Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale - Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

BeerFMAndy

Wisconsin

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

12 oz bottle poured into a Sierra Nevada Imperial Pint.
6.8% ABV, 2012

A - Possibly one of the sexiest looking beers ever, a lightly hazy forms over the pumpkin orange-bronze color from the use of whole-cone wet hops. The light taupe head forms a massive pile of foam before slowly retiring to a clumpy plateau. Lace covers so much of the glass it's hard to see through!

S - Very potent aroma from the get-go, there's a lot going on in this beer. A multitude of hops releases a floral nose with spice hints, a touch of pine resin, and a bit of citrusy fruit. There's a hearty amount of malts backing it up too with mellow caramel and honey sweetness drizzled on top of a flaky biscuit.

T - The flavor doesn't have the quite the searing hop punch the nose suggests, though it's still quite strong. Instead, Celebration is very well balanced between the caramel and honey sweet malts and floral and lightly fruity hops for a round and smooth equal opportunity brew. Lots of little nuances such as tropical fruit, grapefruit, and mistletoe come and go with a finish of very light phenol alcohol.

M - The nucleation etching in the glass keeps the bubbles roaring but this medium-bodied beer has a very smooth feel with a round, almost chewy feel and subdued carbonation. Dry and bitter on the finish, the hops really flex their muscles here.

O - Sierra Nevada Celebration doesn't quite encapsulate the holiday feel it's inviting label's landscape suggests, but damn if it isn't an amazing IPA! Celebration honors the harvest as the season shifts to winter. The deep hop and malt flavor begs to be pondered with it's intricacies, inviting the partaker back for yet another sip, time and time again. A snow day and roaring fire would pair perfectly with this winter IPA!

Serving type: bottle

11-16-2012 23:24:19 | More by BeerFMAndy

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