Cohoho Imperial IPA - Midnight Sun Brewing Co.

TCHopCraver

Michigan

4.05/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Cohoho (very festive) emerges a dark copper-amber-mahogany from the bomber. A scant, light khaki head sits atop the beer and remains as a haze. There are some brown hues in the body, as well. Small carbonation bubbles drift upward at a medium pace. The lacing is pretty sticky, dotty, and amoeba-like.

The aroma has some very nice, rounded citrus notes and is balanced nicely by a pretty hefty malt with some caramel characteristics. Of the three added ingredients, I can smell honey the most, followed by brown sugar and juniper berries. It's a sweet aroma for a Double IPA, but that's to be expected, I guess.

The first sip hits reveals very sweet notes of the honey and brown sugar, supported by the caramel-ly malt bill. I'd say the grapefruit and orange hop notes take a backseat to the sweet elements, but the finish does have a pleasant, resiny hop finish. Pretty good.

Cohoho has a medium-bodied feel for a Double IPA with a very coating sweetness at first. That sweetness is replaced by a decently dry and bitter hop finish. Carbonation is pretty high and complements the flavors well.

I liked this beer more than I thought I might. I wasn't sure how brown sugar, honey, and juniper berries would complement a Double IPA, but it was really a pretty nice flavor. A little sweeter than I generally prefer, but nicely done.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2011 04:10:09 | More by TCHopCraver

Hopmodium

Washington

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

05-22-2013 02:59:17 | More by Hopmodium

drgonzo2k2

California

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

05-19-2013 14:16:42 | More by drgonzo2k2

megamass

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

05-18-2013 04:26:03 | More by megamass

HarmonMW

Michigan

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

05-14-2013 22:36:39 | More by HarmonMW

LoFiDave

California

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

05-11-2013 03:04:50 | More by LoFiDave

Bnoise11

California

4.25/5  rDev +7.9%

03-22-2013 00:24:57 | More by Bnoise11

twelveinches

Washington

4/5  rDev +1.5%

03-17-2013 06:11:38 | More by twelveinches

bluckbeyes

Oregon

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

03-16-2013 06:04:41 | More by bluckbeyes

mjenkins5

North Carolina

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

02-20-2013 02:58:49 | More by mjenkins5

adkieffer

Washington

4/5  rDev +1.5%

02-16-2013 16:06:30 | More by adkieffer

superspak

Michigan

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

22 ounce bottle into tulip glass, no bottle dating. Pours crystal clear reddish copper color with a nice 2 finger dense cream colored head with good retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lingers. Nice soapy lacing clings on the glass. Aromas of orange zest, grapefruit, orange rind, pineapple, lemon zest, juniper, floral, light pine, caramel, honey, brown sugar, grass, and herbal earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of malt and hop notes. Taste of big orange zest, grapefruit, pineapple, orange rind, lemon zest, juniper, floral, grass, caramel, honey, brown sugar, pine, and herbal earthiness. Moderate amount of citrus bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of citrus, citrus zest, pineapple, juniper, floral, caramel, honey, brown sugar, grass, pine, and herbal earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Damn nice flavor balance and complexity; with a great balance of malt/hoppiness; with zero cloying flavors present after the finish. Medium carbonation and medium-full bodied; with a creamy and fairly sticky mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a slight warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is an excellent DIPA. Very nice hop and malt flavor balance and complexity; and very smooth to sip on. A very enjoyable offering.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2013 05:23:25 | More by superspak

CanisMajor

Indiana

4/5  rDev +1.5%

01-29-2013 17:44:19 | More by CanisMajor

kojevergas

California

2.59/5  rDev -34.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2.25 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.75

8.0% ABV confirmed. 22 fl oz brown glass bottle with standard pressure cap acquired earlier tonight and served into a conical Samuel Smith's pint glass in me gaff in low altitude Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California. Reviewed live. Expectations are above average given Midnight Sun's reputation, though I wasn't particularly impressed with TREAT.

Served chilled. Side-poured with standard vigor as no carbonation issues are anticipated.

Not paired with food.

A: Pours a three finger khaki colour head of nice cream and froth, good thickness, and very good (~4+ minutes) retention for the high ABV. Body colour is a clear translucent amber-copper. No yeast particles are visible. No bubble show. It's more amber coloured in the body than most beers in the style; I expected your run of the mill generic copper but I'm pleasantly surprised. Appealing for an IPA. Is it the berries that lend it that colour?

Sm: Floral hop character, light citrus, a bit of hop oil and bitterness, bright berries, spruce, brown sugar, and toasted malts. Almost a bit like a winter warmer meets an IPA. A mild strength aroma and a pleasant one, but it does like the hoppy presence I'd expect from a good IPA; it's not assertive. A bit thin and weak in terms of evoking complex hop notes; there's no pine or grabbing citrus or really notable distinct hop notes. I'm a bit put off, but that may just be expectations.

T: Berries come off artificial. Brown sugar doesn't add much of note. Hop character is generic floral. Way too malty, with toasted character and syrupy amber malt extract emerging as dominant. Hops are not the focus here, to its detriment. Caramel. Quite sugary and sweet. Balance is a mess. It lacks focus. Poorly constructed given the style; where's the hop content? Boring and bland. Disappointing. Lacks complexity and subtlety. I don't get any honey, at least not in the sense that other IPAs feature honey (like Bell's Hopslam or various Dogfish Head beers).

Mf: Thin and undercarbonated, yet smooth and wet. Quite underwhelming. Weak. Terrible palate presence. Unable to support its flavour profile. Sticky and a bit nectary. Quite poorly executed. Almost feels like a cask ale (and I mean that as pejoratively as possible). I do like that it's soft.

Dr: A huge disappointment from Midnight Sun, and a failure for the style. Very overpriced for its lack of quality. I'm quickly losing hope that Midnight Sun will live up to its reputation. I'm in no hurry to buy any of their beers in the immediate future, but I hope they have better offerings than this in their lineup. Not at all recommended. It's just so artificial. I will say that it hides its ABV decently, but there isn't much else going for it. It's drinkable in a general sense; I'll have no trouble finishing the bottle by myself. But I'd sooner reach for a basic Lagunitas or an Alesmith IPA at less than half the price.

C-

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2013 05:38:37 | More by kojevergas

unclekeith

Alaska

4.25/5  rDev +7.9%

01-20-2013 23:22:15 | More by unclekeith

iKrystin

4/5  rDev +1.5%

01-13-2013 21:04:13 | More by iKrystin

EgadBananas

Louisiana

4/5  rDev +1.5%

01-10-2013 13:39:58 | More by EgadBananas

RoryOMoore

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

01-10-2013 02:52:41 | More by RoryOMoore

BWH999

California

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

01-08-2013 23:15:16 | More by BWH999

AxesandAnchors

Oregon

4/5  rDev +1.5%

12-15-2012 04:08:31 | More by AxesandAnchors

C-Dog

3.25/5  rDev -17.5%

11-27-2012 05:32:23 | More by C-Dog

GIVEMEBACKMYSON

Alaska

3.8/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

Deep bronze color and thin head has the look of a good old ale. Pretty scant on the head. Certainly appears filtered.

Smells of those metallic biscuit daffodil spruce that you see growing around these parts.

This is basically a large hop forward ipa flavor profile. Spicy, peppery and prickly. The honey and juniper...i wouldn't have found them if i weren't looking for them to begin with. Slight gun holster flavor to scent mental trigger in the finish as well as a nod to butter popcorn.

Hard to get to riled up about a good mouthfeel in an IIPA but this one fits it just right for what that's worth.

Overall...it's decently drinkable as an IIPA. I had this back in 2008 though and i remember something a heck of a lot more lively and citrusy and that's more my thing I guess.

Serving type: bottle

11-25-2012 06:31:24 | More by GIVEMEBACKMYSON

gshackles

New York

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

11-18-2012 15:57:22 | More by gshackles

sneaks2210

New York

4.25/5  rDev +7.9%

11-17-2012 16:40:25 | More by sneaks2210

strongaf

Washington

4/5  rDev +1.5%

11-16-2012 07:30:48 | More by strongaf