Outburst Imperial IPA - Pyramid Breweries, Inc.

constantine_272

Oregon

3.65/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

A: Copper in color with mostly white foam. Sticky foam, but most of it disappeared quickly. Decent carbonation.

S: Straightforward hop and citrus. Not much else there that I'm getting.

T: Nicely balanced considering the high alcohol. Tangy strong hop and lemon notes the a bit of roasted grain to balance it out. Good zest unless from the carbonation adds tanginess without bitterness. The taste finishes off with a bit of orange peel.

M: Pretty good here. The bitterness is good but it still maintains some lightness. Nice balance for 8.5% alcohol.

O: Overall it's hard to give a beer with this much hop and this much alcohol a great score. It felt one dimensional at first but then I discovered the orange peel flavor halfway through which kept me interested and gained back a few points. In the end though, it just wasn't for me. The hops cover most of the booze, but at the cost of complexity.

Serving type: on-tap

02-20-2013 02:25:20 | More by constantine_272

scottfrie

California

2.85/5  rDev -24.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.25 | overall: 2.25

On-tap at the brewpub in Sac.

A: Body is deep amber color, darker than I was expecting; looks almost like a brown ale. Served with no head, although a thin one was present at the time of the pour because there is an empty space at the top of my glass.
S: Fairly substantial grapefruit scented hops with sweet and roasted smelling malt undertones.
T: Not as juicy as the nose but still full of grapefruit and ambiguous citrus. The finish is a very bitter but bit rough and astringent with just the slightest bit of alcohol warmth noticeable. I’m getting tons of roasted malts in the aftertaste.
M: Medium body with lots of amply fizzy carbonation. Not especially smooth.
O: Bitter and straightforward but unbalanced and tough to drink. Probably won’t try this again.

Serving type: on-tap

02-20-2013 01:02:20 | More by scottfrie

Bagoosh

California

3.25/5  rDev -14%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

I would consider this taste more malty than hoppy. I am more of a hop fan, so it was not my favorite IPA. If you prefer a malty taste you will enjoy this one. It's pretty strong with a good alcohol content, but again, too much of a malty taste. I would drink it again, but prefer others.

Serving type: on-tap

02-19-2013 22:56:05 | More by Bagoosh

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.71/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

A 20oz pint in the speakeasy-esque confines of The Underground tap-house, on cheap strong beer day, no less!

This beer appears a hazy, medium golden amber colour, with one finger of foamy, bubbly dirty white head, which leaves a nicely rendered pattern of honeycomb lace around the glass as it slowly seeps away.

It smells lightly of grapefruit and zesty orange pith, a bit of lemon Pine-sol, bready caramel malt, mildly zingy, metallic spice, and a further simmering booziness. The taste is moderately bitter citrus and leafy pine resin, crackery, lightly caramelized malt, a touch of sourdough bread, a rising Yuk-a-Flux warming, and a slight hard water minerality.

The carbonation is average, as in duly supportive, the body a sturdy medium weight, and smooth, but with that nipping hop caveat. It finishes off-dry, the malt stepping it up a level or so, as the hops go to town with their fruity qualities.

An agreeable enough DIPA, the hops sort of blowing their already under endowed hop bitterness quotient a bit too early in the game, leaving the fruitiness to hold the bag. The booze is mostly well integrated, just manifesting in a subtle dryness, one that goes a long way in engendering a desire for another round of this offering.

Serving type: on-tap

01-21-2013 23:45:27 | More by biboergosum

Philousa

California

3.65/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Served on tap at the Pyramid Brewery in Berkeley. Arrived to me with little to no head and the clear pint glass showed how deep red the beer is. Citrus and hoppy nose gave the overall impression of a bright beer.Tasted caramel up front, then citrusy and bitter, fading to an acidic aftertaste. The beer is watery and the hoppy bitterness lingers on the back of the tongue.

I went on the brewery tour with some friends and our guide told us that Outburst is out of season, but they brewed it for the GABF competition and had some kegs leftover. We all felt special. Pyramid does a good job hiding the alcohol level in this DIPA, but I felt that they do it mostly in the aroma, which is completely unique. It's also one of the most acidic beers I've had, probably due to the dry-hopping, which also played a role in masking the ABV. This is a bright beer that fades to acidic. It's lacking something to give it that kick over the edge, but it's an interesting beer and I'll definitely buy a sixer when it's in season.

Serving type: on-tap

09-12-2011 14:53:22 | More by Philousa

alexhahn82

California

3.38/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A--- Medium golden brown amber, .5 finger head.

S -- Malty with a hint of sweetness, nothing too crazy.

T/M - Meh, nothing that will knock your socks off, but considering this is a Pyramid brew (not bashing, just saying) this beer is very hoppy with a medium to heavy malt, decent ABV that is hard to taste.

Overall: Nothing to write home about, but at the same time, take a few notes. Hoppy with a lot of malt but for an IIPA this one is medium in quality (in a good way)

PP (Price Point) - Very nice, but its on tap at my father in law's house so I didn't pay a dime, PP= indeterminable.

Serving type: on-tap

06-05-2011 03:05:36 | More by alexhahn82

jdense

Oregon

3.9/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at EOU Faculty Lounge, The Big, OR, poured into slightly chilled shaker pint glass, $4 a pint, 6.3.11.

One finger foamy white head, small bubbles, medium dissipation with very good lacing. Deep gold clear body, a bit of chill haze, multiple streams of slow rising carbonation. Nose is more citrus than tropical, good dose of piney resins, hard to pick up malt profile. Taste is hop forward following the aromas with a wicked creeper bitter finish which got more aggressive as the beer warmed. Medium mouthfeel, decent effervescence. While I thought the hop profile was muddled a bit, this is certainly worth a try for fans of the style.

Serving type: on-tap

06-04-2011 14:15:14 | More by jdense

inthebeeraisle

Oregon

2.68/5  rDev -29.1%
look: 2 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Had this on tap at the Mactarnahan's taproom. 16 oz. pint glass.

A: A pretty flat looking beer without much bubbles. Pours a orange hay color.

S: This beer smells like real grassy hops. A big aroma that brings you back for more. Intriguing.

T: A hoppy beer with little sweetyness considering the ABV. Not enough balance to get me excited.

M: This is a dense feeling beer. The grassy hop flavor lingers long enough that I wait a little while between sips.

D: I wouldn't order this beer again. Glad I tried it, but unimpressed overall. Just too much lack of malt backbone to go with the big dense hop flavor.

Serving type: on-tap

02-02-2011 00:16:05 | More by inthebeeraisle

Bfarr

Washington

3.28/5  rDev -13.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Clear orane-amber with thin tan head with good lacing and okay retention. Caramel and grapefruit aromas. Big grapefruit with a balanced caramel finish. The balance starts to tips toward the malts by the end. Okay bitter linger that does not last too long. Alcohol is well blended with a sharp carbonation and feel.

The server said this one was 10% abv which I seriously doubted by the end of the glass. This isn't too bad of an DIPA especially if you like a little more balance in your beer. The hops are fairly one dimensional and there's a little too much on the malt side for me but it's pretty well crafted.

Serving type: on-tap

08-29-2010 13:44:06 | More by Bfarr

djbreezy

Washington

3.9/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured at MacTarnahan's Taproom in Portland, OR.

appearance - poured a very clear amber color, 2 finger head that settled quickly, not much lacing at all

smell - chinook and centennial dominate the nose as well as some of the malts, very sweet

taste - all of the dominant nw hop and malt varieties are here, but there is a chemical taste and lack of organic presence here

mouthfeel - medium body, good carbonation

drinkability - something was missing in this, maybe an organic flavor, the aftertaste isn't my favorite for an iipa

Serving type: on-tap

04-30-2010 14:26:22 | More by djbreezy

lighthabit

Oregon

3.74/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

great head, dies down to a solid thin layer, leaving sticky lacing (it gets a 4 for the lacing) all the way down the side. deep orange color with a hint of garnet. up front oily hops, citrus but not much in the grapefruit range, which i rather like. nose has some minty/bready something-or-other fighting with the fruits that throws me off a bit. good body, again, a pleasant oiliness/thickness that make s it stand out from others i've had. especially at this price, a great one on which to stock up.

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2013 03:40:53 | More by lighthabit

Brenden

Ohio

3.99/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

A sort of burnt, heavy dark orange in color, this beers develops a creamy yellow-tan head on top. Retention is pretty good, but what's most impressive is the creaqmy lacing that leaves a thick ring at the top of the glass followed by webby legging that follows most of the rest of the way down.
Tropical fruits do kind of burst, like...out, at least on the nose. It's followed by citrus bitterness and resin with a little mint. Malts balance but let hops take senter stage.
The taste follows suit, with maybe a bit more dryness sneaking in there and more mintiness going into the finish. Otherwise, though, all the tropical fruits, citrus, zest and resinous notes are in there.
The feel is crisp in a medium body that perhaps leans just a little light. Carbonation and crispness make for almost a frothy creaminess.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2013 22:57:13 | More by Brenden

brodericksloth

Oregon

3.99/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

amber orange color; three finger off white full head good lacing; citrus clean dry hopped dipa: mango, spice (peppery) some chewy pines, grapefruit and orange zest. medium crystal grain not over baked nice malt background; hop dominated but not to the point of taking the slickness off your teeth . some alcohol hotness as it warms but pretty well hidden for 8.5% abv. would be good to try on tap to take a little of the bite off.
very good beer for the price...

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2013 19:29:24 | More by brodericksloth

JayWhiteNM

New Mexico

5/5  rDev +32.3%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

A: Beautiful copper/amber color. Very clear.

S: Citrusy pine armoa.

T: Good upfront bitterness. Lingering warmth and pine notes.

M: Crisp and refreshing.

O: I love this beer and the price really doesn't hurt either. This is a great "everyday" DIPA.

Serving type: bottle

04-26-2013 00:42:24 | More by JayWhiteNM

stewart124

Ohio

3.86/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75

12oz bottle with a freshness date or drink by 011113. Oops.

Amber in color with a slightly off white head.

Nose had plenty of pine, minty characters and citrus.

Huge background bitterness with white pepper and citrus hitting me first. Some tropical fruit but lots of spicy bitterness and most is perceived as it was an early addition. Bread notes throughout. Some slight caramel but it is ever so slight.

The alcohol is masked well. This feels big in body but still drinks well. A nice example that doesn't seem to be driven by huge citrusy hops.

Serving type: bottle

04-25-2013 01:45:48 | More by stewart124

arizcards

Arizona

3.78/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Picked up 2 singles at Total Wine at the end of March for $1.49 a bottle. Best by 05/08/13.

Beer poured a hazy orange with a billowy white head that has some pretty awesome hang time.

Nose is herbal with a slight hint of citrus.

Taste is pine, grapefruit, slightly herbal, and a hint of liquid bread. Finish is resiny. It is kind of all over the board but in a good way.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied and pretty smooth.

Overall a pretty good beer that has a lot of hop profiles going on. Definitely tasty and one i would do again. Definitely a bargain at $6.49 for a sixer.

Serving type: bottle

04-20-2013 00:45:26 | More by arizcards

JayQue

Virginia

3.33/5  rDev -11.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

A fairly mild DIPA. Tastes pretty good but the aroma is lacking. Mouthfeel is a bit light for a DIPA. Pours a slightly hazy golden amber. Takes a hard pour to get a medium size head. Average retention and some bands of lacing.

Aroma is almost completely lacking for a DIPA. A little piney hops, thats about it.

Taste had a decent amount of bitterness and a resinous piney hops taste. Nothing complex but a nice light bitter beer.

Mouthfeel is a hair light for a DIPA. Still crisp with a good amount of bitterness and a little piney oiliness.

Not a memorable DIPA, but it stood up well to the curry I made tonight. Think I will stick with some of the hop bomb DIPAs.

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2013 00:25:10 | More by JayQue

mfnmbvp

Illinois

3.9/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz. bottle, with enjoy by 04/03/2013 printed on the top label. A new beer for me, and got this six pack on sale from the local beer store for $3.99. Poured into a Firestone Walker pint glass.

A - Semi-aggressive pour yields about three fingers of doughy, fluffy, khaki / tan colored head. Body is a burnt sienna orange color with plenty of bubbles rushing to the top, and some light sediment floating around. Scattered lacing.

S - Some bitter sweet citrus hops, like grapefruit, mango and papaya, but kind of faint smelling. Strong malt profile, reminiscent of a barleywine. A subtle nose, with not a whole lot of action happening.

T - Some spicy hop bitterness, and alcohol heat is most prominent with this one. Some nail polish remover alcohol astringency happening here, which isn't exactly appealing. Juicy bitter grapefruit rind, some blood orange, and a dry bitter finish. I wish I had some cheese to pair with this.

M - Feel is sticky, with some resinous hop lingerance. Finishes fairly dry with some sugary fruit tastes lingering around also.

Overall, not a beer I would want to pay full-price for, but it was definitely a decent buy for 4 dollars a six pack. A fairly simple, bitter, dry-hopped imperial IPA. An easy sipping imperial IPA, with a highly bitter hop presence. I got an entire case of these bad boys for just $15, so you definitely can't go wrong at the price this beer is selling for. A definite must have beer.

Pyramid Outburst Imperial IPA ---4/5

Serving type: bottle

04-16-2013 21:58:20 | More by mfnmbvp

dogfishandi

New York

3.29/5  rDev -13%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 2.75

12 oz twist off bottle at fridge temp poured into a snifter. No freshness info.

Pours out a hazy dark orange almost red color with a skim, somewhat retentive off white colored layer of head. Spotty lace only after a sip. Just a touch of alcohol legs are noticeable if you look hard enough.

Smells almost more malty than it does hoppy, similar to an American barleywine. Some old, maybe faded herbaly hops, woody pine. Becomes more leafy and a hint boozey as it warms.

Again, very malty, lots of chewy, sweet caramel malts are almost in balance with herbal, woody pine hops. A bit of dry grapefruit citrus bitterness in the finish. Quite a bit of alcohol warmth considering what this is.

Thick, sweet, and chewy. Resiny. It has an IPA bitterness, but the sweetness from the malt seems to throw that off a bit.

This might be a touch more hoppy if it was really fresh, but still probably not so in a way that it would become anymore enjoyable. Not my thing and not something ill come back to.

Serving type: bottle

04-15-2013 16:31:09 | More by dogfishandi

mpedara429

Massachusetts

3.34/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 2.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Opened the bottle with a bottle cap opener only to find out it was a screw top. Fail.

A: Poured out a slightly hazy amber color. Less than a finger of white head. There was very little lacing and head retention even with a vigorous pour.

S: Pine, grapefruit, and floral/herbal spiciness along a toffee malt backbone

T: Very much like the smell. I'm getting more citrus like orange in the taste.

M: Medium body that is very chewy with medium carbonation.

O: Interesting concept. It feels a lot like a budget IPA, but it is imperial. The spiciness in this one makes it a bit unique. Not great, but not bad either. I could see myself wanting to bring a six pack of this to a party or something.

Serving type: bottle

03-20-2013 03:14:20 | More by mpedara429

dpodratsky3

Georgia

3.9/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into pint glass

A: Aggressive pour yields a thick and creamy looking 1 finger head, beer is not totally clear darker orange, I would say copper but not quite bright, head receeds to about .5 finger

S: Has that distinctive aroma that is a combination of sweet caramel malt and resiny hops that combines to smell like one aroma, good though, a tad sweet

T: Tastes about like I expected from the aroma, the balance shifts distinctly towards bitter hops, which is good, too often malt dominates these beers because of the crystal malt, that sweet toffee is still there for balance and blends with the resin, assertive bitterness finishes with a little tingle in your mouth, a well proportioned imperial IPA but lacking a little bit of that hop flavor punch that we've come to expect from the top DIPAs

M: Strong carbonation to keep the heavy flavors from sitting on your tongue, almost masks the mouthfeel which is dry but medium body

O: As I mentioned, a well balanced DIPA (as in correctly proportioned, not even between hops and malt), but lacks that flavor punch. It has the bitterness necessary.

Serving type: bottle

03-20-2013 01:49:35 | More by dpodratsky3

snohojimbo

Washington

4.19/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I really like this beer. As a lover of IPA's, this is, along with Deschutes Inversion, Red Hook's Longhammer, Scuttlebutt's Gale Force, or New Belgium's Ranger, one of my "daily" drinkers.

One of the advantages of this beer is that is just as good from a bottle as it is from a glass. Why drink from the bottle? Well, when I am out biking or hiking in the great Northwest, I like to take a beer or two along, and its tough to pour into a glass on the trail! :^)

Serving type: bottle

03-14-2013 02:56:51 | More by snohojimbo

drpimento

Wisconsin

4.24/5  rDev +12.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.25

Big beer! Poured this at a good temperature with a large, thickl, foamy, frothy, light tan head that settled after a bit and some lace. Color is a clear honey amber with loads of bubble trails. Aroma is firstly hoppy, then malty and on the subdued side especially for as brash a beer as this. Flavor has a lot more going on tho it too, is dominated by hop and followed by malt. Fairly dry, and the carbonic tang is just right. Body is perfect. Finish is very long and bitter.

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2013 03:46:49 | More by drpimento

RyanTeeter

New York

4.18/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Drank from a bottle via a pint glass.

a: The appearance was transparent however not crystal clear. Slight haze to it. Vigorous pour led to a thin head that disappeared within a minute.

s: Wonderful aroma. Full of citrus and floral hop. Wonderful smell - could not get my nose out of the bottle.

t: Great taste. Sweet flavor paired perfectly with the bitterness of several hop flavors.

m: Mouthfeel truly added to the overall flavor as flavor rushed into every crevice within my mouth. Slightly heavy feel to the tongue, flavor lingers just long enough to allow time in-between drinks.

o: I am not always an IPA fan however this Pyramid Outburst Imperial IPA was fantastic. It wonderfully balanced the intense hop flavors with their blended malts to truly give a wonderful experience.

Currently my highest rated beer.

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2013 01:41:18 | More by RyanTeeter

Darkmagus82

Montana

3.84/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75

Poured from bottle into a snifter

Appearance – The beer pours a very nice orange color with some ruby highlights. Upon pouring there is only a tiny white head that fades almost instantly with very little lacing on the glass.

Smell – The aroma is sweet of tropical fruit aromas. Lots of tangerine mango, papaya and banana are most prominent. Along with these fruit smells are smells of toffee and some bready malt with a lightly boozy aroma rounding them all out.

Taste – The taste begins with a biscuit and light caramel flavor. With these flavors is a moderate grapefruit hop flavor that grows stronger as the taste moves on. While the caramel flavors fade after the initial taste some light tropical flavors of papaya and mango and some tangerine. These flavors are rather light and are soon subdued by a pine hop as well as a slightly boozy taste. A rather bitter and resinous pine and grassy flavor come to the tongue at the end largely taking over the taste to leave their mark on the tongue when all is said and done.

Mouthfeel – The body of the beer is rather average in its thickness and creaminess with a carbonation level that is rather average as well. Ok for the style although a slightly thicker body may have highlighted some of the hop taste more appropriately.

Overall – A moderately good double IPA. The aroma was quite nice although it was a bit deceiving as the taste was more bitter and less fruit balanced as would have been perceived. It does however give a nice hoppy bite to the taste buds at the end of the taste and is rather enjoyable to drink overall.

Serving type: bottle

03-08-2013 01:33:20 | More by Darkmagus82