Big Al - Founders Restaurant & Brewing Co.

garthwaite

Virginia

4.45/5  rDev +6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Sampled on tap at the brewery. Copperish Bronze with a gorgeous fluffy white head that slowly disappeared as I finished the pint. Rich, fresh hops in the nose. Some mild sugar and smooth caramel in the back. Delicious flavor with loads of centennial hops taking center stage. Solid bitterness & a nice malt backbone. Medium to full in the mouth with an enjoyable creaminess. Really an excellent double IPA, with all the elements I look for including massive amounts of fresh hops. Smooth drinking brew, it's hard to order anything else. I want more.

Serving type: on-tap

11-20-2004 23:38:14 | More by garthwaite

ppoitras

Massachusetts

4.1/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Enjoyed on-tap at the brewpub. One of the first pints off a fresh keg, presented in a pint glass.

Creamy 1/2" light tan head above this slightly orangey dark amber brew. Laces nicely, with a strong hoppy, alcoholic aroma. Taste is as expected, sweet maltiness quickly countered with a piney hops punch. Mouthfeel is perhaps a bit harsh to start, but settles down, and drinkability is reasonable for the style. Speaking of the style, this seems to be more of a hopped-up barleywine to me than a DIPA, but the lines seem to be drawn in the sand on a wave-laden beach. Nice brew, regardless of the style.

Serving type: on-tap

07-05-2005 20:39:21 | More by ppoitras

ManekiNeko

Virginia

4.18/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Served on tap at the brewpub.

Appearance: Clear reddish amber with an ivory white head that's rather rocky. A thick film of bubbles is retained throughout consumption and thick sheets of lacing were left on the sides of the glass.

Smell: Very piney and citrusy hop aromas with hints of caramel. Passive-aggressive. It creeps up on you with the hops.

Taste: Wonderful blend of citrusy hop juices and caramel malt at first. A slightly harsh piney bitterness on the finish. Kinda detracts from the experience, but only slightly.

Mouthfeel: Nice solid medium body. Lets you know what you're dealing with, abv-wise, but in a kind and gentle manner. Hop burps are good and plenty.

Drinkability: The bitter aftertaste inhibits pounditude, but this is worth seeking out and getting. No growlers... yet. Reminiscent of Arrogant Bastard and Ruination with its hop types. This is all about the Centennials.

Serving type: on-tap

12-06-2004 22:34:34 | More by ManekiNeko

meathookjones

Virginia

4.08/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Had this on tap at the brewpub. This came out a deep amber color with a tall overflowing off white head. Nice lacing was left all around the glass and the head stuck around for a little bit. Aroma was full of citric and earthy hops with an almost equal part caramel malt. Very balanced for a Double IPA. Taste starts off with a sweet caramel maltiness before bitter hops come through. Nice hoppy taste but the sweetness is a bit overdone here in my opinion. The taste is very good and balanced but the limelight is stolen a bit by the sweetness. Mouthfeel is almost full and this does have great drinkability. I plan on having plenty more of these in the future.

Serving type: on-tap

11-23-2004 19:47:02 | More by meathookjones