Elevation - Full Sail Brewery & Tasting Room & Pub

Gueuzedude

Arizona

3.08/5  rDev -14.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

Sampled on tap at 1702, Tucson; August 2011
Arrives from the tap with a frothy, fairly creamy, half-finger thick, pale tan colored head. The beer is a nice copper hue that shows a brilliantly clear, bright copper / gold hue when held up to the light. The nose smells a little stale (first beer from the tap for the day, though subsequent pours were not a lot better), but still a bright citrus character comes through. As the beer warms a cracker like malt character starts to come through.

The beer is nicely bitter with a herbal hop flavor to it as well as a fairly prominent orange zest flavor. Again it has a stale beer flavor to it that really sort of gets in the way of the finish. The body has the nice quaffability, but still enough fullness to carry the hops at least.

Definitely a bit disappointing, there is likely a good beer in here somewhere, but I can’t help but think that this reminds me of the stale beer found left over the next day at a Frat Party.

Serving type: on-tap

02-12-2012 03:25:45 | More by Gueuzedude

Kegatron

Pennsylvania

2.68/5  rDev -26%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2

On tap @ the Full Sail Brewery & Tasting Room & Pub (Hood River, OR) on 8/28/11. Served in a pint glass.

Pours a crystal clear copper, with a ½ finger of bright-white head. This retains with a thin, yet still rich looking retention, which leaves back some thick and foamy swathes of lace. The aroma is floral and leafy, with a flat bitter fruitiness, and notes of pine and spice on the edges. There is some light underlying sweetness here from the malt, while the ABV gives this some heft in the nostrils.

The taste has a lot of pine and bitter fruit up front, which propels resins and spice out into a fairly dry finish. Malts bring balance with some caramel sweetness but it’s only momentary, as the hops are pretty full-on here in the backend of the profile. The mouthfeel is medium to fuller bodied, with a lively crispness that then works itself into more of a smooth creaminess. The alcohol here does start to show itself a bit too much at times, especially in intensifying that strong hoppy finish.

I wasn’t a fan of this one. The hop flavors just had too much of a flat citric bitterness going on with them, needing more definition, but then coming on way too harshly in the finish. The amount of alcohol warmth honestly felt higher than 7.5% as well. I was expecting much more out of this beer and am disappointed that I chose this over a couple of brewery exclusive beers that they had on tap at the time. This was just wasn’t a very good attempt at the style.

Serving type: on-tap

09-13-2011 18:59:34 | More by Kegatron

barleywinefiend

Washington

2.48/5  rDev -31.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

A: Poured a light golden color with some yellow/orange hues

S: Plenty of citrus, hint at big tropical fruit, light booze

T: What the heck happened here? Someone infused my Hi C fruit punch, light caramel with booze and hops. I am looking for a beer, not my daughters Hi C pack here. Way to sweet and am not sure what Full Sail was doing with this.

M: Sweet, medium body, overly fruity

O: Unimpressed

Serving type: on-tap

09-09-2011 19:11:10 | More by barleywinefiend

beertunes

Washington

3.63/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Served in straight pint glass. Poured a clean, very clear, golden amber color with about an inch of off-white head that had very good retention and lacing.

The aromas featured citrus and pine in the front and a bit of floral hops behind them. There was just a bit of malt sweetness to balance things out. The flavors were pretty similar, lots of flavorful hops evened out by just a bit of malt.

The body was pretty typical for the style, perhaps a touch fuller than average. Drinkability was good, my pint disappeared far too quickly. Overall, a pretty good take on the style from brewery that I generally find to be average.Worth trying as soon as you see it.

Serving type: on-tap

06-25-2011 03:27:11 | More by beertunes

Flounder57

Massachusetts

3.55/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

22 oz beer was poured into an imperial pint glass.

Apperance: the beer poured a small head and reduced to a thin layer. It is a hazey orange yellow hue with visions of carbonation coming up through the glass.

Smell: citrus, tangerine, and grapefruit aroma. All followed by bready and caramel notes. Some booze on the nose too.

Taste: Same as above. Lingering bitterness too.

Mouthfeel: smooth, medium carbonation, a little boozey, medium bodied, and easy to drink.

Overall: A good DIPA from Oregon. I like where there is going, but wish there was a bit more malt to back things up. Still an enjoyable brew though.

Serving type: bottle

09-07-2012 03:14:56 | More by Flounder57

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

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

Even though this beer is kind of one dimensional, it still strikes me as well done. The malt is a good foundation and the hop tones provide a heavy and well established accent. Probably seeing the "Imperial IPA" on the label creates an expectation from beer drinkers. We want Pliny, we want this, we want that. There's nothing wrong with a straight forward and somewhat one-dimensional dipa. If it's made well and drinkable, I can dig it. This one is like that. It won't blow you away, but it's still not too bad.

Serving type: bottle

07-30-2012 05:16:02 | More by RblWthACoz

beergoot

Colorado

3.13/5  rDev -13.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Appearance: bright, clear orange body; thick off-white head that lingered to the end with light lacing down the glass.

Smell: sweet malt; citrus and spice hop aroma

Taste: light, bread-like, roasted malt taste; fine bitter finish; mild alcohol warmth

Mouthfeel: medium body; fine carbonation

Overall: A fair enough DIPA. Nothing special per se, but definitely drinkable and worth visiting again.

Serving type: bottle

12-29-2011 21:05:17 | More by beergoot

arizcards

Arizona

3.7/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Picked up a bomber in early October from BevMo for $4.49. Been sitting in my fridge since then.

Beer poured amber with a smallish white head that dissapated quickly.

Nose is major citrus hops.

Taste is forward grapefruit and pine resin hops. Malts take a backup role, providing some balance. In the end this drinks like an IPA.

Mouthfeel is moderately carbonated, medium bodied, not overly smooth.

Overall this is a pretty good IPA. Would imagine this is quite good fresh seeing it was released early summer.

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2011 22:59:56 | More by arizcards

Durge

Connecticut

3.55/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A clean, clear copper color, this DIPA produces a volumnous off-white head with big swaths of lacing. The aroma is a woodsy, nutty pine hop with toffee and some sweet tropical fruit sort of a pineapple deal going on as well. Not warm and fuzzy but interesting and pretty decent. The first taste brings an odd sharp fruit along the lines of the pineapple with lemon brightness. It's peppery and a bit acrid but it still delivers the woodsy pine hop. It's a medium body brew but the feel is closer to being thin and tingly with tiny bubbles. It tends to be more abrasive, grassy & leafy, than tasty but it's a close call. There's a pervasive alcohol presence, though not heavy. It's not my favorite Full Sail so far but it's passable for a little hop pleasure.

Serving type: bottle

12-14-2011 05:17:54 | More by Durge

corby112

Pennsylvania

3.08/5  rDev -14.9%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a hazy dark golden orange color with a minuscule off-white head that immediately fades into a thin ring. Not much in the way of lacing.

Floral hop aroma with subtle earthy pine along with juicy citrus notes and sweet malts. Slight spicy and grassy but the fruit notes dominate the hop profile in the nose. Lots of orange peel along with some mango and grapefruit. Subtle malts with hints of caramel and biscuit.

Medium bodied with a blast of dry, bitter hops up front that linger over the sweeter notes and malt backbone into a bone dry finish. Very earthy with lots of grassy pine dominating the flavor. In opposition to the nose, this beer is more bitter than sweet with faint citrus fruit notes, mostly grapefruit and orange peel. Sweet malt backbone provides decent balance with some caramel and biscuit. Boozy heat toward the end of the palate.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2011 04:27:08 | More by corby112

Chaney

District of Columbia

2.88/5  rDev -20.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

A: Basically poured a gold color, with a mild reddish hue, and the millimeter or so head folded into a slight sawdust-like formation on top of the liquid.

S: Resiny and piney, fairly strong, and with a mild sugar content which lost out to the hops by a lot more than a nose.

T: Despite the nice nose, the taste was sorely lacking and crossed over into booze bomb territory. Additionally, the hop character was greatly muted by an undesirable soapy quality. The more I drank, this started to taste more like an unsuccessful amber than an IPA.

M: The carbonation was low, but okay, but I stated before, the booze was very transparent and killed this experience for me. The lacing was minimal.

O: Well, it got off to a good start, but the follow through was utterly disappointing.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2011 22:03:50 | More by Chaney

bmwats

Louisiana

3.58/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured from a 650 ml bottle into a tulip.

A: Dark golden hue. Pours a slight, bubbly head which disappears quickly leaving only a beer ring. Spotty lacing.

S: Malt, pine, lemon citrus, and pecan shells.

T: Hoppy and piny with a woody body, and very nice bittersweet balance of licorice and butterscotch.

M: Full, but light and refreshing. Pungent throughout with a dry finish.

D: Sip, savor, and enjoy.

Atmosphere is pretty good here. Nice deep golden hue, with a slight head, and a fair amount of spotty lacing which quickly disappears. Nose is malty and piny with a woody tone. Flavor is woody with a really nice hop bite, and just enough balance of bittersweet. Overall, this is a really good quaff.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2011 04:26:14 | More by bmwats

inlimbo77

Delaware

3.5/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

22 bomber bottle with no bottle date. Poured into a Deschutes snifter. Thanks eclipse54!

A: Pours a reddish amber orange. Pretty darn clear. Barely any head, but what was there was fairly white. Some tiny bubbles off the bottom of the glass. Faint lacing.

S: Smells like a malt bomb. Lots of sweetness. The hops are hidden.

T: Shockingly it smells bigger than it is. It's fairly easy drinking. There IS hop bitterness, surprisingly. Right at the tip of the tongue is a sharp bite. The a smooth malt coating balances at the middle. The finish is so what clean.

M: Medium bodied with some mouth coating.

O: I have to go B- on this one. I wish the hops were more pronouced. I got lots of breadiness, so I wonder if it has some age.

Serving type: bottle

11-05-2011 13:24:06 | More by inlimbo77

Cyberkedi

Georgia

4.15/5  rDev +14.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Strong, woody aroma has an overtone of resin and hints of apple. It pours a beautiful clear golden amber with a fairly thick and fine-bubbled pale yellowish tan head. Richly hoppy flavor has a woody note and hints of apple and caramel. Smooth, firm-bodied texture has a strong, edgy tingle and leaves a tingly, woody finish.

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2011 01:16:14 | More by Cyberkedi

bruachan

Rhode Island

3.18/5  rDev -12.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

to anyone who gives a darn, this beer is also of the Brewer's Reserve series

look at that fine head. majestic like the Orgeon peaks that supply the brewery with fresh water (i haven't seen them but Full Sail's website inspired me). hazy bright amber color. lacing is excellent: like a shop window at christmas

smells like C hops, though not of the purely grapefruity sort

malt contribution is evident but withdrawn: i don't think i would want to drink the pale ale version. generally sweetish (no, Tom Green, not Swedish) with some nuttiness

Serving type: bottle

10-26-2011 01:52:58 | More by bruachan

Seanibus

California

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

A tasty and restrained DIPA, with some depth and complexity and not over-the-top.

Pours hazy orange with a lively head and mild lacing. The aroma is sweet and smooth, with a tropical feel - mango, apricot and orange. The flavor is has a smooth papaya character with a deep, sexy musky orange on the back part of the tongue, trailing off to a citrusy bitter tang. The mouthfeel is smooth and thick, like a good fruit puree. There is little on the finish to suggest the strength of the brew, making this potentially a beer to watch carefully when drinking more than one.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2011 01:11:11 | More by Seanibus

setexascustoms

Texas

3.2/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured from a 22oz bomber, no freshness date to be found.

A: Orange with a slight haze (turned out to be mostly chill haze). A quarter inch of white head with no real retention and left minimal lacing.

S: A lot of tropical fruit, not the citrus I usually associate with a West coast DIPA. There was some orange, but dominated by mango and pineapple. A pleasant departure.

T: I get a blended tropical fit flavor right up front, but can't distinguish the individual flavors like I could on the nose. They're quickly washed out by bitter rind that is then accompanied by bold balancing malts. Bitterness lingers through the some what dry finish.

M: Lighter than expected and a little juicy, but starts to dry out toward the finish.

O: Not the most complex DIPA, but it is different. Not necessarily in a good way, but not in a horrible way either. I picked it up for $3.99, a good price for the style, but I reckon you get what you pay for. Not a bad beer, but I probably won't buy it again.

Serving type: bottle

10-06-2011 02:22:33 | More by setexascustoms

yemenmocha

Arizona

3.03/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours dark orange with hint of amber, and slight haze. Small head. Nose is light with hint of candied fruits, reminding me if See's candies. Big flavors but nothing exciting - overripe citrusy hops, plenty of bitterness, and enough malt to keep it from being too unbalanced. Just overall somewhat average.

Serving type: bottle

10-03-2011 02:36:42 | More by yemenmocha

Wasatch

Utah

3.93/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

22oz. Bomber

Pours a nice hazy golden orange color, nice carbonation, nice little fizzy off-white head, with some sticky lacing left behind. The nose is hoppy, with some nice malt notes, slight citrus note. The taste is slighlty sweet, hoppy, malty, and picking up some citrus. Medium Body, the finsh is slightly dry/bitter. Not a bad brew at all, it is definitely not a hop bomb, but does quench the thirst.

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2011 22:00:55 | More by Wasatch

elgiacomo

Georgia

3.73/5  rDev +3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

22oz bottle, unknown date. Served around 45-50F.

Pours hazy orange/amber with a one finger white head that leaves a few spots of lacing and recedes to a light cap.

Aroma is quite citrusy, mostly orange peel, some grapefruit rind and lemon, resinous, hint of pine, good amount of bread and caramel malt. Very good strength.

Flavor is strong resinous hops, orange and grapefruit, pine, relatively strong caramel malt backbone which offers some sweetness and finishes with good bitterness. Alcohol is rather noticeable for a 7.5% brew.

Mouthfeel is medium-plus bodied, oily, strong carbonation.

Very good, but not great DIPA. Strong flavor of orange and citrus. Glad to have tried it.

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2011 16:35:18 | More by elgiacomo

jzeilinger

Pennsylvania

3.68/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours an amber orange color, medium carbonation level, and a thick one fingered head white, creamy head. The head gradually subsides but leaves a thick ring of lacing.

S - Slightly grassy, mild grapefruit and slight traces of oranges along with some pine. A small amount of alcohol is hiding underneath the other aromas.

T - Oranges tickle the tongue up front with fading tartness (not sure how old the bottle is, I could see this being much more tart when it was younger, still pretty enjoyable, though). Caramel malt is light underneath, some grapefruit comes in towards the end to give it a bitter finish. Overall, alcohol and candy tropical fruit are the main flavors going on with a moderately bitter grapefruit and orange finish. There's a slight warming in the throat from the alcohol as well.

M - Medium body with a slight lingering bitter finish. Leaves the mouth coated with minmal caramel, oranges, and grapefruit.

O - This is a good Imperial IPA that's solid and one I could stock in my beer fridge on a regular basis as a staple Imperial IPA. Another thing I like is it won't break the bank, it's very reasonably priced.

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2011 22:03:01 | More by jzeilinger

UnionMade

Colorado

3.6/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Picked up a bomber this evening for $5.
Pours a clear, orangey gold. Not too much in the way of head, just a centimeter or so that dissipates into a patchy dusting almost right away. No lacing, either.
Smells pretty nice, with plenty of dry hopping. Not on the level that I'd expect from a double IPA, more in line with a perkier American IPA. Citric, with some resinous pine notes. Clean pale malt backs things up.
The flavor opens a bit sweeter than I expected. A full, juicy body with mellower than average carbonation. I like lower CO2 levels, so high marks for that. Not sludgy feeling, just big and rich, and a touch oily. Well balanced, with the malt steadying things maybe a little too well. A pleasantly simple, sugary, dough-like malt flavor, with enough hops in the finish to be pungent and citric. The hops do have a lot of flavor, but a bit more bite would be ideal. If i were given a glass without knowing what it was, and asked to say what style it was, I'd say a one and a half IPA. It comes across as a rich, drinkable IPA, but not the bitterness of a double. At 7.5%, the strength is more in line with the top end of a regular IPA. Regardless, it's got good flavor and I don't regret my purchase. No problems killing the bomber in a sitting.

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2011 09:24:11 | More by UnionMade

kagent777

Utah

3.55/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bomber from the Utah system poured into my goblet.

Appearance: A sparkling clear burnt copper beer. The head was maybe one finger tall and then settled to barely ring the edge of the glass. Left no lacing.

Smell: The hops are not overwhelming. They balance nicely with the toasted malts. The hops have a slightly pine and earthy smell, no citrus or floral notes really.

Taste: Middling bitterness mixed with some residual sweetness as the swallow goes down. Again, the hops are not overbearing. They actually mix pretty nicely with the toasty malt quality that I have not seen much in any other IIPAs. The bitter finish last a fair length of time. At 7.5 ABV the alcohol does not really get into the taste.

Mouthfeel: Flavors coating nicely and fine carbonation. The body is also middling.

Overall: This is an OK IIPA, I cant help but compare it to the 90 minute I had a few nights ago, maybe that is a little unfair. There is nothing wrong with it, this beer is simply not as good as the some of the outstanding IIPAs that I can easily get.

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2011 02:51:05 | More by kagent777

hoplover82

Texas

3.28/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

A very underwhelming beer indeed
A-Pours a hazy orange color with a medium, bubbly off white head that fades quickly and leaves a little lacing and only a ring around the rim of the glass.
S-Smells of citrus and floral hops along with some fruit fruit and berry and tangerine notes.
T-The flavor is a let down from the aroma. Has a clean bitterness, but without a lot of hop flavor. Just a resinous general hop flavor, along with some sort of cady tannin like flavor. There is a dry pale malt flavor, but it's just not working for me in the flavor.
M-Medium to full body with a very unpleasant, very dry finish.
O-A dissapointment to have spent the 4 bucks on this beer.... Not recommended

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2011 01:14:19 | More by hoplover82

oberon

North Carolina

3.75/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured into a tulip glass a mix of burnt orange/amber with a nice sticky one finger white crown.I like the mix of juicy orange and apricot hops mixed with a sweet caramel base,so far so good.The palate is a little underwhelming,the sweet alcohol seems to be most dominant with some candied citrus fruit playing a secondary role to that sweet alcohol and caramel/biscuit.A little prickly in the feel of the beer but I will say this is a little different in its orange and apricot-like hop flavors,not bitter at all.It's not bad.

Serving type: bottle

09-23-2011 21:03:41 | More by oberon