Hercules Double IPA - Great Divide Brewing Company

cerevisiaephilus

Michigan

4.15/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Got the second half of the bottle, couldn't really get a good read on the appearance, but seems decent.

Really nice nose. I get some tea and strong sweet floral notes. Very nice hoppy aroma.

Very nice flavor...strong bitterness but not overwhelming. I get some nice tea notes...lots of hops here. Almost herbal. A bit astringent in the finish, but what is to be expected from all those hop?? Must not be low cohumulone. Some ruby red fruitiness in the finish as well...not sure how else to describe it. Very citrusy and pungent in the finish.

Nice mouthfeel. Very appropriate for the style.

Not sure how many I could drink, at least a bomber worth.

Serving type: bottle

09-12-2004 05:02:08 | More by cerevisiaephilus

aracauna

Georgia

4.05/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Beautiful beer. The color is rich and deep, somewhere in between ruby and copper. The slightly yellowish head builds easily into a dense, soupy foam. The hops dominate the aroma with dried peaches and grapefruit. The malt makes a stronger showing in the flavor with a nice caramel and biscuit sweetness that keeps the hoppiness from becoming overwhelming. The alcohol is well covered and sneaks up on you.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2004 22:26:31 | More by aracauna

skybluewater

Minnesota

4.65/5  rDev +11.8%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a light amber color. Surprisingly, there isn't much of a head, and very little lacing (although this could be my fault). The smell is incredible, all pine and apricots. Tastes very bitter, but it's not overwhelming at all (even at 85 IBUs), with piney, apricoty hops dominating, although there may be a little citrus there. I allowed myself to savor this one, and it became even better as it warmed.

Fabulous beer here, definitely recommended. I'm glad I got my hands on a bottle of this, which is truly the nectar of the Gods.

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2004 01:07:57 | More by skybluewater

TheLongBeachBum

California

4.5/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Presentation: 22 ounce Bomber, and as with the previous offering Titan IPA, my bottle looks exactly like the one in the BA Database. No strength or freshness listed, but it proudly states that this one is 85 IBU’s.

Appearance: Unfiltered hazed coppery amber body with a dark orange hue. Massive off-white head that is creamy and formed from a myriad of finely attenuated bubbles that are all just about the same size and produce a silky smooth cap. Damn this looks great, and very dangerous. Average carbonation with superb head longevity and a pervasive lacing that consists of rings and loose smatterings that last forever. Very nice!!

Nose: Oh yes!! This is what I have been missing the last few days whilst in Omaha on business. No hard punches here, just soothing back of the neck strokes that are equally a powerful but much more refined and balanced in their delivery. Spicy Pines, Grassy Verges and Floral Malts. A very cultured nose that is extremely well balanced I find.

Taste: A juicy fruity hoppy start that is backed by a decent amount of malt, which I like. Salopian freshness that dictates that you pay attention to the pine soaked malts and tangential bitterness. Wow, creeps up on you, the hoppiness finishes with exponential powers mixing with hyperbole bitterness.

Mouthfeel: A bag full of balls, this is no shrinking violet and does not lessen in the feel. Yet it never feels like it brags about its body strength, but I sense that if you underestimate it, this one it will kick your ass just to remind you.

Drinkability: At 9.1%, it has the balls to back up its big mouth, yet somehow it has neither, it never boasts or self-promotes, and it keeps its testicles firmly in its trousers. If ever a brew “spoke quietly but carried a big stick”, it is this brew.

Overall: Neither an eager but ignorant freshman, nor an aged but ‘past-it’ professor, this is more the well read D-IPA that is at the peak of its education and self-worth. Extremely tasty, well-balanced, and just a Bloody Hell Fire all round superb effort from the Great Divide Brewing Company.

BigHerculesHuge, you did it this time, this one was a cracker!!
Don’t ever cut your hair again.

Serving type: bottle

08-27-2004 05:56:39 | More by TheLongBeachBum

blitheringidiot

Pennsylvania

4.45/5  rDev +7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Rather plain unassuming mountain scene labeled double-deucer that just gives a basic "not for the faint of heart" blah blah blahs. If you are buying this beer at $58 a 12 x 22 oz case, you don't need that. Props for mentioning the 85 IBUs.

Hazy, cloudy, dark orange & copper hued pour into me Troegs pint glass, with a healthy dose of carbonation flowing up, under tight, sporadic tan sticky cap head. An exquisite pour, leaving stratus layers of tight foamy that would interst Dr. Louis Leaky and his daughter. I think there were some dinosaur bones in the lace.

Tart bitter hops aromas that will wake up any beer nose well. Juicy pine resin notes. All hops here.

First swigs: Tons of acidic pine resin and grapefruit juice and rind flavors. Mega bitter sandpaper on me tongue. The 85 IBUs are no slouch, neither. Bubble gum and Maple Syrup and pine sappy tastes lead to a quick middle dry finish.

Top notch mouthfeel that offers tons of sizzle, thanks to the generous 85 IBUs and over the top, hop till ya drop acidic sizzle.

Last swigs: GREAT DIVIDE has built a 2IPA in the vein of some IPA comparables, but plenty of hop goodness. For the price, there is a local BarleyCreek Brewing IPA called SuperHop that can compete toe-to-toe for $26 a case.

Beer is good. Happy hoppy beering.

Serving type: bottle

08-25-2004 02:56:09 | More by blitheringidiot

Gueuzedude

Arizona

4.18/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

First Sample
Pours a lightly hazy, ruby-copper color. The beer is topped by a creamy tan to amber colored head. The aroma is most strongly of candied citrus fruits, and pine. This is a nice fully hop-flavored beer. I get notes of grapefruit, lychee, pine, and a nectar that is made up of hop Lupulin glands. There is a nice mouth coating bitterness in the finish. The taste reminds me of candied orange peels, but also has notes of sweet caramel, toasted biscuits, heady malts. Overall this beer is quite chewy with a medium bodied character that is derived from the residual malts that help carry and accentuate the hops. This beer finishes with a citrus hop zing that definitely lingers on the palate.

Second Sample
Pours a clear copper color that sits under a foamy, thick tan head. The aroma is redolent of piney hop aromatics. There is a thick mouthfeel to this beer that definitely lingers. The taste is dominated by pine and it is quite bitter in the finish. There are definite notes of candied orange peel, but the flavor is dominated by the pine notes and the intense bitterness in the finish. As my palate adjusts to the harshness in this beast, it gets tastier and more in balance. I can't really taste it, but there is a serious malt backbone here, which helps to carry the over-the-top level of hopping that is in this beer. This tastes quite fresh, but, oddly not nearly as good and balances as when I first had this. I think that this needs a little bit of age on it to mellow out.

Serving type: bottle

08-19-2004 16:41:11 | More by Gueuzedude

ADR

Pennsylvania

4.05/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Clearish bright amber color, approaches mahogany. Good head frmation and retention but simple lacing on the glass. Nice nose, hoppy but with melon qualities that hint at a solid malt backbone. Mouthfeel is medium carbonation understated -- probably underscored by a large contribution of barleymalt to the brew. Starts extremely well balanced, hops and a caramel and fleshy fruit sense well-matched (similar to DFH 90 Minute). What happens mid mouth to close is a slight turn to a syupy sense, sweetness seems a little much for me. There is an ashy bitterness to the aftertaste, but less than expected. A good beer, could be a little better within a loose style expectation.

Serving type: bottle

08-19-2004 16:27:44 | More by ADR

mudhoney

Texas

3.8/5  rDev -8.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

So lets see if this beer lives up to its mighty name.
Served from bottle into a hefe glass, this beer already smells fruity and sweet, almost peachy.
The color reflects the same. A cross between orange and peach color with a thick arrangement of floaties.
First taste brings a hop kick and a malty sweetness that comes through, but not enough to cover the alcohol taste at the finish.
Suprisingly this beer warmed nicely to a nectar taste and not much lacing to speak of, but altogether the beer improved as it reached its end.
I like the Eleven and the Maximus much better, but would recommend this to at least try if you like Double IPAs.

Serving type: bottle

08-15-2004 19:25:13 | More by mudhoney

rajendra82

Georgia

4.22/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The beer came in a 22 oz. brown bomber with a label that was somewhat plain looking. The beer was poured into my usual goblet, and displayed a reddish orange slightly hazy body with a large, creamy, off white colored head. The aroma was sweet smelling hops with pine, grapefruit, orange, mango, and hay being the prominent smells. The primary taste was highly citric and piney hops that quite strongly dominated the sweet caramel and honey malts. The aftertaste was peppery and warm alcohol. The mouthfeel lacked the heft of a typical Double IPA and could not quite cover the alcohol, but the beer was still right in line with the style in terms of the raw hop power. Outstanding selection provided to me by meathookjones.

Serving type: bottle

08-15-2004 02:34:49 | More by rajendra82

usualpulp

Texas

3.98/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Pours a deep amber color with a thick caramel colored head. Good lacing down the glass as the beer is consumed.

Stong hop and malt smells are very apparent, but unlike most ipa's ive had, this one is very sweet sweet smelling. Definately not a bad smell, makes the beer very inviting.

The taste of hercules is interesting, very malty, nice roasted malt, makes the beer slightly sweet and bready, this is a good compliment to the very strong hops that hit the tongue when you first sip, very nice balance of bitter and sweet. There is a slightly fruity flavor to the beer, but nothing overwhelming.

The mouthfeel is slightly bitter, there is a strong aftertaste to each sip. I would prefer a slightly cleaner finish, but it doesnt take too much away from the beer.

Overall, this is a very good beer from a good brewery. I would definately reccomend this beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-07-2004 21:33:34 | More by usualpulp

assurbanipaul

Texas

4.33/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a medium burnt-orange with a thin yet frothy head. Aroma is almost all orangey hops, sweet mandarin oranges, bordering on syrupy. Good lacing all the way down.

Taste is strong and aggressive, lots of hops but with a strong enough malt base to handle it. Bready nature hits first, followed by the bitter citrus hops and both merge into the finish. Good light sweetness, plenty of smooth esters with some nuts and oil flavors. Aftertaste is dry and bitter but not unpleasant.

Mouthfeel is a bit heavy and slightly oily. No trace of its hefty alcohol content in the taste. A good job at handling both sides of the spectrum and far, far better balanced than the Titan, also by this brewery.

Serving type: bottle

08-05-2004 04:16:38 | More by assurbanipaul

francisweizen

Australia

4.5/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Basically, 90 minute! A dark amber brew, with a slightly cloudy appearance and an off-white head that left ace lacing! The aroma is an assault of caramel malts with a nice load of bitter, balancing hops in the mix as well. The taste is very sweet and malty up front, bready in the middle, and very hoppy in the finish. There is some unique yeast (yeasthead?) work going on here as well, as the finish is astonishingly complex, creamy, and spicy! The mouthfeel is creamy, and big, but not too big, and the drinkability is very, very, very, very good! An excellent Double IPA, that is almost identical to *fresh* DFH 90 minute in 750's (think 2 years ago) A good introduction to the beers oif Great Divide...

Serving type: bottle

08-04-2004 19:26:35 | More by francisweizen

GCBrewingCo

North Carolina

4.47/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

The beer poured deep amber golden with a slight haze. The head was off-white, moussy and long lasting to lace the glass.

The aroma was an array of complex maltiness and muted hops. The hops were the backbone of the aroma.

The flavor was deeply malty yet bitter. The balance struck between the bitterness from the hops and the malt flavors suggest a deal with the devil. The bottle says 85 IBU and the bitterness is long lasting enough for that to be the case. The flavors were complex and inviting.

The finish was malty and bitter, with bitterness lasting long into the aftertaste, but the malt impression stuck out the journey as well. The body was medium full.

22 ounce bottle.

Serving type: bottle

08-03-2004 23:53:20 | More by GCBrewingCo

kbub6f

New York

4.33/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

There's a small, light-tan, bubbly, firm head. It leaves Charlie Brown Christmas trees (pre-miracle) of lacing. The beer is mostly clear, and a strawberry-amber color. Huge nose: yards of grapefruit rind and sugar. Outstanding. Front shows mad grapefruit hops and alcohol. The middle turns buttery, thick, syrupy. There is massive hop bitterness in the finish, with buttered, toasted grains and lakes of alcohol. The aftertaste is the rind of a grapefruit. This is one big hop-alcohol-butterymalt monster.

Serving type: bottle

07-29-2004 23:36:19 | More by kbub6f

nomad

Kansas

3.65/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Hercules is a malty bastard, pouring out a fairly dark color for a Double IPA. Deep amber and fairly hazed, it gives a thick feeling and seems much more of an Amber ale or Barleywine than its supposed style. Head has the typical thickness and stickiness of an ale with this much hops, leaving fair lace down any sort of vessel.

Smell is incredibly sweet as the caramel and rose tinted malts wash over the fruity scents. All told, I get a sense of scents like apples, melon, ruby red grapefruit, and spare shots of more a typically hop-made musty bushiness. Well done for sure, and far from deficient, but the hops are struggling to meet and play nicely with the over-abundant malts. They're like a beautiful painting covering an even more beautiful outdoor view. Shame.

Same story with the flavor, as the same fruity flavors described above roll through. What apparent bitterness is present gets tempered by the lush malts, though I'd say the drying and rough hop patterns are still strong. Alcohol is masked to a great degree, though potent as always for a big IPA. For each bomber I walk away with an over-bearing sense of caramel smothering the finer sides of American high-alpha hops. Where is the tropical and aromatic lupulin juice?

This beer is a great piece of brewing, and firmly drinkable. Finishing a bottle is no problem whatsoever, but in stacking it up to other great Double IPA's its a bit off. Though its easy to find I'd hesitate from calling this a top-shelf beer for the style. But oh well, they're available, well-priced, and easy enough to enjoy. Are my bottles a little old and thus lacking some punch - is that what's up?

Serving type: bottle

07-24-2004 21:27:26 | More by nomad

bigbeerdrinka

Germany

4.63/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a beautiful copper amber with a thick which head about a half inch thick. The head seems to never want to recede but when it does it leaves a perfect lace on the glass. The nose of this beer has a strong hop character showing off some piney resin, citrus, and zesty fruit, and from the malt a little caramel makes it way through. There is also some alcohol in the very back of the aroma. Now for flavor this beer packs a punch and a half. Initially hops just smack around the pallate. They provide a zesty twang, with some piney flavors, and some citrus notes. Literally the hops just dominate initially and almost coat the mouth. Definetly a little oily resin in there. Malts work their way into the mix of this beer showing off some dough, biscuit, and caramel, but then the hops just come back. This beer finishes with some sweet citrus hops, and just the right amount of bitterness. God this is good. The mouthfeel of this beer is rich and flavorful with a wonderful creamy body. Just to repeat myself, god this is good!

Serving type: bottle

07-20-2004 02:06:14 | More by bigbeerdrinka

99bottles

Pennsylvania

4.35/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: 22 ounce bomber. In a pint glass, this beer has a gorgeous copper body and an awesome 2" head of yellowish off white that comes slowly crashing down leaving pillow-like ridges and thick lace on the glass. Beautiful.

Smell: A nice full nose of Centennial (eh, I'm rolling the dice on that one; could be Cascade or Columbus, or a mixture of all of them) comes out and is balanced by a rich maltiness. This
really reminds me of Avery's Hog Heaven so far, with a bit more hops.

Taste, Mouthfeel, Drinkability: This is tasty. The taste is very smooth, and retains some complexity. I see this is gauged at 85 IBUs. That seems a bit much, but this does have a noticeably clean bitterness. The actual flavor of hops is not incredibly strong in this beer; rather it serves to balance the aftertaste and accentuate the rich and sweet malt in this beer. There are some sweet oranges, sweet syrupy pine, that finally yields to the star flavor of this IIPA: the sweet carmel of the malt.

Mouthfeel: Thick and rich, this is immeadiately felt across one's tounge and it brings a hugely satisying filling sensation all the way down one's throat to the gut. 9.1% ABV isn't easy to taste, but it is easy to imagine given the viscosity and depth of this beer.

Drinkability: The more I sip this, the more I am impressed with it. This is a great beer to slowy enjoy; it's also a departure from some better known Double IPAs (Dreadnaught, I Squared PA, Ruination). I think it's quite well balanced and very enjoyable overall. No problem finishing the bomber, although it is a little heavyon the mouth. I'll definitely seek this out again (and put it in a blind tasting with Hog Heaven. They are INCREDIBLY similar except this has a more hoppy nose and aftertaste). Cheers.

Serving type: bottle

07-18-2004 22:35:14 | More by 99bottles

Wildman

Ohio

4.18/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

This beer poured a copper amber color and formed a huge bubbly white head that left laticed lace as it slowly subsided. A very small amount of carbonation is present. A heavy of aroma of various hops, some malt, citrus and pine. The flavor is of hops, hops and more hops. Also the pine is still present in the a very bittersweet finish. A fine double IPA.

Serving type: bottle

07-17-2004 01:41:55 | More by Wildman

BierReise

Florida

4.13/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22oz Bomber No Date This is one excellent brew. In my opinion it ranks up there with the best California IIPA’s. It poured a clear orange tinted amber with a thick full head. The aroma is potent with grapefruit, pinapple and piney hops. Alcohol is also very much present and to an extent detracts overall. I also smell the malt which has a nutty grainy like aroma.Very much like Dreadnaught, and in some ways reminds me of Marin/Moylans and Yulesmith as well. The body is full and smooth. The flavors are hoppy fruity malty alcohol and despite the latter, delicious. This Ale finishes with a cruel bitterness that hopheads will desire. I do. Excellent retention leaves a well laced empty glass. Top 50? If this belongs there so do some other great IIPA’s.

Serving type: bottle

07-11-2004 23:07:37 | More by BierReise

Bighuge

Minnesota

4.85/5  rDev +16.6%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Copper appearance. Very slight chill haze. Slight off white head. with little retention. Not many signs of carbonation upon viewing. Lacing is sporadic, but nice. The nose has got it all. It's dominated by the hops with their pine sap, lemon rind, grapefruit and citric attributes. But there's also some caramel dripped sweetness and light bready tones as well. This beer has the perfect mix of bitter hops and sweet malts for an IIPA. The hops are bitter, but fairly clean that way. The hops are juicy. This is perhaps the quality of this beer that I like the most. Like juicy pink grapefruit pulp. With the slightest coating of sugar to keep it in check. The malt backing has nuances of toffee and caramel. The body is round and damn near full. Carbonation is in check. And this is one helluva an Imperial IPA.

Serving type: bottle

07-08-2004 04:44:33 | More by Bighuge

ManekiNeko

Virginia

4.6/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

22 oz. bomber served chilled in a pint glass.

Appearance: Clear orange topped by a yellowish and frothy head. Very typical for this style in my experience. Foam dissipates to a thin layer of bubbles and leaves some thick sheets of lacing on the glass.

Smell: Powerful hop aromas of grapefruit and spruce. Faint caramel malts. Obviously, this is Titan on steroids.

Taste: Ultra bitter and tangy hopes on the start. Peppery, brash, citrusy, and sprucy. Just enough caramel malt sweetness to keep this tolerably balanced, but maybe not exquisitely so. This is an IIPA after all. Not quite as complex as Dreadnaught.
Mouthfeel: Solid and burly medium bodied beer with long lasting aftertastes.

Drinkability: Like it's namesake, this is powerful and strong. A great IIPA. Dreadnaught, best be watchin' yer ass. Thankfully, finishing the bottle is not a Herculean feat.

Serving type: bottle

07-05-2004 14:33:45 | More by ManekiNeko

silenius

Illinois

4.6/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Ah Hercules! A contemporary of my avatar namesake! A name befitting this robust and strong beer. The gods must have had a hand in the creation of this brew! A balance of the mortal and immortal!

The paper label is actually pretty lame I think. At least they didn't put some guy on there in a loincloth wrestling a lion.

The beer pours a color that is definitely on the red side of orange. Hazed and uniform, but see-through. The head is thin and off-white. But the lacing! I'm not sure "lacing" does an adequate job to describe what is on the sides of my glass. More like "plastering" or "sheeting" or "painting" because the sides of my glass were absolutely coated with this beer's sticky goodness. Incredible.

Smell is definitely lighter than the taste. I get a light floral piney smell with some citrus in there and a little juniper. Good but not great.

Taste is huge and strong! Sweet malt citrus hops play back and forth in my mouth for a seriously long time. I can taste this beer minutes after drinking a sip. It starts out with a sweet mapley malt that quickly is coated in piney hops. Next is candied oranges and then a little ganja. Finally the beer comes to rest as a mellow candied pear lightly coated in bitter herbs. This is a serious beer here and deserves the 5.0 in taste I am giving it. The amount of time I can taste the beer in my mouth is staggering.

I'm gonna have to give this one a 5.0 in mouthfeel as well. This is a slick oily beer that slides down nicely with the carbonation adding a creamy feeling to it all. It is not thick, but slick. This is my perfect beer mouthfeel here.

The hugeness of this beer is a downfall, however. My palate tires of this after one bomber and I would be wasting the second if I had two in a row. After Hercules wrestles my tongue into states of taste ecstacy, it is worn and spent and needs rest before another round of this great brew.

Serving type: bottle

06-30-2004 01:30:00 | More by silenius

cokes

Wisconsin

4.43/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Toasted honey under a floating pillar of beige, which, over time, flattens and moves towards the edges of the glass then clings like a motherfucker.
Fragrant! A rusty cauldron boiling with ruby grapefruits, coniferous pitch, bathtub gin, lit joints, gooey caramel candies and seared watermelons. There seems to be a hollow spot in the nose- one that I can't quite describe- but it is otherwise entrancingly aromatic.
Begins malty. Of all things! Pears slathered in gratuitous caramel nougat. Toasted biscuits too. Generous with the burnt fruit tones. Like watermelon and muskmelon seared on a grill. Still sweet and juicy inside, but black and crispy on the outside.
Okay, so the malts have established that they are not mere throw-aways.
Accounted for and present.
Hops are called next.
They arrive in massive, coughing, bong-hit fashion. Resin-filled and smoky. Pungent and dank.
Deeper than that, though. Wintergreen and evergreen. Brightened with pink grapefruit and lemon rind.
Intense without sheering the enamel of the teeth or making the tongue bend over and take 9 and 1/2 inches of prison luvin'. But not gentle by any stretch either. More like 6 inches with generous KY.

Curiously, this ends sweet with a revisit from caramel and those blackened melons. The hops linger, but in a sedate resiny, ganjafied, pine-filled, citric mellowness. I use "mellow" in relative terms.

Alcohol really isn't a factor here, aside from a stray gin fume or two.

Medium-full in build. It tries to stick for a minute, but is immediately pulled downward. This has no business being as strong as it is.

What a great barleywine.

Serving type: bottle

06-29-2004 05:46:21 | More by cokes

marc77

California

3.65/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Hazed bronze hue. Lofty, dogged, dense ivory white head yields Belgian lace. Pine sap and lemon juice dominate the aroma. Secondary are softer, candyish undertones of bubblegum and warm, minty ethanol. Quite appetizing aromawise. In flavor, the incipient impression is unexpectedly sweet, being of sugary medium caramel and brioche. Hop bitterness augments steadily, eventually reaching an assertive, barbed combination of quinine and citrus pith. Hop flavor is a creeper as well, with key lime and melon (including rind) arising after a deliberation. As the beer warms malt again runs parallel with the hop presence. Sweet, but singed grainy biscuit and maple syrup tones provide ample contrast to bitterness, perhaps even a touch too much. Moderate in body, with a dextrinous, but lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Finishes sweet, with a browned butter and brown sugar combination marginally offset by hop bitters. Almost a great DIPA, but is a notch too sweet and underattenuated, which muddles what would otherwise be a vibrant hop profile. Everything else is spot on. Very tasty, regardless.

Serving type: bottle

06-28-2004 22:33:13 | More by marc77

tavernjef

Minnesota

4.8/5  rDev +15.4%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

By far one of the best looking double IPA's I've laid my eyes on! Absolutely gorgeous glowing cloud of orange, deeper in color towards the top then at the bottom where it keeps some golden highlights. Massively stacked inch high head of dusty yellowed whipped froth that becomes crusty and lumpy as it muddles down to a thick haze remaining present. Lace in thick globby ink blot sheeting and strings.

Aroma is redolent with highly sweet citrus and soft dry pine, a bit juicy and oily thick with some resinous qualities, but set back some and moderately present on the nose. Lots of alcoholic vapors seep through like volcanic gases about to rupture the top of a fault-lined island of hops.

Taste is wowfully juicy with citrus flavors, fresh, clean, with a good load of skins and pulp of every kind play softly in the front but gain a huge acidic return at the finish. Nice bitterness of orange and grapefruit acids and hop oils coat the end for a good long while along with a finespun slow drying pulpy action. Slight sticky toffee-like malts way in the back. Floating pineyness vapors and alcoholic esters pass into the finish as well. Uff-da - yum! There's no doubt that this has a Herculian amount of hops. Quite complex and full of citrusy things including the flowers and blossoms too. Akin to Dreadnaught in its hop profile. A yummy puree of hops are to be enjoyed and awed upon while trekking up this mountain.

Feel is quite smooth for the seemingly end of hoppy citrus thats been given. Big full body with fluffy edges. Thick, fat, juicy, super fine citrusy bitterness. Oily but dry finish thats incredible to undertake. Yum!

The name "Hercules" fits this well. It grew on me, sip after sip, I kept entering that dreary bewildering state of hoppy glee and nirvana that hopheads search for. Much like the myth of Hercules itself, the myth of a hoppy dreamscape can be accomplished with the right amount of imagination and desire to make it come true. Thanks Great Divide, you've opened my eyes anew.

Serving type: bottle

06-22-2004 02:02:42 | More by tavernjef