Green Flash Palate Wrecker - Green Flash Brewing Co.

Auraan

Arizona

4.76/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

Poured a transparent, deep amber with a one finger off white head. It looked quite nice. Scents of citrus, lemon, and grapefruit. Very appealing aromas. Flavor is almost entirely bitter grapefruit pith, grapefruit rind, a tiny hint of grapefruit and a bit of pine. Very little malt character, very much a hop forward beer. Mouthfeel was medium bodied, with low carbonation. The beer hid it's alcohol content quite well. An excellent hop forward beer, pure citrus and bitterness, probably one of the best west coast DIPAs I've tasted.

Serving type: on-tap

04-21-2013 09:11:45 | More by Auraan

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

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

First had: on tap at Broad Axe Tavern, Ambler, PA

Clear amber pour, with a small white head that left some splashes of lace on the glass. As would be expected, the aroma was dominated by hops, citrus pith and pine resin, with hints of a caramel malt backbone bringing up the rear. Lots of orange and grapefruit in the taste, resin, pretty intense WC hop bitterness, with a little tropical fruit and malt sweetness to take the edge off, but the hops were clearly in charge. Maybe not as intense as their regular IIPA, though I'd like to try them back to back to test that theory. Medium body, appropriately carbonated. Maybe a little intense for greenhorns, but a good brew for hopheads.

Serving type: on-tap

04-20-2013 04:32:15 | More by Rifugium

TheSixthRing

California

4.2/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Had on-tap at Capitol Beer in Sacramento, CA

Appearance - Clear and golden orange in color, served to me in a snifter with an off-white, half finger head sitting on top. Fair retention, leaving a ring of microbubbles clinging to the side of the glass. Fair lacing with good stick.

Smell - Pungent hop aroma. Big tropical notes: sweet candied mango, pineapple, apricot and orange, all backed by a moderate pine character.

Taste - Follows the nose. An assault of hop, strengthened by a lightly toasted bread malt backbone. Tropical sweetness. Moderate pine dank, then a grapefruit pith bitter finish.

Mouthfeel - Close to full body, slightly sticky in fact, with fair carbonation. Smooth, easy finish.

Overall - A mighty fine TIPA here. Classic West Coast Imperial IPA profile. I wouldn't mind giving this one another go, and I'd invite anyone who loves their IPA's do the same!

Serving type: on-tap

04-08-2013 01:35:01 | More by TheSixthRing

Gmanofleisure

New York

4.36/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Served in a pint glass at Pizza Plant in Buffalo, NY. Had the opportunity to compare to some other IPA's which I really like...surprisingly this was my favorite of the night.

Appearance: Amber color. Sufficient head.

Smell: GRAPEFRUIT. And yes, I meant to to leave caps lock on. Hoppy as well.

Taste: Hops. The name says it all. Citrus flavors, and a wicked bitter aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: Good carbonation. Well balanced body.

Overall: Huge IPA. Put together nicely though. Other than the extreme hop taste, which I expected, everything balanced out. Need to find more in Buffalo!

Serving type: on-tap

04-03-2013 03:28:20 | More by Gmanofleisure

Huhzubendah

District of Columbia

3.81/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

On draft at Churchkey in D.C.

The beer is light golden and clear with a soft white head. The aroma brings a potent dose of hops, light citrus and pine, and alcohol. Upon my first sip I decided this beer is aptly named. Massive hop character does indeed assault the palate. Alcohol presence is rather forward, and steers me clear of a second helping. This is decent, with some nice things happening, but I prefer a more elegant showcase for the hops, instead of being bombarded with an intensely hoppy alcohol bomb. Personal preference perhaps, but I feel this is middle of the road (or a slight step above) for a DIPA today.

Serving type: on-tap

03-30-2013 21:48:46 | More by Huhzubendah

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

stakem

Pennsylvania

3.9/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Draft offering served in a tulip pint. The brew appears a clear copper color with a yellowish stained tan head. Some spotty patches of lace stick to the glass and rising bubbles maintain the cap.

The aromatics are dominated by hop character: pine along with an oily dank to catty quality. A minor backing of toasty grain is present keeping this brew from smelling of straight hop juice.

The flavor is surprisingly toasty with malt and some residual sweetness. After the swallow, a big dank to catty hop element strikes and sticks to the palate. Flavors of pine and trace amounts of alcohol fade into the aftertaste.

This is a medium bodied brew with a modest amount of carbonation. Overall not a bad brew but considering the name, its a bit of a let down. I found it to be surprisingly balanced and almost with too much malt character. It is worth a try and something I would enjoy again while fresh.

Serving type: on-tap

03-08-2013 20:01:00 | More by stakem

jpro

South Carolina

4.28/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

On-tap at Closed for Business... 10oz pour served in a snifter.

A: Crystal clear orange; thin white head leaves some great lace.

S: Sweet citrus and resin; hop-bomb (obviously); pine; wow - big time hops; stanky cannabis.

T: A piney hop blast starts things off... followed by a powerful, puckering bitter; hop oil / hemp oil; citrusy and bright notes in aroma are lost in all the uber-bitterness; minty (?)

M: Full bodied; moderate carbonation; sticky and palate DRYING (or wrecking, I guess).

O: A doozy of a DIPA; great aroma and flavor... in small doses.

*from notes 2-17-13

Serving type: on-tap

03-01-2013 02:18:09 | More by jpro

Anker13

District of Columbia

3.91/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

2/21/13 Green Flash | Palate Wrecker | On Draft

On draft at Churchkey in DC

Appearance- Beautilful copper in color, white lacy head, translucent

Aroma- Wonderful hop notes, citrusy and piney, grapefruit, subtle toasted bread

Mouthfeel- Moderate Co2, slight coating, medium bodied, a little oily

Taste- with each sip it definitely "wrecks your palate". You get wave after wave of grapefruit/piney hops. Enough malt character to keep it interesting, but not enough to make it an exceptional beer

Residual- pleasant bitterness, grapefruity and sweet

Overall- A solid DIPA. Worth a try, but odds are I would not seek this one out again. It's a borderline hop bomb in my opinion. Not quite so hoppy that you straight up avoid it, but hoppy enough to make it a one and done. There are a lot of better DIPAs out there, but I can see why this has a following.

Serving type: on-tap

02-22-2013 05:10:48 | More by Anker13

HomeBrewJake

Virginia

4.83/5  rDev +15.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Appearance - One finger of white head. Bright beautiful deep clear orange in color. Not a whole lot of lacing

Smell - Pine, pine and more pine. Some citrus and lemon zest in there as well.

Taste - Piney with some citrus peel and then a solid lasting pine aftertaste.

Feel - Fairly carbonated, but it coats the inside of your mouth with a piney sticky film. You can taste it from the tip of your tongue to the back of your throat. Incredible.

Overall - Got lucky and got to try it on tap, but I'm definitely going to try to grab a few bottles of it too. Amazing!

Serving type: on-tap

02-03-2013 19:07:11 | More by HomeBrewJake

57md

Pennsylvania

4.14/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Appearance is a copper with golden edges. The half finger of head yielded some lace, but nothing overly impressive. The nose was distinctly hoppy. The flavor was hoppy throughout, but there was a touch of alcohol sourness on the finish that almost reached unpleasant, but not bad enough to ruin this very good offering.

Serving type: on-tap

02-01-2013 01:58:55 | More by 57md

AlexFields

Tennessee

4.09/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Light hazy peach/apricot color with a pretty thick head that sticks around a good while.

Smells of mango, pineapple, some kind of flowers.

Taste is similar but with some spiciness and a (not displeasing) vegetable flavor in the finish.

Great and complex DIPA. Will be drinking again.

8.2/10

Serving type: on-tap

01-27-2013 20:03:35 | More by AlexFields

harrymel

Washington

4.15/5  rDev -1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

On tap at Manito Tap House

Toasted apricot with a solid quilt of fine toasted cream foam. Unusual look for a IIPA. Lots of pine, tangerine, grapefruit (tons of grapefruit), some pineapple, nice dose of underlying biscuity malt with a touch of sweetness. Bitter, metallic, sweet, pine, resin, more resin, some grapefruit peel, some nice spicy hops - really hoppy (haven't said that in a while). Medium bodied with small, sharp fleeting carb leaves a active feeling beer with a character wet almost slick finish. Nice mouthfeel here. Good beer.

Serving type: on-tap

12-31-2012 00:37:39 | More by harrymel

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

JimsArcade

Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a not-quite pale yellow with a moderate head. The aroma of hops are enough to clear your sinuses. The first taste is a veritable hop explosion. With most IIPAs, the drinker becomes accustomed to the extreme bitterness as they continue drinking. This is not most IIPAs: every sip from start-to-finish tastes no less bitter than the rest. If not for the perceptible alcohol presence, you'd be hard pressed to find any kind of malt backbone here.

Without a doubt, "Palate Wrecker" is the most accurate beer name ever created. This is an IIPA that extremophiles will love.

Serving type: on-tap

09-24-2012 19:01:38 | More by JimsArcade

smcolw

Massachusetts

3.88/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Forms a dome-like head that leaves some streaky lace on the glass. The liquid is actually fairly clear with an amber-orange color. It looks terrific.

Very impressive smell with a grapefruit touch. There's almost no more today aroma but that's okay.

Strong hop flavor that gives it a over-the-top bitterness. The alcohol is also large and the carbonation is accurate for the style. Overall, this is an extreme brew.

Serving type: on-tap

08-11-2012 12:55:03 | More by smcolw

Ryan011235

Ohio

2.25/5  rDev -46.3%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

On tap in a tulip at King's Table on 4/14/12

Deep honey amber with layers of brown and sun drenched gold. The head is one thumb of billowy, dense foam. Retention is about a third of that, but solid lace remains over most of the glass.

The aroma is dank hops, oily and piney. Rabid citrus, too - grapefruit and lemon zest. Solvent-like. The mean hop smell is tempered by ample notes of sugar cookie and sweet cracker. Smells like it might be too sweet. Yeaaah... This is going to be hard to finish. Semi-sweet malts swoon up front before being replaced by angry amounts of hops and alcohol. Yikes. I wish I could use the hop descriptors a la the aroma, but this is all scathing, vapidly dry bitterness. Earthy and dirty. Pretty much medicinal-grade bitterness.

Ugh. Full, sluggish feel. Lower than average carbonation is the only reason I can stand finishing this. A bit oily and resinous. Again, brutally dry.

Overall impression - Spiteful just to be. This is a chore to drink.

Serving type: on-tap

08-10-2012 06:48:16 | More by Ryan011235

JDizzle

Indiana

4.3/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Looks like a dream! Bright orange an copper with a huge puffy whit head. Lacing is incredible.

Great nose with a bouquet of hops that are piney, grassy, citrusy, and resinous. I don't get much of a malt presence in the aroma. It's very hop forward!

Fuck me, this has to be one of the most bitter beers I have had. It stings your tongue and the bitterness is still there after eating between sips. Superb flavor with a sweetalt backing that keeps it from being overwhelming.

Mouthfeel is great as well. Medium body with high carbonation.

What a unique beer that I will definitely have again.

Serving type: on-tap

07-26-2012 15:46:58 | More by JDizzle

warnerry

Michigan

4.23/5  rDev +1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours clear orange/ light brown with one finger of off-white head. Head leaves some lacing but doesn't last long.

S - Very citrusy nose, with some pine and some biscuit malt.

T - Big punch of both pine and grapefruit out if the gate. Some biscuity malt is just enough, and doesn't take away from the hop display. Very nice lingering bitter finish. Alcohol is somewhat noticeable.

M - Medium mouthfeel is herbal, grassy and bitter. Slight numbing alcohol.

O - I don't know if my palate was wrecked, but this is definitely a hop showcase and a very enjoyable DIPA.

Serving type: on-tap

07-15-2012 20:55:22 | More by warnerry

BostonHops

Massachusetts

4.23/5  rDev +1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

on-tap at Deep Ellum, Allston, MA - 4/2012
(review from notes)

sits a copper / orange tone in the glass with less than a 1" head remaining upon being served. aromatic nose offers an abundance of citrus / pine hops with a secondary malt presence. no surprises there.

flavor follows as expected with that assertive rush of citric (primarily grapefruit and orange rind) and pine hops follows by some background malt character. very bitter from start to finish. medium-plus bodied on the palate with average carbonation.

overall, as advertised this one bombards the palate with an unmitigated assault of hops. not something i'd want more than one of in a sitting but i like it; will definitely be back for a revisit in the future.

Serving type: on-tap

07-04-2012 21:53:27 | More by BostonHops

OWSLEY069

Pennsylvania

4.03/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a hazy orange-ish color with an off white head. In the aroma, a small pine dry hop. In the taste, big pine like hops and a small note of alcohol in the end. A small bitterness and a medium bodied mouthfeel, with a dry pine hop in the aftertaste. Nice big to mellow pine hops all the way through, quite enjoyable.

Serving type: on-tap

07-03-2012 16:37:06 | More by OWSLEY069

challenja

Virginia

4.55/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Served On Tap at the Black Squirrel in ADMO DC.

A: Orange gobstopper copper with a mellow sunset amber glow.

S: Hoppy sticky resin pine cone. Sweet grapefruit with candied orange bitter leavings.

T: This is one for the Hook Books. You can really taste 6 different Hop varietals flowing through this brew. Ruby red grapefruit forward. Orange rind and sappy pine cone. White confection sugar with coconut biscuit leavings. (tasting alot of biscuit lately...mmmm biscuits...)

M: Really descent medium carbo on this one. Very swisher feel to this one. NOt to heavy, not to light. It's jusssstt right..

O: A real winner for Green Flash. It takes 1st place in my taste book for them, beating out their Imperial and West Coast IPA's. A seriously goof treat for serious IPA coneheads.

Serving type: on-tap

07-02-2012 23:09:02 | More by challenja

SLeffler27

New York

4.03/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Almost clear, dark amber with random carbonation under a big, off-white, long-lasting, foamy head. Ths fine patchy lace leaves a nice screen on a Fisheye Pint glass.

Bold, fresh pine and citrus with some apricot, this one represents the style well.

As one should expect from an IIPA, grapefruit and fresh pine dominate with high bitterness from the entry long into the finish. There is some, but only some, light sweetness.

Full bodied and palate-coating, the alcohol is less than anticipated and it is very dry with modest carbonation.

What’s in a name? This one delivers as advertised. A great hop bomb with tons of flavor and aroma. While difficult to consume, it is well worth the effort. One could discuss this beer at length as it holds up to warming. However, the palate screams for relief.

Serving type: on-tap

06-24-2012 21:16:10 | More by SLeffler27

HopsMalt

4.25/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Nice clear orange / amber appearance with a full frothy head.
S: Citrus / spicy aroma.
T: Intense hop flavor which leads to slight malt flavor at the finish.
M: light mouthfeel with appreciable carbonation.
O: Very good IPA, I love the citrus and strong hop flavor. This is a very good IPA and I would love to drink this again.

Serving type: on-tap

06-24-2012 15:02:44 | More by HopsMalt

righthereisay

Pennsylvania

1.75/5  rDev -58.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1.5

OK, first let me say, that of all types of beer, IPA's are my least favorite. If I would like excessive bitterness, I would choose to chew on aspirin.

I purchased this on tap at a restaurant because it was most bang for your buck. How bad could it be? I've drank plenty of IPAs that are decent, and I'm sure (as any beer) this will go down and be at least OK.

Pours gold/amber. Nice white head (1/2 inch).

Smell: Citrus, pineapple, pine. Not too bad of a smell. At this point, I think it will do the job.

Taste: Ugh. How can you taste it? It is bitter in a glass. Trying to get beyond the bitterness, I tasted pine, maybe some orange peel. It was BAD. I know a lot of folks love this bitterness stuff, but this went too far. Again, if I wanted to taste bitterness, I would chew on my daily aspirin. But nobody does that.

Mouthfeel - Not too much body, probably because the bitterness takes over. I couldn't wait to finish it. At least at 9.5% I will get a little buzz out of the whole experience.

Overall: Obviously my ranking is way out of the norm for this beer. I understand that IPA's are not my thing, but I really cannot understand why anyone would rank this so high. I think any beer company could put a ton of bitterness into their beer. But they also need to have room in there for some complex tastes and a good body. Again, I've drank a ton of IPAs, all better than this one. This was the worst IPA I've ever had.

Only reason I gave overall a 1.5 instead of a 1.0 is because it at least has a lot of alcohol.

Serving type: on-tap

06-17-2012 14:28:41 | More by righthereisay