Eight Point IPA - Devils Backbone Brewing Company

DarthMalt

Virginia

4.2/5  rDev +12%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

[This place is looking like the real deal, Folks! FINALLY! A SW Va. brew (since the demise of Shooting Creek) that doesn't suck!]

This IPA pours (wait for it)...PALE! Fathom that! Clean filtered (Beer-scaping is in, People!) and ridiculously pale golden. It's like they worked on the pale thing. What's that about?

Bubbles up. Bubbles down. Nothing to write home about there.

Pungent grassy notes jump out and grab the foretaste. Quite unexpected, but also pleasing. (Might have to try this for lawn mowing.)

Soda bubbles tingle and fade to reveal a rich, sweet body with a stealthy hop mix in the mid-taste that pops the bitters out, just before descent, to high five the tall grasses.

This is a serious-good IPA! John Boy would be proud.

Darth (don't-incur-my-wrath) Malt

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2012 04:19:43 | More by DarthMalt

rvajohn

Virginia

4/5  rDev +6.7%

05-21-2013 01:08:22 | More by rvajohn

Jimbo4430

Virginia

3.75/5  rDev 0%

05-21-2013 00:50:04 | More by Jimbo4430

dsshuck

Maryland

4/5  rDev +6.7%

05-20-2013 02:36:28 | More by dsshuck

JayQue

Virginia

3.74/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

More like an English IPA than an American. Still well-crafted and worth a try. Pours a completely clear, dark gold color with a good sized white head. Head retention is good. Rings of lacing around the glass.

Aroma is fairly subdued but both bready malts and grassy hops are noticeable.

Taste is good. Straightforward bready malts and grassy hops, nicely balanced and flavorful. If you are only looking for a hop bomb, this isn't it, but it is tasty and refreshing all the same.

Mouthfeel is crisp with a good amount of bitterness. Very refreshing and light enough to quaff more than one. or two.

Overall a pretty solid offering as a balanced IPA.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2013 18:35:19 | More by JayQue

jakeox

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev 0%

05-19-2013 01:50:29 | More by jakeox

AngusOg

Maryland

3.5/5  rDev -6.7%

05-17-2013 23:39:01 | More by AngusOg

ipas-for-life

Virginia

3.75/5  rDev 0%

05-14-2013 22:38:52 | More by ipas-for-life

baybassboy

California

3.25/5  rDev -13.3%

05-14-2013 04:17:11 | More by baybassboy

andjriz

Oklahoma

2.75/5  rDev -26.7%

05-09-2013 08:51:44 | More by andjriz

KevinK441

Virginia

4.38/5  rDev +16.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Average color for an IPA, light orange. Head disappears pretty quickly.

S: Nothing overwhelming here but it's not faint either. Smells of pine and grapefruit.

T: Nice amount of bitterness up front with a good hop balance, bordering on a pale ale more than an IPA.

M: Medium body mouthfeel which makes this very drinkable.

O: Maybe a bit biased here but I'm very pleased I can get this beer anytime I want a solid IPA and want to buy local. This beer is very drinkable and refreshing and quite sessionable as well at just about 6%.

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2013 01:05:31 | More by KevinK441

mikeg67

New Jersey

3.85/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.75

On Tap at DC. Pours orange with long lasting white head. Aroma is of citrusy hops, passion fruit, orange marmalade and biscuit malt. Body is medium and tangy. Citrusy hops dominate the palate; with tropical fruit and biscuit malt provide some balance. Finish is long and very hoppy. Nice IPA.

Serving type: on-tap

04-29-2013 13:41:02 | More by mikeg67

JasonTaverner

Virginia

3.25/5  rDev -13.3%

04-28-2013 19:54:23 | More by JasonTaverner

bigbutter

Virginia

3.5/5  rDev -6.7%

04-28-2013 16:55:23 | More by bigbutter

ChrisKayler

Virginia

3.75/5  rDev 0%

04-25-2013 18:37:33 | More by ChrisKayler

chaos41

Virginia

4.75/5  rDev +26.7%

04-22-2013 20:32:16 | More by chaos41

teromous

Virginia

3.33/5  rDev -11.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

A: Slightly hazy gold with hints of orange. Sparse white head with no lacing.

S: Catty with some grapefruit, and a rustic kind of smell.

T: Much like the scent, it has that catty tinge followed by strong grapefruit rind bitterness, followed up with that rustic bread-like tinge. It has good bitterness.

M: The mouthfeel is very nice. It has enough bitterness to pinch the mouth a bit, but not enough to drive the palate into overdrive. There's a dryness at the end.

O: Overall it's a good AIPA, but it does lack a lot of malt character and the flavor is strongly grapefruit rind. I wasn't a fan of the flavor choices, but it's not bad or anything. I personally wouldn't drink it again.

Serving type: bottle

04-20-2013 20:09:03 | More by teromous

avisong

Virginia

3.75/5  rDev 0%

04-16-2013 02:49:27 | More by avisong

ryser2k

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +6.7%

04-10-2013 16:20:47 | More by ryser2k

Beers9beers

North Carolina

4.5/5  rDev +20%

04-10-2013 00:07:06 | More by Beers9beers

1up

District of Columbia

3.5/5  rDev -6.7%

04-09-2013 03:24:33 | More by 1up

hef

Maryland

3.5/5  rDev -6.7%

04-08-2013 03:24:04 | More by hef

delta490

Virginia

4.23/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Poured 12 oz bottle into a Sam Adams glass. Pours a cloudy light gold with a creamy white head that doesn't last two long but does linger and leave nice lacing. Aroma is strong hops with citrus notes. As the beer warmed the strong grapefruit dialed back and blended nicely with the malt backbone. Has some strong carbonation and a thinner mouthfeel. A nice, not overpowering IPA.

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2013 16:57:14 | More by delta490

Dave1999

Virginia

3.85/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

This beer is a very pale amber with a foamy white head.

The smell is piney,dampness and cat piss. Sounds terrible but it's not bad.

The taste is piney, sweet citrus and bitter. Really coats your tongue with hops and lasts in your mouth a while.

The body is medium with medium carbonation.

Overall a pretty good ipa, I enjoyed this, was a little different.

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2013 23:57:51 | More by Dave1999

SerialHiker

Illinois

3.74/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Appearance: Pours a very clean straw yellow…a few bubbles rising in the middle, but mostly a very crisp, clean looking brew…minimal off-whitish head forms leaving a lingering thin layer…the head look creamy…(3.5/5)

Smell: Fresh, crisp pine and citrus hops up front…it’s very light, very airy…I’m also getting some grassy bitterness…the more head there is (say after I swirl it around a little), the creamier the smell is for sure…creaminess comes with a caramel, toffee combo…a very well balanced aroma, clear fresh hops notes combining with a creamy caramel maltiness…(3.75/5)

Taste: Crisp pine bite and bitterness up front, then mixing with light citrus hops and sweet caramel malts…it’s got a very fresh, zesty taste…when it was colder, I got more grassy bitterness, but now that it’s warmed a bit, there’s more creamy malt flavor throughout…still has some tinges of grassy bitterness, but it’s mostly pine and lemon citrus hops mixed with creamy caramel malt…it’s good, not mind blowing, but good…(3.65/5)

Mouthfeel: Light body with medium to full carbonation…fluffs up bring light lemony bitterness to the palate…mild creaminess, some bitter bite on the edges, finishes with a mild dryness…(3.75/5)

Overall: This is a solid brew…while it doesn’t blow me away, it is very drinkable and is worth a try…I definitely found the flavor to improve as it warmed a bit out of the fridge…this brewery is located in Virginia near the Appalachian Trail and will actually come pick up hikers and let them tent in their open field for free…we did this in the summer of 2012…very fun…anyways, this is definitely an above average brew worth picking up and sharing with friends or catching on tap as you hike 2200 miles thru 13 states…(3.75/5)

Serving type: bottle

04-03-2013 01:14:22 | More by SerialHiker