Imperial IPA - Garrison Brewing Company

esch

Minnesota

4.45/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: Quite nice orange color. Very hazy, but advertised as unfiltered so that's to be expected. Poured with a very dense white head. Retention is high.

S: All about the hops. Citrusy, grassy, minty, it's all here. Even though it's only 6.9% there's a nice twinge of alcohol. The barest notes of sweetness poke through at the end.

T: This is a face-full of delicious hoppiness. Incredible hop flavor. Tending towards earthiness and grassy the citrus notes from the aroma are missing. Aggressively bitter, not that it's a bad thing. Listed at 70 IBUs but tastes much higher than that, this beer lights up the edges of my mouth like few have before. There's certainly big maltiness here but it's completely dominated by the hops.

M: Body is big on this one. Medium carbonation. Nice alcohol heat. The bitterness lingers for quite a while after you swallow.

D: In a word, fantastic. I wish they'd dial down the bitterness a tad but otherwise this is a complete success.

Serving type: bottle

06-15-2008 04:40:31 | More by esch

Kmat10

Alberta (Canada)

4/5  rDev -2.4%

05-20-2013 05:05:06 | More by Kmat10

Billington

Tennessee

4.25/5  rDev +3.7%

05-18-2013 03:20:06 | More by Billington

jmdr

Alberta (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +3.7%

04-20-2013 03:44:39 | More by jmdr

lgmol

Nova Scotia (Canada)

4/5  rDev -2.4%

03-28-2013 22:17:12 | More by lgmol

sclitch

California

4.25/5  rDev +3.7%

03-28-2013 15:36:14 | More by sclitch

timiskin

Ontario (Canada)

4/5  rDev -2.4%

03-14-2013 04:01:32 | More by timiskin

IanSpindler

Alberta (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +3.7%

03-11-2013 19:03:26 | More by IanSpindler

TimeLincoln

New Brunswick (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -14.6%

03-10-2013 18:37:26 | More by TimeLincoln

DaPan

Ontario (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +9.8%

02-14-2013 22:06:51 | More by DaPan

ericj551

British Columbia (Canada)

4/5  rDev -2.4%

02-11-2013 15:46:48 | More by ericj551

sdm9465

Nova Scotia (Canada)

4/5  rDev -2.4%

02-05-2013 17:12:56 | More by sdm9465

patre_tim

China

4.56/5  rDev +11.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Unfiltered amber with particles large and small floating in it. Medium low carbonation, 4 finger tan fluffy head. Very appealing.

S: Pineapple, floral, pine needles, buscuity malt. Again, very appealing.

T: Buscuity malt, floral, pineapple, pine, really bitter on the aftertaste. It lingers.

M: Syrupy, resony, thick, medium low carbonation.

O: Very well balanced for an Imperial IPA, it has all the right characteristics. Love that its from Halifax, Canadian, traditional bottle even has its Garrison's emblem and ‘Halifax’ embossed in the glass. Overall, really cool.

Serving type: bottle

01-31-2013 02:19:08 | More by patre_tim

MylesMac

Manitoba (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +3.7%

12-03-2012 00:15:04 | More by MylesMac

Groulxsome

Ontario (Canada)

4.4/5  rDev +7.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle into a tulip.

Looks: Great. Thick, firm head with little mountains of foam. Great orange-ruby red colour. Cloudy (it's unfiltered).

Smells: It smells balanced. Pine and citrus hops combined with a some roasted, earthy malts. It has this almost soft, fresh pine bark smell from the combination of the two.

Tastes: Big citrus hops on the front (Amarillo?) are followed by more pine hops and caramel malts. The finish is some combination of pine and a little grapefruit bitterness (Cascade?).

Feels: A little thin to be honest (most other reviews note that it's dense, maybe I am!). Not as creamy as that head might of had me think. Nice medium carbonation.

Overall: The hop profile in this beer is really close to my favourite. That pine, citrus, and grapefruit are the classic East-coast style hops that I love, so it get's bonus points for hitting my taste so well. Garrison have a signature taste too, which I really like, partially because it smells a little like the Quidi Vidi Brewery in St. John's, NL, which is no where near! Google maps tells me they are close to salt water, so I'm going to assume its the North Atlantic Ocean smell, the terroir if you will, which makes me like it so much. Anyway, I really like this beer!

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2012 03:28:48 | More by Groulxsome

Edgerrin32

Saskatchewan (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +9.8%

11-21-2012 18:17:39 | More by Edgerrin32

shagal

Alberta (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +3.7%

11-17-2012 06:45:19 | More by shagal

RomanticLung

5/5  rDev +22%

11-08-2012 21:47:21 | More by RomanticLung

cfalovo97

Ontario (Canada)

3/5  rDev -26.8%

11-06-2012 15:24:18 | More by cfalovo97

Kremlock

Ontario (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +3.7%

10-31-2012 20:58:30 | More by Kremlock

nickfl

Florida

4/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours with a small head of off white foam on top of a hazy, copper colored body. The foam settle fairly quickly but leaves nice lace on the glass.

S - Lots of pine and sweaty hops with caramel and toffee malt in the background.

T - Sweet, bready malt up front with some pine flavor. Orange and grapefruit show up in the middle and the beer finishes with toffee, pine, and moderate bitterness.

M - Medium body, moderate carbonation, and a balanced finish.

D - Nicely done, this is a solid IPA, with lots of pine hop character and good balance. It ain't Pliny, but it certainly gets the job done.

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2012 04:26:17 | More by nickfl

kylehay2004

Florida

3.65/5  rDev -11%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: no head really on a cloudy amber with golden hues body.

S: caramel, candied fruit, earthy and citrus hops with a sweet maple syrup note as well.

T: I like how this one tastes but it is still a little bland. Up front you get caramel and earthy hops which moves to bitterness and a metallic taste which lingers for quite a while.

M: medium body and moderate carbonation.

Overall: Nice degree of hopiness, it just isnt very complex. The malt base is very good though and this is a decent beer overall.

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2012 04:26:14 | More by kylehay2004

CurtisD

New Brunswick (Canada)

4/5  rDev -2.4%

10-19-2012 01:18:23 | More by CurtisD

Idrankthat

Saskatchewan (Canada)

5/5  rDev +22%

10-13-2012 04:25:39 | More by Idrankthat

Molson2000

Ontario (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +3.7%

09-11-2012 00:11:21 | More by Molson2000