Big Eddy Imperial IPA - Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company

TBoneJones

Texas

3.15/5  rDev -18.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Pours a caramel root beer color, with  a minimal head that falls quickly to almost no head.
Smells slight. Pine at first, then, ? A hint of fruit, maybe.
The taste is a little better (meaning much like the smell). Balanced with the malt, this is a smooth blend of the five hops involved here as according to the bottle's label. And I taste some fruit, but all through the dominant malt as I feared.
A bit tangy, not overly bitter on the finish, but also sour to me.
I doubt I'd revisit this brewery's take on an imperial ipa. Quite a sweet ending finish, but with the malt dominating the hops. The color upon the pour should have told me so. Not a fan as I hoped to be. Am I wrong in expecting a DIPA to cater to hop heads? This may as well have been an attempt at an amber/red ale.

Serving type: bottle

09-07-2012 02:55:36 | More by TBoneJones

scaliasux

Wisconsin

2.8/5  rDev -27.5%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 5

Appearance - Clear, medium amber. Medium tall reddish, tan head. Persistent.

Smell - Sweet caramel, molasses, raisin. Surprised to note little hops aroma.

Taste - Much more richly malty than I expected. Hits a range of rich, medium-roast flavors. Dark fruit and molasses most prominently. Citrusy hops are apparent in the finish, though much less prominently that I'd expect from an IIPA. Orange and a hint of resin.

Mouthfeel - Full and creamy. Noticeable alcohol.

Overall - Not being a fan of excessively hopped beers, I actually like this quite a bit. The malt flavors are rich and complex. The hops matches nicely, balances the rich malt flavor, and doesn't overpower. I wouldn't be surprised, though, if some who picked this beer up were looking for something quite a bit different.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2013 03:36:07 | More by scaliasux

HarmonMW

Michigan

3.75/5  rDev -2.8%

05-14-2013 01:12:49 | More by HarmonMW

GarthDanielson

New Hampshire

3.65/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75

Poured from a bottle into a shaker pint, the beer is a vibrant, crystal clear, ruby-tinged copper coloring with a thin, low profile, bright white head that froths the surface. Slow, steady carbonation throughout the body. Aromas of resiny and piney hops, with a subtle citrus tang and a deep, roasted, caramel backbone. Smells balanced and rich. Flavors are resiny and slightly bitter on the forward tongue, with a tart citrus component hitting the outer edges of the taste buds. Rich, sweet caramel backbone holds true throughout, and there is a decent balance of flavors as you drink. Light lacing left on the glass, and the beer has a light to mid-body feel to it. The aftertaste is tangy sweet and slightly spiced, with a lot of the pine and resiny characteristics coming forth again. Clean, slick, slightly drying finish.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2013 02:19:13 | More by GarthDanielson

calcnerd

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +10.1%

05-11-2013 01:18:42 | More by calcnerd

djmichaelk

Florida

2/5  rDev -48.2%

05-07-2013 03:34:47 | More by djmichaelk

shand

Florida

3.9/5  rDev +1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

These Big Eddy brews are always an instant buy for me. Leinenkugel, purveyors of fruited specialties everywhere, putting out "big boy" crafts just strikes me the right way. Big Eddy Imperial IPA looks the part, with an amber body and two fingers of head that retain very well. The aroma has a deep, resinous, piney hop with a big caramel malt presence. The taste really follows the nose, with the deep piney hop presenting some more citrus character, and the big malt doing it's thing. The malt isn't overpowering though, there's a nice sense of balance. The mouthfeel is on the heavy side of medium and the drinkability is solid. Overall, Big Eddy Imperial IPA is a solid attempt at a DIPA, and one that I may pick up again if looking for a maltier brew.

Serving type: bottle

05-06-2013 03:37:25 | More by shand

johnnnniee

New Hampshire

3.7/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Pours a crystal clear deep amber/copper color with a decent sized off white head that quickly dissipates to a cap. Aromas of earth citrus and pine with an almost buttery aroma as well as hints of light sweet fruits and plenty of bread and caramel to fill in the gaps. The flavor is kind of heavy on the malt side of things with sugary and sweet fruits up front. Resinous citrus comes up next, but gets drowned out pretty quickly by the presence of a bit of ethanol. Long sweet lingering finish with a firm earthy hop bitterness. Medium body with a moderate level of carbonation and a sweet almost syrupy mouthfeel. Seems a bit sweet and thick for a double IPA. Tasty brew, but more like a barleywine honestly.

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2013 00:30:15 | More by johnnnniee

spycow

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -2.8%

04-26-2013 23:38:47 | More by spycow

Beergelden

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +3.6%

04-22-2013 11:18:01 | More by Beergelden

Zorro

California

3.63/5  rDev -6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.25

Clear deeply red colored ale. Far from the expected IPA orange something. It is an agreeable shade. Small white colored head.

Smells malty and hoppy with a big menthol and mint scent. Woody and earthy with a bit of mushroom and abundant strong tea scent. Slight plum, fig and melon aromas.

Starts out sweet and a little savory with a strong melon flavor. Slight citrus flavor but this is quite woody. Melon, Citrus and wood, that sums this up.

Mouthfeel is full.

Overall sort of a weird one. Sort of half barleywine and half IIPA. Needs to decide what it wants to be.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2013 22:27:32 | More by Zorro

gatornation

Minnesota

3.25/5  rDev -15.8%

04-17-2013 21:25:40 | More by gatornation

brewdude1982

North Carolina

3.86/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

This was a draft poured into a 10 oz. snifter.

Pours dark amber/rusty brown with a mild head with low retention. It has a sweet pine aroma as well as something metallic/inorganic. It has a well balanced malt and hop character which was a little surprising since it was an imperial ipa. It seems that all too often it's one or the other with this style. However I could have had more on the hop end. Medium body with medium hop character. It was slightly dissapoint in but only since it was listed as an imperial.

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2013 21:06:39 | More by brewdude1982

Whiskeydeez

Kansas

3.5/5  rDev -9.3%

04-17-2013 16:59:24 | More by Whiskeydeez

Geegar

Wisconsin

3.65/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Picked up as part of a pick- six.

A - Poured into a tulip. A deeper color than expected, almost red. Nice head, maybe a bit more than a finger with a creamy color. Head stuck around for a while, longer than expected.

S - A pungent citrus, with a bit of pine. A nice pleasant aroma from a Leinie.

T - Bitter up front that was quickly taken over by a tremendous sweetness. A little too sweet for my liking, but not overwhelming. Whatever malt was there was covered by the sweet.

M - A nice feel. Thought it would be a tongue-coater after tasting the sweetness, but went down smooth. Not overly carbonated in the mouth.

O - Not quite as nice as lest years batch, but still worthy. I think the Big Eddy Stout is a fine RIS and was hoping this Imperial would match the quality. Still better than the majority of what Leinenkugels produces.

Serving type: bottle

04-16-2013 01:17:22 | More by Geegar

bacher468

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev -9.3%

04-06-2013 16:19:59 | More by bacher468

beerthulhu

New Jersey

3.61/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

2012.

A: Pale apple skin coloring, sharp clarity with a very faint display of carbonation. 1/2inch frothy head barley yellow with a short span of retention. Light spacious speckled lacing.

S: Sweet caramelized pine on the nose. Lemony honeysuckle spicy flowers are fresh, and light in nature.

T: Boozy caramel is the first impression. Spicy floral, lemony scotch-pine. A strong malt character, the alcohol is a bit high perhaps overshadowing the hops character. A good warmth, some woodsy pine and cypress notes.

M: Nice malt fullness, quiet carbonation, good deal of alcohol warmth.

O: Overall decent flavor, though hoppiness suffers at the hands of higher alcohol. The hops dont appear bright, rather subdued and stands in the back of the room to the alcohol and malt.

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2013 23:33:12 | More by beerthulhu

skaboom420

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev -9.3%

04-04-2013 20:53:16 | More by skaboom420

bcm75

Illinois

2.75/5  rDev -28.8%

04-02-2013 00:54:44 | More by bcm75

CTJman

Connecticut

3/5  rDev -22.3%

03-28-2013 02:10:42 | More by CTJman

ChrisMon02

Ohio

3/5  rDev -22.3%

03-17-2013 16:21:22 | More by ChrisMon02

Gschaf

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +16.6%

03-13-2013 23:48:39 | More by Gschaf

Pensfan0782

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +16.6%

03-13-2013 22:24:32 | More by Pensfan0782

Zachtheporter

Wisconsin

4/5  rDev +3.6%

03-13-2013 05:20:36 | More by Zachtheporter

OliverBlaze

Wisconsin

4.35/5  rDev +12.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Leinies has really done it this time. Living only 10 minutes away from this brewery, I was excited to hear that they would be releasing an IPA. As soon as I spotted it on the shelves of my local store, I snatched it right up. From the bottle it had a surprisingly fruity taste, distinct hop presence, along with a strong malt backside. Leinenkugel's does an excellent job of masking the sturdy 8.2% alcohol content as the beer tastes delicious. Each sip encourages the next and soon you are wishing that this was available in more than a four pack. My only beef is the ritzy price tag. Nonetheless a great brew. Go get it.

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2013 00:57:36 | More by OliverBlaze