Hercules Double IPA - Great Divide Brewing Company

Doc_Hops

Pennsylvania

4.24/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

A- Hercules Double IPA pours a beautifully deep orange/amber color with some interesting sediment floating around in there. The head is a slight off white that billows at first our and is slowly receding.

S- Oddly, I get sweet apples in the beginning, something I'm not used to nor expecting for the style. This is giving way to some rich malts with, again surprisingly enough, not a whole lot of hop aroma or citrus notes.

T- Wow, this is different. Very interesting. It's all malt in the beginning. It's sweet- almost fatty in a way with a good amount of caramel flavor. As i sip some more the citrus begins to come through, mainly with oranges. Finally, there is a good twinge of hop bitterness on the back end.

M- Quite smooth here. Very drinkable given the style. It is every bit as full bodied as you'd expect but still very smooth....which could get dangerous given it is 10.0%.

O- A great brew from a great brewery. I think I would have liked a bit more hop bitterness but I always appreciate a good malt backbone, so I can;t really complain. This is delicious and I would absolutely drink it again.

Serving Type- 12oz bottle poured into an IPA glass. Thanks for reading.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2013 04:25:53 | More by Doc_Hops

dar482

New York

3.76/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Pours in a wonderful ruby red color with a slight bit of head with a decent amount of lacing.

The aroma has a bit of fruitness, some grapefruit, some caramel, dank and spiciness.

The taste is pretty similar. You first get a kick of grapefruit and hops, then a push towads a bitter hoppiness. Then it goes towards a good malt finish of caramel, grassiness, and round mouthfeel. It really is a malt bomb of a Double IPA.

The piney bitter finish and malts reminds me a bit of Hop Wallop, however with a better balance and bigger malts. I’m a big malt head, but there’s something about the bitter finish and the grassiness that doesn’t quite do it for me. It’s good still. I even had this fresh as it was 3 weeks old, but still mediocre.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2013 02:58:34 | More by dar482

thecheapies

Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottled on Feb 09 2013. Into a snifter.

Hazyas dark honey amber with sunken floaties. Not much in the form of surface carbonation.

Big maltiness. Almost the nose of a barleywine. Caramel, orange, light pine, light syrup, cardboard, and pith. Not my kind of DIPA nose.

Flavor is bright and hoppy with a slight underlying sweetness. Generously toasted malts with their caramel, toast, and treacle notes balance off an earthy pine and dank citrus hop bomb waiting to explode. But, it never climaxes. Too heavy with the malt bill, and the way that the sugars have all dried up, leaves me wanting something fruitier. Actually, it'd probably be worse off if it were sweeter. The dryness, especially in the finish, is a nice touch.

Drinks with that typical booziness. Maybe a little too long-lasting. Feel is nice and expansive. Body is thinner, but in a deceptively simple way. Treated like a heavy-handed hoppy amber ale.

A classic. One that I enjoyed much more with a younger palate. A great DIPA, but 180 degrees from the direction I like them to take.

Serving type: bottle

03-19-2013 04:32:13 | More by thecheapies

Cubatobaco

Virginia

4.23/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Appearance: Beautiful reddish/amber color with a considerable amount of sediment. I didn't notice, but this is an eight month old bee (7/10/12). A very thin, fine knit, head and decent carbonation is visible through the fogginess. Faint lacing.

Smell: I'm picking up aromas of bananas, mead, and some undertones of cloves. A tad bit muted, but that could be to the beer being cold at the moment. A very light smell of hops. Will update if other aromas emerge. Noticed a "booziness" that comes along with a 10% DIPA

Taste: Very hoppy upfront, weighing in with 85 IBU's, but it does not get in the way of other flavors such as: sugar sweetness, malts, nuts, and cloves. Very complex with a stern backbone.

Mouthfeel: Oily/viscous, very concentrated, leaves your mouth feeling clean

Overall: This is a great DIPA! Definitely glad that I picked up a 6pk yesterday. I don't know if this would be one that I would seek out, but if readily available (and it is not in my area), I'd drink this above a lot of other DIPA's.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2013 22:31:33 | More by Cubatobaco

ThisWangsChung

Maryland

3.43/5  rDev -17.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to Jay for the 12 oz bottle! Poured into a generic tulip.

A: Pours a reddish copper color. The head is a one finger offwhite shade. Definitely an attractive DIPA with a nice amount of lacing left on the glass.

S: There is a lot of caramel, plummy expressions, and faint pine on the nose. Surely, this one is past its prime.

T: A sweet caramel opening gives way to plenty of earthy, boozy, and piny qualities on the finish and aftertaste. Past its prime? Yeah - even still, I'm impressed by how balanced and mellow this one comes across. The boozy notes in no way ruin my moderate enjoyment of this one.

M: The texture is medium, and thankfully isn't too syrupy or boozy either way. It also lacks some of the sharpness some DIPAs develop - but to be fair, this IS an older bottle.

O: Quite good, considering its advanced age. Fresh, this is one to keep an eye on.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2013 22:56:29 | More by ThisWangsChung

gpogo

California

3.96/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

A- Hazed red amber body with a small white head.

A- Sweet malt aroma. Quite a bit of alcohol. Not much in the way of hop aroma.

T- Sweet malty alcohol with a nice bitterness throughout. No real hop flavors, but this was an aged bottle. Superbly alcoholy aftertaste.

M- Somewhat thick mouthfeel, but the moderate carbonation doesn't make it feel so thick.

D- I imagine this beer is much better fresh. That said it was enjoyable, but I'd be wary of drinking too many of these back to back.

Serving type: bottle

03-14-2013 20:53:18 | More by gpogo

hoppytobehere

Colorado

3.49/5  rDev -16.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

22 oz, bottled on Jan 10.

A: Hazy copper body, with nice head that sticks around a while. Not much for lacing.

S: Malt dominates the nose. Sweet rolls, very similar to their Titan. Alcohol. Hardly any hop aroma, which is troubling.

T: Hop flavors are subdued. I've had this on tap at their brewery and I remember it being better. A double IPA less than 2 months old shouldn't have a hop profile so diminished.

M: Could maybe use a little more carbonation, but otherwise it's fine.

O: Great Divide's IPAs just don't age well at all. I think from now on, I'll only buy bottles I can find that were bottled less than a month ago.

Serving type: bottle

03-06-2013 01:05:46 | More by hoppytobehere

patre_tim

China

4.15/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

A: Copper, quite clear, almost no carbonation evident, foam is yellowish.

S: Carmel, malty, grainy dog food like, sweet, slight citrus hops.

T: Caramel, malt, smooth, creamy, again dog food, sweet backbone, slight pine and citrus hops.

M: Medium syrupy resinous body, almost no carbonation.

O: Smooth, balanced, my first by Great Divide brewing co. Highly rated and I like this, not rocking my world, but a delicious great beer. Not sure that the cost is worth it for this beer when there are many other examples that are better in my opinion, but cheaper.

Serving type: bottle

02-26-2013 18:01:12 | More by patre_tim

JMScowcroft

Vermont

4.35/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Hercules Double IPA

Look - Pours copper and amber with minimal head. Unfiltered with minimal carbonation. If you don't want to see sediment, make sure you get this relatively young. Either way it does not take away from the quality.

Smell - Sweet apple, malt, and hops.

Taste - Sweet immediately followed by hops and then abruptly drops off followed by bitter hop leftover.

Mouthfeel - Aggressive but welcome, gave me a slight case of the puckers, warming to the cheeks and stomach.

Overall - Great brew, does not present as a 10%.

Serving type: bottle

02-20-2013 12:44:05 | More by JMScowcroft

AmitC

Indiana

4.45/5  rDev +7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 12 oz bottle dated Jan 23 2013.

Pretty fresh. Poured into a snifter. Very neat amber golden color. Extremely clear. Less than a finger thick white colored head that settles into a thin white layer very soon. Stays very long. Excellent lacing on the sides. Very few bubbles.

Aroma is hoppy and very full of weeds and flowers. Lemony, citrus and piney. A bit floral. A lot of raw grape fruit. Some hidden spreads of malt sweetness. Overall, it gives an idea of things to come. No alcohol whatsoever. Strength is moderate to slightly strong. Not one of the aromas that i like but still very good. Complete;y different kind of hop profile i would assume.

Taste starts with palate surrounding bitterness and is complemented very well by the good profile of malts in between and ends with a bitter note. Will wreck the palate for no other drinks for some time. Though not one of the highest IBUs at 85 but still good enough. Dry hopped. Aftertaste and finish are bitter.

Mouth feel is medium to slightly full. A little of oily touch that i enjoy very much in an IPA. Moderate carbonation. No astringency. Very much at par with and similar to hopslam. I would call it an Hopslam alternate though the hop profiles would be different and this one does not use honey.

Style Rate: 4.25
Personal Rate: 4.5

Serving type: bottle

02-10-2013 23:28:20 | More by AmitC

hardy008

Minnesota

3.61/5  rDev -13.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Bottled on January 10, 2013.

Pours dark amber with a very thin off white head which disappears quickly, leaving no lacing. The aroma has Grapefruit, citrus zest, pine, and caramel malt.

Tastes sweeter than I expected, with some light bitterness for balance. Has grapefruit, pine, pineapple, and caramel malt. Makes for a nicely balanced beer.

Medium to full bodied with very low carbonation, and a sweet aftertaste. Leaves a bit if a sticky feling in the mouth. The alcohol is well disguised for a 10.00 % abv beer. I would have scored this higher, had there been proper carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

02-08-2013 03:02:16 | More by hardy008

Chaney

District of Columbia

4.11/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Haven't tried this one for a while, but I needed to review it in order to keep chipping away at the "Beers of Fame" list.

Served in a Port City snifter.

A: Classic DIPA, orange red color, with a substantial amount of chill haze and a robust melted orange sherbet-looking head that stuck to the glass as the liquid was siphoned.

S: Melted orange popcycle with some hop air freshener (Lysol-based) with out a trace of yeastiness in the entire nose. Whoa... hop sauce, through and through!

T: The bitter, sweet and floral hop profile stained my teeth and then some. Flavor packed to the hilt, with a slight bit of candy-coated booze thrown into the mix.

M: While this was sweet and thick, I still wouldn't call it syrupy. Sugar, lots of sugar on this one, but the extremeness of the hops cut through that nicely. Lots of lacing left on the glass... and underneath my gums!

O: What a steal for only a few bucks in my area. I really need to come back to this one more often whenever I'm in the mood for a hop fix.

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2013 20:23:19 | More by Chaney

popery

California

3.95/5  rDev -5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

From notes, Pours a darkened amber orange with an ecru head that builds up slowly after the initial pour - quite pretty to watch. Aroma is mostly pine and citrus hop notes but there’s a big caramel malt tone backing things up. Maybe, touches of bubblegum and sugar cane. Starts sweet and finishes with bitter hops and candy caramel. Good lingering hop aftertaste. Mouthfeel is smooth and a bit sticky. Booze is hidden quite well. This is pretty close to ASA territory, definitely not a West Coast-style DIPA. Good stuff.

Serving type: bottle

01-28-2013 02:45:32 | More by popery

BAC

4.51/5  rDev +8.4%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I by no means consider myself an IPA man. This makes me very picky when it comes to Pale Ales so I may not be the best representative when it comes to this style. However, IPA or not I was very impressed with this brew. It seemed unique, well balanced and delicious.

I highly recommend this beer not just for IPA lovers but for people that do enjoy hops but not to the Nth or bitter degree.

Will buy some more if I can find it. Unfortunately ID is not the easiest state to get certain micro brews. This beer was purchased in the Seattle area. (If I can find some more, I will sit down and update this review with more specifics).

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2013 15:49:58 | More by BAC

Scotchboy

Idaho

4.05/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

22oz bomber poured into a Sam Smith pint nonic.

A: Deep clear gold, beautiful with minimal haze; fluffy off white head.

S: Clear fresh hop notes of resiny pine and citrus, with hints of grapefruit; clean, with an almost leafy freshness to it. Caramel breadyness of the malt profile is detectable with just the slightest suggestion of toastyness.

T: Follows the nose. clear clean piney & resiny hops notes are tamed with a moderate malt body. Clean hop oil, light alcohol presence. Bright flavors, with moderate bitterness.

MF: Creamy medium body with some heft from the abv; bitterness and dryness are in check though.

O: Pretty decent and enjoyable brew, I can see why this ranks where it does on the BoF top 100.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2013 16:30:21 | More by Scotchboy

AlCaponeJunior

Texas

4.18/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Orange and pretty clear with a pretty good head and lacing.

Aroma is clean and hoppy, piney, resinous, citrus (lemon, grapefruit, oranges), and floral.

Flavor is again quite clean for a DIPA. Good clean bitterness, orangey citrus, lemon peel, grapefruit peel, piney hops, and a surprise sweet malt balance that leaves you wanting another sip.

Body is full and slightly syrupy, not a real quick or easy drinker. Alcohol is warming but well masked.

I've had a lot of really IPAs of late, and I have to say this one is refreshingly different. Quite enjoyable, but don't expect to get out of your chair once you're finished with the bomber!

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2013 00:00:51 | More by AlCaponeJunior

RaulMondesi

California

1.8/5  rDev -56.7%
look: 2 | smell: 1 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Out of a bottle at Haven in Orange, CA.

Raul does not approve! Nasty! Nasty! Nasty!

So this is one of those Least Coast IPA's. Or is it a strong ale? Because Raul cannot tell. If Raul wants himself a bottle of strong ghetto syrup, he'll get himself a bottle of Old English. The homeboys gave this a 99!? (But hey, they also like Green Flash IPA and DogFish 90 - so maybe the trust is gone). Either way, Raul vows never again. I rather step in fresh doo doo'd kitty litter then suffer through this nastiness again.

Now back to a fresh, hoppy, pineapple blasted BEST Coast IPA.

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2012 21:19:47 | More by RaulMondesi

cattersley

Ontario (Canada)

4.58/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Dude... this was amazing! A beer trade from a new friend visiting for the Toronto International Film festival from Colorado... Faint hops smell, it give nothing away to the fact of when tasting this you are gob-smacked with flavour! The colour, light golden brown, such a well balance between the hops and malt, very little left on the palate, hops going down within minutes. 10% abv? Really, I wouldn't have thought this. Initial taste, hope right at the tip and sides of the tongue, then a toffee/caramel malt blend right in the centre of your tongue. This was fantastic!

Serving type: bottle

12-21-2012 23:40:21 | More by cattersley

williamjbauer

West Virginia

3.85/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottled served in a weizen glass pour fairly clear golden amber with a one finger off-white head with good retention and average lacing, fluffy. Smells chiefly of piney hops with a bit of grassy and grapefruit notes. Starts a bit sweet caramel and toffee malts but quickly become piney bitter and moderate amount of alcohol taste that isn't entirely pleasant with the weak malt background. Medium body, moderate carbonation, chewy. Average-low drink-ability considering the harsh character and booze taste, I was expecting to like this one more.

Serving type: bottle

12-08-2012 00:16:01 | More by williamjbauer

MattSweatshirt

Texas

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

Finally found a freshish bottle on shelves. Bottled Oct 09.

The beer comes out with a clear amber colored body and a off white head. Great retention and lacing.

The nose isn't much. Pine, citrus, and alcohol.

Big pop of bitterness. Super smooth. The mouth feel is the best thing about this beer. Too bad the alcohol presence is detectable even when fairly cold. Lots of piney hops here.

Glad I tried this so I know I will have more money for Yeti's instead.

Serving type: bottle

12-07-2012 20:59:45 | More by MattSweatshirt

fmccormi

New York

3.58/5  rDev -13.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Straight pour from 12oz pry-off bottle to a 25cl Duvel Single tulip; bottling date of November 7, 2012 printed in white ink in the bottom-right corner of the label in a small box (“BOTTLED ON: NOV 07 2012”). That makes this beer a day under four weeks old on the date of consumption.

Appearance (4.0): Close to two fingers of custard-colored foam rise off of the pour, which dies down slowly and leaves some thick lacing on the sides with some pretty good, evenly-distributed retention. The body is a satisfying deep amber color with ruby undertones—looks as rich as it smells.

Smell (3.5): Surprisingly boozy, there are some light citrus tones mixed with pine resin amidst a rather alcoholic grain character—smells like what I’d imagine a “blonde barleywine” would smell like, honestly. It’s not unpleasant, but it’s boozy for the style (not shocking at 10% ABV) and lighter on the kind of hop character I was hoping for.

Taste (3.5): Follows the nose, almost to a T. Much boozier than I was anticipating, and much more restrained in the hop department. Again, tastes barleywine-ish without the dark and stone fruit tones. A lot of toasted wheat bread with some caramel undertones; the toasted character melds well with some solid pine / resin bitterness, but I’m not getting a lot of the characteristic American hop flavors (tropical fruits, weed, etc.) I anticipated. More pine resin, in that department, which I do enjoy. But it’s countered heavily by that boozy, grainy malt body, which also has some stone fruit character (apricots, plums) but not the darkness you’d expect from a barleywine (rich breads, raisins, toffee, etc.).

Mouthfeel (4.0): Pretty good feel: boozy and slightly syrupy, but with enough hop oil to dry it out significantly toward the end. Modest carbonation expands the body moderately on the way down without tingling much, but it does have a spicy feel. Again, drinks more like a light barleywine, but for a DIPA at 10% ABV that sounds about right.

Overall (3.5): To be honest, I was hoping this would drizzle resin and pineapple juice on my face right before it ripped it off, but my face is still more or less intact. Thankfully, I guess. There’s JUST enough piny, resinous character in the hop profile for me, but honestly it’s just not what a DIPA should be, in my mind. Did I enjoy it? Definitely. Did I love it? No. Was it nice and malty with a strong hop character? Sure. But it was not quite to my taste, and not something I’d necessarily try again, as far as my tastes in DIPAs go.

Serving type: bottle

12-05-2012 00:00:13 | More by fmccormi

Chris_Cali_2o9

4.78/5  rDev +14.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a bomber to a pub style glass

A- Light copper body, 1 1/2" fluffy off white head

S- Floral, piney hops, sweet bready malts

T- Floral, piney, caramel, vanilla, sweet bready malts, grapefruit bitterness, slit alcohol twang

M- Amazingly creamy, low carbonation

O- I've been trying to get my hands on this for a while, and it was worth the wait. Not only does it taste amazing, it is incredibly creamy. For a DIPA it's incredibly balanced with a sweet bready malt backbone, that tastes of caramel and vanilla, and ends with a grapefruit bitterness and a suprisingly light alcohol twang, for a 10% abv beer. This is what i look for in this style, uniqueness, and a glorioud malt backbone. I've only experienced this flavor profile 2 other times with Stones Enjoy by IPA and Drake's Aroma Coma. All 3 of these beers are in my top 5.

Serving type: bottle

11-28-2012 22:35:46 | More by Chris_Cali_2o9

warrenout330

Ohio

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

Poured from a 12oz bottle

A- pours a dark amber color... haziness in the glass. Sediment appearing, shows its not to fresh... big white head... quickly dissolves to a thin ring on the beer... wavy lacing to the glass

S- hop resin, piney sap smack, grassyness, buttery malt

T- piney resin, sweet buttery malt,

M- smooth and kind of creamy, medium body ... moderate carbonation ... hoppy ending for a lingering upon minutes on the tongue and mouth

O- this is good but I wish I had a fresh bottle to review... I can see where it would take off but this bottle falls short due to age... overall though with age, still holds it own for a DIPA

Serving type: bottle

11-21-2012 06:34:45 | More by warrenout330

SolipsismalCat

Pennsylvania

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

Poured into a snifter.

A: Slightly hazy amber with two-finger, off-white, foamy, creamy head that lasted several minutes and left a nice film. Great lacing.

S: Pineapple and other tropical fruit. Caramel malt.

T: Moderate sweetness and solid hop bitterness. Tropical fruit. Spicy and bitter.

M: Medium bodied with fizzy carbonation. Crisp and slightly warm going down.

O: Fantastic look, smell, and taste with a descent mouthfeel. One of the best double IPAs.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2012 02:56:05 | More by SolipsismalCat

Pinknuggets

Vermont

3.78/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle to hfs sniffer

A: brown we color with a thin brown to tan head that despites quickly very translucent weird

S:very booze but there is a smells of malt with bitterness not much else there

T: okay so the taste doesn't resemble the smell here the alc isn't noticeable and there is plenty of bitter hops that are well balenced with the malt taste

M:light especially for a dipa almost like its watered down goes down smooth and is really drinkable

O: really drinkable flavorful dipa not the full hoppy taste that I like but it's fairly well balanced despite the smell and look

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2012 02:12:43 | More by Pinknuggets