Green Flash Palate Wrecker - Green Flash Brewing Co.

watsonmd

Georgia

4.69/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Very nice, extra hoppy, citrus overtones, coats the tongue, and lingers in the nose. Plenty of hops that cover the pine spectrum as well. Also a sweetness that lasts, with plenty of floral notes and a pleasant carbonation. One of the "happiest" beers I have ever had the pleasure of drinking.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2013 04:37:56 | More by watsonmd

LCB_Hostage

Pennsylvania

4.69/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.75

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass

A: Pale orange with a thick, 1-finger head and heavy, prolonged lacing

S: Glorious smack of hops to the brain. Citrus dominates, but some piney resinly goodness as well. Love this beer already

T: Pays off the aroma in spades! True to it's name, it overwhelms the taste buds with exquisite hoppiness, but that's just what I was hoping for. Not that there isn't any malt in behind there, but that's really not what this beer is about. Full-bodied, yet refreshing to the point of invigorating.

M: The tongue just quivers in submission. Crisp, prickly and long-lasting.

O: Needless to say, I LOVE this beer. A hop-bomb among hop-bombs, so understandably, it's not for everyone, but if you're a true hophead you have to at least give this a try. Too intense to drink every day, but something to pull out of fridge when you really want to "experience" a beer.

Serving type: bottle

03-18-2013 16:13:14 | More by LCB_Hostage

oberon

North Carolina

4.68/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Good to see a new Green Flash offering here in the Triad.Poured into a tulip glass nice deep burnt orange with a well defined sticky one finger white head that left multiple globs of lace as it settled slowly into a frothy mass.Sharp grapefruit hops at the onset as soon as I opened the bottle along with some booze but it's not overly sweet,just smells sticky and good.Raw hop goodness on the palate with sharp grapefruit rind and herbal notes,mild caramel sweetness underneath cant hold up to the sharp bitter hop onslaught,and amazingly the sweetness is held in check well.This is what a DIPA should be a hop explosian not a sugary sweet malt bomb,I loved it hence the perfect taste score.Best beer I have had in 2012.

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2012 20:37:18 | More by oberon

noahfree

California

4.68/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

$11.95 for a 4 pack. One of my favorites right now. Much like Stones Ruination but takes it to a whole different level. I've read it compares to Hopslam but haven't had the slam, so I can't compare the 2. If you enjoy anything with hops, procure this brew as soon as possible. Lives up to its name to, gotta love it...

Serving type: bottle

03-22-2012 03:55:22 | More by noahfree

shand

Florida

4.68/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 12oz bottle into an imperial pint!

Beware, fans of balance in your DIPAs. This is not the place for you. This is the beer for those of us who find the vast majority of DIPAs to be too malt-forward for us. I understand this isn't all of us, given that beers like Southern Tier Unearthly and Dogfish Head 90 Minute are higher rated than this. However, the hop junkie can find a lot to love here. It pours out a hazy orange color with a finger of head. The aroma is full of all sorts of hops. Citrus, tropical, piney, grapefruit, it's all here.

The taste is fantastic. It's just a huge punch of bitter hops. There's layers of complexity here for the hophead to peel back, just like in the nose. The mouthfeel is heavier but briskly carbonated, it leaves the mouth coated without feeling heavy. The drinkability is fantastic. Overall, this is a great double IPA for the unrepentant hophead. Don't look for full malt flavors here to balance this out.

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2012 03:44:21 | More by shand

vfgccp

New York

4.68/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - White head with great retention and nice lace. Crystal clear, beautiful rich copper amber body.

S - Intense fresh west coast hop aroma; grapefruit, orange zest, and green plant stems.

T - The profile drips with a dense, thick, resiny bitterness. Pine sap, honey, and malt give away to an intense, lingering, grapefruit pith finish.

M - Medium/light body with a bitterness that thickens on your palate.

O - Outrageous. One of my favorite DIPAs on the market.

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2012 14:29:22 | More by vfgccp

GoodBeerTire

Georgia

4.66/5  rDev +11.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

As high as the IBU numbers that this IPA has, I expected this to truly wreck my palate, but instead it wasn't quite so harsh. The malt backbone of this beer was enough to counteract the massive amount of hoppiness (or should I say happiness) that this ale provides. I apologize for not using the Beer Advocate form of rating, and rather just ramble about my tasting, but it tasted damn good. Not for those who can't handle the hops,but it you are a hop-head, go for it. Very similar to Lagunitas Hop Stupid, but a little more refined, as the malt backbone is a little heavier.
Not a beer to session with, as it is pretty strong, and it will "wreck the palate".

Serving type: growler

04-08-2013 23:38:44 | More by GoodBeerTire

TeeJay

4.66/5  rDev +11.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Appearance: Burnt orange light head with good lace on the glass

Nose: Bouquet of floral, citrus, wet hops,

Taste: Goes straight for the back of your palate with malty vanilla then moves to fruit and finishes bitter for a LONG time. Not to boozy for 9.5% ABV such a pleasant experience the way double ipa's should work

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2013 00:24:53 | More by TeeJay

lurpy1

Minnesota

4.65/5  rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Palate Wrecker doesn't do this beer. Mother Fucker would be more like it. One of the most unrepentant, aggressive beers I've ever had, and I mean that as a compliment. Smells like pot. Tastes like hops, pine, a little bit of mint. Deadly high ABV too. Really does throw your palate off. Summed up best by the guy next to me at the bar: "Shit, man".

Still regard Green Flash as one of the most underrated breweries in the country. They were not messing around with this beer.

Serving type: on-tap

03-24-2012 20:36:38 | More by lurpy1

flayedandskinned

California

4.65/5  rDev +11%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottled on 12/17/12
Pour into a duvel tulip.

Appearance: Pours a crystal clear, deep orange with a 2 finger white head with great retention. tons of lacing as expecting.

Aroma: Dank hops straight to the nose! Pine, grapefruit and an earthy, onion-y note(The Columbus hop's calling card) A sweet, honey malt back ground. Smells delightful, yet intimidating.

Taste: Huge, resinous hops right up front; The usual citrus, grapefruit, orange peel, faint lemon zest with a solid, some what chewy malt backbone that really is a great base to showcase the crazy hoppiness. Finishes dry and BITTER!

Mouthfeel: Full bodied, a little oily from the insane amount of hop resin. Medium carbonation.

Overall: An insanely bitter, and tasty IPA that truly lives up to it's name; drinking this is almost akin to chewing through hop cones. What really surprises me so much about this is the fact that it is 9.5%, yet isn't sweet. I was so happy that Green Flash brought this seasonal back from last year. Highly recommended to anyone who loves IPAs and especially excessively bitter ones!

Serving type: bottle

04-24-2012 01:00:05 | More by flayedandskinned

RoyalT

Ohio

4.65/5  rDev +11%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Appearance - this is an easy-foaming beer with a nice, white, puffy, clingy head and a gorgeously-cloudy deep brown body. This head is absolutely amazing and will stick around hours after last call.

Smell - The dry-hopping gives this DIPA a huge, raunchy, pine resin nose that dominates any other players in this bouquet.

Taste - This is a monster hop bomb. The piney resin takes over the taste and there's a lightly-sweet residual to the flavor profile.

Mouthfeel - This is almost full in the body with little carbonation and a thick, oily, slick mouthfeel.

Drinkability - 90% of beer drinkers won't want to finish a bomber of this ale, and 90% of the people who do won't be able to drink anything after this, thus the name. I found it to be slickly sweet and a great take on the style.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2012 10:46:26 | More by RoyalT

GoblueMS

Mississippi

4.63/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

What an excellent DIPA. The owners at Highland Beverage in Birmingham, AL recommended I try this, and I am pleased they did.

The appearance is orange-golden with a seriously tenacious head which eventually diminishes to a two-finger height, leaving significant lacing on the mug.

Aroma is of citrus, hops, and pungent pineapple--all good, and fresh.

Taste is right there with the best DIPAs I have ever tried: Hopslam, Hopsickle, and Maharaja.

Mouthfeel is just what you would expect from such a brew: oily, lasting, extremely inviting for another sip.

Overall an excellent DIPA. I will purchase this in cases going forward, and hope Green Flash will start being distributed in Mississippi once we are past the start date of higher ABV sales here. Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

04-22-2012 12:18:37 | More by GoblueMS

JTSbeerislife

Pennsylvania

4.63/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

On tap at the Fridge on 5/13/12, notes taken when served.
A 12 oz. pour into a snifter, an acceptable glass. Thanks! Bria.

Pours a nice light ¼” off white head, with very brief longevity and some fair lace, spotty and clings to glass. A lively ale easily revived with a swirl of the glass.
Medium deep amber color, nice.

The aroma hits you hard! With distinct, powerful, aggressive hops, dry hopped, spicy, piney and resiny, with hints of grapefruit. Wow, complex! This is followed by light enjoyable malt, toasty. There is probably more malt here than you know but it is completely dominated by the hops.

Very crisp, distinct, bitter hop entry on the palate. Distinct, aggressive hops, pine and resin, very powerful and exceptionally enjoyable, followed by medium distinct, rich, toasty, malt that is completely overpowered by the incredible hop profile. Ale yeast.
The body is full, with a fine balanced carbonation and a light balanced sweetness.

Exceptional, very long finish of bitter, pine and resin hops, some rich malt, but then the hop oils come and linger forever, totally dominating the malt.

An extraordinary ale. Totally delicious, with mind blowing power.
I suppose it could be said that this ale is somewhat unbalanced, but that being said this is a hop heads dream! Like drinking liquid hops. Delicious!!!

Very Highly Recommended!

Note: I believe that Sierra Nevada’s Hoptimum is better balanced while still the equal in power but both stand as the best DIPA/IMP IPA’s I have had this year to date.

Serving type: on-tap

05-23-2012 00:09:23 | More by JTSbeerislife

TwelveOunces

Kentucky

4.63/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bomber poured into a tulip glass

For some reason this is one of the only green flash brews that isnt in my area so I got it out of town. Been looking forward to this for a while.

A- Super hazy orange with a two finger foamy head. What a double should look like.

S- Potent pine needles and sugary citrus fruits ranging from mango, pineapple and lime. A sweet malt backbone that is completely engulfed by hops. It's a fantastic smelling brew.

T- A touch of alcohol up front followed by a wave of bitterness and hop insanity. The hops are Very fruity and citrusy all across the board. A lot of lime, orange and pineapple. This beer is extremely piney which I love in an IPA. Not as bitter as I was expecting but still incredibly bitter. No malt flavors that I could pick up on.

M- Fairly warming. If you are ok with bitter then this one is pretty darn easy to drink. Leaves a bitter bite afterwards.

O- I feel that I am quite biased towards hop focused beers so having said that this one is definitely among the best. The hop flavor is potent and quite the experience. The beer itself is pretty easy drinking and its only fault in my eyes is a slight alcohol flavor I could live without.

Serving type: bottle

06-21-2012 23:45:45 | More by TwelveOunces

Douglas14

California

4.6/5  rDev +9.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Holy shit! God, Green Flash loves its hops. The Palate Wrecker was poured from a gravity cask. It is hazy amber-orange color with no head (obviously because of the cask). Nevertheless, the color profile is phenomenal. The smells is intensely and absurdly of wonderfully fruity hops. The taste is the same. It is right in your face hops. Incredible! The taste also has a strong malty-sweet balance to it. Just amazing. Lots of grapefruit and orange...kind of resin-y. This beer really does wreck your palate. If you are lucky enough to come across it get it. It's awesome.

Serving type: cask

11-14-2008 14:59:16 | More by Douglas14

barleywinefiend

Washington

4.6/5  rDev +9.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: Poured a light auburn color with good carbonation and a nice white cap. Bubbles fade away with no lacing after a few minutes.This beer looks heavy.

S: Wow bittering hops with orange peel, grapefruit, pine needles and some bread. Big nose with a nice booze sting.

T: Immediate hop bitterness with a big pine needle aand grapefruit presence then with some orange peel. Some heaviness in the middle with bread, grapefruit and a light flower note and more pine. Sticky, warm and bitter on the back end.

M: Heavy, low carbonation

O: Very good on taste and mouthfeel, palate wrecker indeed

Serving type: bottle

04-05-2012 14:37:49 | More by barleywinefiend

KickbacksSteve

Florida

4.6/5  rDev +9.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

On tap at Kickbacks in Jax. Poured into a snifter. Big, fluffy, off-white head, high retention. Clear, copper body. Aroma includes a ton of grapefruit and pine, exploding from the glass. Taste is extremely bitter, pine dominating, some caramel malt sweetness in the distant background but certainly one of the most biting and bruising bitter beers available. Delicious, despite its out of balance-ness. Awesome.

Serving type: on-tap

12-30-2012 06:56:22 | More by KickbacksSteve

BrianJohnson

South Carolina

4.59/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 3 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 5

Appearance: Nice orange coloring, fairly clear, good off-white two finger head with nice lacing
Smell: Piny, citrusy, some hints of grapefruit
Taste: Very hoppy, but with a slight sweetness underneath. The hop bitterness dissipates rather quickly.
Mouthfeel: Feels almost thinner than I'd like. Lacks the thick malt backbone. Has more backbone than Harpoon Leviathan but less than DFH 90-Minute.
Overall: I like it very much and will definitely buy again.

Serving type: bottle

04-18-2013 22:38:22 | More by BrianJohnson

Pentastar

New York

4.58/5  rDev +9.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: Coppery amber with light 1 finger head, lacing sticks to the glass.

Aroma: Fresh hops with citrus and pine, very fresh hops!

Taste: Orange rind and intense hops, a definate grapefruit presence, pineapple and unripe peaches. Very intense bitterness in the aftertaste. This is the hoppiest beer I have tried thus far.

Mouthfeel: Good carbonation even from a growler fill. This beer doesn't dissapoint.

Drinkability: I could drink this beer all day, excellent beer, I highly recommend.

Serving type: growler

03-24-2010 18:52:02 | More by Pentastar

rapidsequence

Virginia

4.58/5  rDev +9.3%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

12 oz bottle. Just released. $3.80 from Neds-- that's $23.80 a sixpack for those who like math.

Appearance: Clear copper color. Above average head retention and lacing. Nice.

Smell: Just a huge, potent hops aroma with an amazing amount of bitter citrus, pine resin, and dank. Some caramel malt in the background. Pretty incredible.

Taste: Resiny, dank hops bomb. Straight up grapefruit pith and sucking on pine needles. An intentionally unbalanced beer, but there is a bit of sweetness that keeps this thing far from being painful. Harsh, but not in a bad way.

Mouthfeel: Big, sticky, resiny. Finishes bitter and resiny.

Overall: This is a huge DIPA. A true palate wrecker. Not an everyday beer, but a serious hop bomb for when you're in the mood. Nearly perfect.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2012 01:46:30 | More by rapidsequence

SawDog505

New Hampshire

4.58/5  rDev +9.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a 13 oz tulip glass, no bottle date on bottle or 4 pack. Pours a clear orange red with a three quarters of an inch yeas with awesome lacing. Smell is lots of grapefruit, some onion, garlic, tangerine, grass, pineapple, and pine. Taste wow Devil Dancer and Double Crooked Tree come to mind. Lots grapefruit and garlic, with all those other flavors in the nose, in supporting roles, maybe some booze that lingers with the grapefruit. Body is large, but unlike many Imperial IPAs this all about the hops, the malt barely has a cameo. Plenty of life, not dry, and for me very drinkable. Love this beer, it is not for everybody. This would be a selection in hop head heaven.

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2012 22:18:20 | More by SawDog505

CrellMoset

Virginia

4.58/5  rDev +9.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 oz. bottle from Total Wine, picked up in Alexandria, VA. Poured in to a 22 oz. snifter.

Appearance: Pours a brilliant copper, intensely filtered and absolutely crystalline, the clarity of which showcases countless strings of delicate pearl-like carbonation. A pour of moderate intensity yields half a finger of off-white foamy head with moderately subpar retention, the only knock on this one's otherwise immaculate appearance. After a few minutes, the head has faded in to a thin, foamy collar, leaving a few crusty slips of lace alongsides the snifter in its wake.

Aroma: Dank, oily hop notes, and enough tingling alpha acids to balance the caramel sweet backbone. The sweetness is strong up front, emphasizing the citrus elements of the nose on this one, though they fade as it warms and in the tail end of the aroma, making way for the spiciness elements, more suggestive of pine, rosemary, thyme, and tobacco, themselves mingling interestingly with that faint hint of an alcohol burn.

Taste: What a great hop profile. A fat, heavily caramel base with plenty of residual, lighter sweetness but also a lot of heavier notes provides a solid and broad base to the marathon of individual hop notes present. The herbal and leafy notes are strong here, stronger than they are in many west coast DIPAs (which tend to be more citrus-centric) - this one is dank and tobacco-y, with lots of pine, thyme, and mint notes. That's not to say there isn't citrus - there is, plenty of it, tending towards the heavier side of the gamut, with lots of white and ruby red grapefruit notes, pithy, bitter, and an equal amount of tropical fruit notes, pineapple and nectarine-esque. At points, I almost get a gingerbread-esque note out of this one, with the way in which the malts intermingle with the spiciness of the hops. The bitterness plays a strong counterpoint to the aforementioned hop flavors, creating a unique synergy particularly well with the intense piney and herbal notes. A very varied, balanced, and robust flavor.

Mouthfeel: Smooth and even, but with a persistent and stable amount of effervescence, the aggregate effect of which is to balance and amplify both the citrusy sweetness as well as the bitter astringencies of the flavor profile. Fairly nice.

Drinkability: Easily the best beer I've ever had from Green Flash, which is a brewery that - in my experience - makes consistently good beers, but never a world class beer. This is right up there w/ the Silva Stout from them, a coast-blending exercise in DIPAs, with enough east and west coast influences to make it very enjoyable. The 9.5% is right about where you'd want this one to clock in, but it's hidden well enough that this one's dangerously drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

05-14-2012 03:20:07 | More by CrellMoset

russpowell

Oklahoma

4.58/5  rDev +9.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours an effervescent honey color with a finger of cream colored head. Good lacing & average head retention

S: Pine, grapefruit with a little breadyness, plus some booze

T: Follows the nose, in your face hoppyness up front, along with a little dryness. Some breadyness & a touch of caramel as this warms with a ton of grapefruit. Finishes with grapefruit peel, breadyness, pineyness

MF: Fairly thick, slight carbonation, nice balance

A super DIPA, love the agressive hops & super balance lying underneath, easily one the best DIPAs I've had in a while. I've been waiting for a hop ride like this for a whilw, well done Green Flash!

Serving type: bottle

07-08-2012 03:16:44 | More by russpowell

Georgiabeer

Georgia

4.56/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

A very solid beer, flush with bitter herbal notes and a long finish. Quite bitter and very distinctive- I'm very glad they bottled this one. Amber in color with a somewhat short head, but that's okay given the abv. It's got that dill/green onion and sour cream thing going on in the nose from the hops- I happen to love those notes, but I know many do not. Really nicely bitter in the mouth, with an almost beefy flavor rife with the herbal and onion notes as well as some pine to give it some backbone. This is no citrus bomb, but if you're into this profile you'll love it. Very firm in the mouth at first, but then with a creamy finish and a long, mouthwatering, lingering bitterness. An all around excellent beer.

Serving type: bottle

03-21-2013 20:18:04 | More by Georgiabeer

YardmanFTB

Maryland

4.56/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This is beer is for extreme hop-heads only. The maltiness and high gravity of the beer mask some of the extreme bitterness from so many hops in the boil. At 9.5% it is an intense experience. I really enjoy this one, but I like hops more than the average drinker.

Serving type: on-tap

03-26-2013 03:04:25 | More by YardmanFTB