - Mikkeller ApS

loren01

Oregon

4.38/5  rDev +10.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a hazy orange color, nice 2 finger width head with great lacing down the glass
S: Smell is very citrusy as well as a nutty/biscuty malt scent
T: I love the Amarillo hop...the best hop for an IPA in my opinion. Nice grapefuity taste, well balanced out with nutty maltiness
M: Medium bodied beer, smooth and oily going down
D: Very drinkable beer. Rather expensive though...if it were less expensive I would drink this one quite often.

Serving type: bottle

05-31-2011 02:02:45 | More by loren01

shambeano

Australia

3.95/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

shared with a mate, and poured into a tulip.

A- pours a dark golden amber. about 2 inches of fluffy head, nice lacing.

S- a whole bunch biscuity malt up front, hops are hiding a bit behind the malt on the nose, i can pick up some herbal aromas.

T- straight up there is some bitterness at the back of the mouth that just builds throughout the entire mouthful. touch of tropical fruit in there, but the hop itself is a touch nondescript, the hops taste a whole lot more bittering than floral to me.

M- a touch on the thicker side, creamy almost, the bitterness really attacks the back of the palate, and the length of bitterness is extraordinary. it just keeps lingering for ages. brilliant.

D- i could have a couple of these if i wasnt having anything else. powerful flavours and a powerful finish, a great sipper, but not a session beer at all. however, i like that in a beer.

Serving type: bottle

02-14-2011 11:20:30 | More by shambeano

laituegonflable

Australia

3.88/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Frothed up like a boy getting his first lap dance when opened.

Pours a burnished orange-amber colour with mild haze and a robust, steady bead feeding a big generous, puffy head of off-white foam, densely-packed bubbles up top and sinking around the edges. Pretty damn fine IPA look.

Smell is quite aromatic. Nice nutty malt base giving way to sweet floral hops, plenty of citrus on there with mild grapefruit predominant. Touch of pine resin and musk and a very slight solvent bitterness rounding off. Hops could be more forward, but otherwise a pleasant blend.

Hops are more forward on the palate. Noticeable nutty caramel malt base is quickly smothered by big citric hop burst, that rindy zest character coming through thick and fast with lemon/lime notes. After the initial fruitiness, a grapefruit bitterness backs up to cap off the mid, blending with a slight pine flavour on the back and a slight soapy note. Very puckering at the finish, reminds me why we typically use this for aroma and flavour and less for bittering. Bitter almost to the point of ashy at times.

Good healthy body, little bit of sizzle that is well-masked and padded by the maltiness. Goes down really beautifully given the bitter palate.

Yeah that bitterness is slightly off-putting at times but it's otherwise a very pleasant drop.

Serving type: bottle

02-07-2011 23:14:20 | More by laituegonflable

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

4.1/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottle expiring April 2011. Pours a huge fluffy head in my Sam Adams full size glass. Orange-tangerine aromas. Creamy mouthfeel, ornage with a bit of grapefruit rind... highly drinkable...to the last drop. Great IPA, about as good as it gets. A bit of tongue tingling, and some drying in the aftertaste.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2011 04:05:42 | More by northyorksammy

metter98

New York

3.98/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: The beer is hazy light copper in color and has a light amount of visible carbonation. It poured with a finger high off white head that never quite dissapeared.
S: There are moderate aromas of orange citrus and floral hops in the nose along with some hints of caramel malts.
T: Similar to the smell, the taste has flavors of caramel and oranges and is accompanied by a moderate amount of bitterness.
M: It feels medium-bodied and clean on the palate with a moderate amount of carbonation.
D: The beer is quite drinkable because the taste of alcohol is well masked.

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2011 02:24:30 | More by metter98

ms11781

Massachusetts

3.7/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle poured into a pint glass.

Pours an orangish amber color with a 2 finger, off white head. Head sticks around for a while but eventually ends up being a foamy white cap. Great lacing left down the side of the glass right down to the bottom.

Nose is a good balance of hops and malt right almost all the way though. The aroma is floral, with some citrus a well, to go along with the sweet malts.

Taste is stronger than the nose. Same floral and citrus notes from the hops. Sweet caramel malt flavors come through as well. There is also some spiciness to go along with a good lingering bitterness in the dry finish.

Medium body with carbonation to match. Just enough carbonation to give it a bite when combined with some spicy and bitter hop flavors.

Easy drinking IPA but probably another one and done. It serves its purpose in showing off the Amarillo hops but I'd most likely rather move on to another in the series than have another one of these.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2011 19:22:42 | More by ms11781

LilBeerDoctor

New York

3.78/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Reviewed on 2/22/2010. Bottle. Pours a cloudy light brown with a thick, creamy off-white head. Aroma of floral hops, caramel malt, hop resins, and a slight hint of citrus. Flavor of rich caramel malt and floral hops with a bitter hops finish. Nice and drinkable, slightly mellow in the hops department. Good IPA!

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2010 18:53:33 | More by LilBeerDoctor

Kkottonmouthkngz

Massachusetts

4.18/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

awesome amber color with nice continuation of bubbles throughout, and a huge white head that takes about a decade to disappear.
nose is the only area this beer slightly lacks, although its not bad... it just doesnt have anything smacking me in the face. its a decent amount of pine laced with citrus, more pine than anything.
taste any mouthfeel are holy sh*t worthy. it bursts with bitter amarillo hops, its so delicious. its definitely something you need to take your time with because it leaves your tongue screaming for a cleanser. pine pine pine... bitter bitter bitter.
if you take your time, drinkability is high because it just leaves you wanting more, but if you rush into it, forget about drinkability.

Serving type: bottle

12-12-2010 22:36:09 | More by Kkottonmouthkngz

ratedz

Kansas

4.45/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Reviewed from notes...

I was interested in trying all 10 of the Mikkeller Single Hop beers, so after I got my hands on a bottle of each, I tried one variation a night for 10 consecutive nights back in August. I really enjoyed examining the subtle differences that the different hops give the beers.

Pours an amber/brown color. The head on this beer was HUGE. I thought I poured it the same way that I poured the other nine in the series, but the head was well above the top of the glass and it sat there for a long time. I had to wait five to ten minutes just for it to subside enough for me to take a sip. The smell was a nice balance between the sweet malts and the piney hops. The balance of flavors was noticeable in the taste also. The piney and slightly citrusy hops were balanced nicely with some caramel sweetness. This was an excellent IPA and was one of my top three in the series.

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2010 22:54:22 | More by ratedz

jrallen34

Illinois

3.83/5  rDev -3.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

33cl bottle thanks to Freud, served in my darkness snifter...Huge gumballhead fan so I'm excited to try this amarillo centric brew...A dark copper pour with light orange on the sides. A wondefully huge head of light tope that rises about four fingers with great retention and equally outstanding lacing that looks like coral reef...The aroma sadly doesn't have that much going on, a little sweet bread but mostly some light hops, I'm disappointed...The taste is better, a nice balance of sweetness on the front with a strong hop presence throughout. A nice bitter feel that has a lasting taste.

Easy to drink and enjoyable, one of the better in the series.

Serving type: bottle

10-26-2010 23:42:56 | More by jrallen34

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

4/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle: Poured a hazy light orangey color ale with a large foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of citrus, grapefruit and bitter hoppy notes are dominant and enjoyable. Taste is also a good mix between some hoppy notes with some citrus and grapefruit notes and some bitterness with a dry caramel malt backbone. Body is quite full with good carbonation. Well brewed and interesting though it gets kind of hard to distinguish some of those West-Coast hops. Interesting beer though a was expecting even more grapefruit and more floral undertones. This is now making me wonder whether Amarillo is still my favorite hosp as I had previously thought.

Serving type: bottle

10-18-2010 02:11:07 | More by Phyl21ca

bigfnjoe

Pennsylvania

3.68/5  rDev -7.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a bottle into a perfect pint.

A- pours a slightly dark shade of orange with a very puffy 3 finger offwhite head. Love the head...looks great. Really great lacing too.

S- not a whole lot on the nose...what I'm getting is pine, mostly. Maybe some slight citrus hints too. Not much going on here.

T- piney and bitter, but not too the point where you pucker, though it does stick around for awhile...really nice.

M- its pretty thin, but I don't want it to be thicker with how bitter this is. It would absolutely kill you

D- definitely a sipper. Really bitter. Total palate killer

Serving type: bottle

10-17-2010 23:18:35 | More by bigfnjoe

berebrando

California

4.03/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Kevin and I sampled this beer after collecting all ten (simcoe, cascade, warrior, nelson, nugget, amarillo, tomahawk, chinook and centennial). We sampled them, one after the other, to compare the hop varietals. These notes are primarily focused on the hop flavors of each beer and should be used in comparison to one another. This review is one in a series of 10... and then there is "10".

Top of bottle: 4-11-11
Date of tasting: 10-16-10

Hop notes:
Kevin: lots of nose; spicy and earthy; cinnamon; super bitter finish.
Brandon: good balance; one of the best hops in the series; bitter, dry, pine needles

Serving type: bottle

10-17-2010 20:45:47 | More by berebrando

thagr81us

South Carolina

4/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Cap date: 04/11/11 Served from bottle into a Dogfish Head Signature glass. Poured hazy red-orange with a two finger off-white head that subsided to one finger slowly. Maintained phenomanol lacing throughout. The aroma was comprised of malt and a piney/sweet hop note. The flavor was of malt, and a subtle piney hop. It had a medium feel on tha palate with medium carbonation. Overall this was a very very smooth American IPA. Flavors were really well balanced. This is probably my third favorite in the series that I've tried thus far.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2010 17:54:43 | More by thagr81us

Thorpe429

Illinois

4.08/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pours an orange-copper color that is mostly transparent. Hard pour yields a substantial four-finger head, which eventually falls down into a nice half-finger ring around the glass and the lovely "head dome" in the center of the beer. Plenty of legs on the side of the glass. After a good swirl, the initial whiff brings clear grassy and floral hop notes. A tiny amount of light stone fruit as well. I'm thinking perhaps apricot. Given the absence of any noticeable sweetness, I'm guessing that I'm picking up a few esters.

Taste starts out with some initial bitterness, fading into some light floral notes from the hops. Moderately-strong levels of bitterness on the finish; this seems to be quite a bit hoppier than the previous iterations from the single-hop series that I have had. After a few more sips, I get a bit of apricot and peach, along with a tad bit of alcohol heat. Finish remains dry. Nice medium body. Nice nose and taste combined with a really nice, dry mouthfeel make this a pretty drinkable brew.

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2010 22:01:44 | More by Thorpe429

Beerandraiderfan

Nevada

3.9/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A dark gold color with a little bit of red to orange running around in it. Taste the rainbow I guess. Ample head, very compact, thick and clingy, like Snooki. A little bit of pine, and some kind of unidentified fruit sweet smell (apple?).

Taste was a little bit lacking hop presence, but Amarillos seem to be more about aroma hops than anything else. Was very dry, that was nice, didn't weigh heavily at all. Grassy at times.

Lost some drinkability points for being expensive $5+ a bottle.

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2010 18:52:17 | More by Beerandraiderfan

Lldeegan

Louisiana

4.43/5  rDev +11.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pours a light copper/amber with an ample and frothy khaki head, of course with more sticky lace.
The glass is full of light grassy and earth tones with a hint of fruitiness, fresh flowers and caramel malt throughout.
Freshly cut grass, resinous pine, grapefruit rind and earthy hops all culminate to a bitter finish.
Bubbly mouthfeel, medium body and a bit sticky from the hop resins.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2010 22:33:12 | More by Lldeegan

mlazzaro

Massachusetts

4.68/5  rDev +17.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Outrageously priced at $6.99 for a 11.2 oz. bottle. I splurged.
Date on cap reads 4/11/11 (I assume an expiration date.)

Immediately upon opening the bottle, I smell crazy pungent citrousy hops as soon as I open the bottle. Good carbonation as well.

Redish orange in color. Thick creamy head, off-white. Head is holding nicely. Ring on the glass for every sip.

The smell is just awesome. Heavy dosage of flavor and aroma hops. Smells extremely fresh also. I can almost smell the bitterness.

Remarkably crisp taste. Great bitterness, but not overdone or scotching. Incredibly American/California tasting for an IPA coming from Belgian. That seems to be a new trend that I am quite fond of.

Mouthfeel is sufficient. Oily hop texture. Not too watery. Alcohol is well balanced with the bitterness.

Drinkability? I drank this beer way too quickly. Thank you may I have another.

If this were a $9-12 six pack, I would buy it all the time. But at $6.99 a bottle, I will be thankful for having tried it.

another job well done by Mikkeller.

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2010 20:14:57 | More by mlazzaro

Gavage

New Jersey

4.33/5  rDev +9.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: hazy orange in color with a one finger head lasts a bit. Thick lace paints the glass during the session.

Smell: caramel, spiciness, and some floral tones create a pleasant aroma.

Taste: caramel, some ripe apple sweetness, bits of citrus rind and pepper, and a floral bitterness create a wonderfully balanced beer.

Mouthfeel: medium bodied beer. Crisp throughout with some mild dryness late. Aftertaste is relatively short lived as the hops leave the longest impression.

Drinkability: this was extremely easy to consume, and the flavor profile keeps you very interested.

Serving type: bottle

08-31-2010 11:04:27 | More by Gavage

lumikuuro

British Columbia (Canada)

4.97/5  rDev +25.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Appearance: Hazy amber with big off white head, leaving heavy lace.

Aroma: Grapefruit, wood, spice. All about the hop.

Taste: Wood, grapefruit, some grass. Herbal, peppery. Lots of bitterness that lingers. ABV slightly evident. Malt profile balances, offering some caramel flavour that cleverly restrains the sweetness you'd expect.

Mouthfeel: Medium to full, nice carbonation, dry finish.

Drinkability: Along with their Tomahawk Single Hop IPA, this Amarillo Single Hop IPA is an excellent showcase for the qualities and nuances of this hop variety. Another excellent beer from Mikkeller.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2010 02:36:25 | More by lumikuuro

zeff80

Missouri

4.13/5  rDev +4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Poured out a clear, golden orange color with a three-finger, off white head of thick foam. It left very sticky patches of lace on the glass.

S - It smelled of pine, cut grass, orange and some caramel maltiness.

T - It tasted good and bitter with a piney/grassy hop bite. It had a spicy kick with just enough caramel maltiness to balance it out.

M - It was crisp, sharp and smooth. A medium bodied ale with a dry finish.

D - This might be my favorite of the Single Hop series so far (only 4 consumed).

Serving type: bottle

08-29-2010 15:39:34 | More by zeff80

Durge

Connecticut

4.03/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A beautiful rusty dark amber color with a robust off-white cap and incredibly full lacing on the tulip glass. The aroma is a pleasant mix of piny hop and sweet but woodsy malt. A very nice blend. The flavor brings the same with a somewhat heavier hop accent and more herbal qualities dominating the malt. It has a sort of green floral character and plenty of bitterness to round this into an excellent IPA type experience. It's mid-bodied with a well carbonated somewhat lighter feel, and seems very drinkable. A nice hop brew that should be agreeable to any IPA lover. Mikkeller is quickly earning my every respect.

Serving type: on-tap

08-09-2010 02:09:44 | More by Durge

MrMcGibblets

Illinois

4.35/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: served in a flight of their 4 single hop ipas. orangey light golden amber, slight chill haze, nice lasting and dense head and lacing.
S: tropical fruit, citrus and floral notes in there as well.
T: nice mostly pale bready malts are lightly sweet, cleaned out well by the smooth hop bitterness. hop flavors linger.
M: froth, medium bodied.
D: love me some amarillos.

Serving type: on-tap

07-25-2010 14:41:53 | More by MrMcGibblets

BDTyre

British Columbia (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Nice Danish take on a standard AIPA. Dark, cloudy orange with a very big head that takes quite a while to settle.

Hop aroma, but at the same time quite sweet. Nice, mild malty scent and floral hoppy aroma. The sweetness masks a fairly zesty, bitter hop taste. Malts take a back seat, and the hops are firmly in control of the flavour.

I think the carbonation is a bit low-key and probably could be amped up a bit. Still, a nice drink and it would be hard to distinguish this brew from something brewed in the States.

Serving type: bottle

07-18-2010 05:46:01 | More by BDTyre

barleywinefiend

Washington

3.85/5  rDev -3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Poured a nice deep orange color with a nice white head

S: Pine and some citrus here

T: {;enty of hops up front. Pine, citrus & tropical fruit and perhaps some caramel

M: Light to medium bodied with a moderate carbonation. Quite a dry and bitter finish.

D: One of the better single hops but still not worth the price

Serving type: bottle

07-12-2010 03:52:46 | More by barleywinefiend