Saranac Imperial IPA
Matt Brewing Company / Saranac Brewery

Saranac Imperial IPASaranac Imperial IPA
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From:
Matt Brewing Company / Saranac Brewery
 
New York, United States
Style:
Imperial IPA
ABV:
8.5%
Score:
87
Avg:
3.87 | pDev: 10.34%
Reviews:
26
Ratings:
73
Status:
Active
Rated:
Apr 30, 2016
Added:
Apr 25, 2015
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  10
Saranac Imperial IPA is brewed with a variety of hops to give it the big hop aroma and flavor of an Imperial IPA. At 85 IBUs and 8.5% alc/vol, this is a beer that truly meant to be savored.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by bigflatsbeerman:
Photo of bigflatsbeerman
Reviewed by bigflatsbeerman from New York

4.73/5  rDev +22.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75
Appearance - Light amber color with 15 finger head which dissipates fairly quickly

Smell = citrus and somewhat piney. This is a great smelling beer.

Taste = Taste similar to the smell is very pleasant citrus and a little piney. A definite taste of alcohol, but not boozey which for me would be a hands down bad attribute.

Mouthfeel - Medium body, carbonation is good.

Overall - A very solid offering from Saranac. I will buy this again and again. Just finished my last one from a 4 pack and I'm tempted to go out and buy more now.

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May 31, 2015
More User Ratings:
Photo of BeerNinja007
Reviewed by BeerNinja007 from New Hampshire

3.4/5  rDev -12.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 3.25
I obtained a 4 pack of 12oz bottles from McKinnon's grocery in Portsmouth, NH for $10.99. Code "3534 15:42" printed on the neck. Poured cold into a tulip.

Moderately strong pour yields 1/2" of fizzy eggshell head with good retention. Brew is an opaque golden orange color. Smell is a nice balance of sweet light crystal malt and a big dose of floral lemony hop. The first sip hit my tongue and felt a lot sweeter than I expected, but a couple sips in the hops took over and evened it out. The body is moderately thick with a sugary kind of slickness. Malt character is notably absent. The hops are mostly a generic bitterness with hints of floral and tropical stuff around the edges. Finishes with generic bitterness and sugary slickness lingering on the tongue for quite a while.

Not a bad brew except for the lack of malt. The body is kinda disappointing. I wish I got a single instead of a 4 pack.
Apr 30, 2016
Photo of Marraybay
Reviewed by Marraybay from District of Columbia

3.6/5  rDev -7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Look: Golden; Not much head. Some cloudiness. No noticeable lacing
to speak off.

Smell: Vinous:

Taste: Vinously sweet with grape and orange notes along with booze; bitter
grapefruity finish that lingers.

Feel: Non-descript

Overall: Interesting; Like this one a bit more than other DIPA's I've tasted
recently. Has a grape and or an orangey component upfront, which kind
of differentiates it somehow. Would drink another; (DFH 90 min still king).
Jan 26, 2016
 
Rated: 3.5 by gbw5009 from Massachusetts

Dec 26, 2015
Photo of Damian
Reviewed by Damian from Massachusetts

4.53/5  rDev +17.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Drank from a 12 fluid ounce bottle
Served in a snifter
Thanks to my friend Zac for bringing this to our place.

Beautiful appearance. The hazy, glowing orangey-amber liquid was topped by a tight, creamy, finger-tall cap of light tan foam. The head eventually fell to a frothy mass of bubbles. Patchy lacing coated the glass. By the end of the session, the lacing turned into a thick, craggily latticework.

The nose had a very British hop character initially. Earthy hops and zesty orange notes were balanced by biscuity malts. Somewhat bready. Fairly sweet. Later, the biscuity malt character subsided and the juicy orange notes intensified. This reminded me a lot of straight up orange juice. The malts still lent a lot of sweetness however. Almost a bit candy-like. As the beer warmed, the nose really intensified. Peach and apricot notes came forth. Some juicy tangerine as well. Fantastic.

Orange notes also came through strong in the flavor profile. Juicy and fruity. The beer was anchored by a stiff malt backbone. A bit more sweetness than I typically like in a hoppy beer but still pretty well balanced. White grapefruit appeared in the finish. Just a touch of bitterness but not a hint of alcohol. As the beer sat, peach and tangerine notes came forth. Nice sweet-tart combo. Really solid overall.

The mouthfeel was very creamy and frothy. A fine, zippy carbonation gave the beer a smooth suppleness. Medium to full bodied for the style and impressive considering the relatively low ABV.

Saranac's "High Peaks Collection" Imperial IPA really took me by surprise. This beer's combination of intensely juicy citrus notes and firm malty sweetness reminded me of a improved rendition of an old school East Coast-style DIPA or some of the better Midwest and West Coast hoppy beer I have come across. Simply put, this is definitely worth seeking out.
Dec 21, 2015
Photo of Treyliff
Reviewed by Treyliff from West Virginia

4.12/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
12oz bottle poured into a tulip

A- pours a deep golden color with a one-finger foamy white head that has good retention and a touch of lacing

S- citrus, piney & earthy hop aroma, notes of citrus peel, guava & grass.

T- big tropical fruit notes up front with flavors if mango, guava & passionfruit, even some pineapple. Underlying malty notes of caramel and bread. More tropical hop on the finish

M- medium-viscous body and medium carbonation produce a foamy mouthfeel and a creamy finish

O- really enjoyed the tropical hop notes, making it cutler drinkable
Dec 06, 2015
Photo of gopens44
Reviewed by gopens44 from Virginia

3.58/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
This one looked fairly normal upon pour, with it's decent sized white foam head atop the crystal clear yellow-ness. Lacing is somewhere between lazy and slightly interested. Nose is very much reminiscent of an IPL, as I get noble hop and spiciness. Taste follows suit identically, which makes me double check the style - nope, not an IPL.
Nov 09, 2015
Photo of barczar
Reviewed by barczar from Kentucky

3.68/5  rDev -4.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
No idea of the age on this one, but guessing the clearance sticker gives some indication that it's likely past its prime.

Extremely floral aroma, touch of muddled tropical fruit and grapefruit that have blended with the very sweet caramel malt backbone. Touch of sherry and soft cardboard present.

Flavor is about as sweet as the aroma promised, and the faded fruity hops can't counter enough, but they lead into a moderately bitter, resiny finish that cleanses the palate a bit. Becomes a bit perfumey as it warms.

Would like to try this fresh.
Nov 04, 2015
 
Rated: 4 by Barnsley from Pennsylvania

Oct 31, 2015
 
Rated: 3.81 by craigdb from Pennsylvania

Oct 26, 2015
Photo of DavidS333
Reviewed by DavidS333 from Virginia

5/5  rDev +29.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Saranac Imperial IPA is a great Double/Imperial and has been on my list for a bit. The smell of the beer is tasty and refreshing and to be quite honest, smells really good. It hints of the flavor of the beer as it suggests the presence of not only Alpha hop acid, but Beta hop acid aswell, more on this in a moment.

The froth of the beer is what one might come to expect from an American Double/Imperial beer/ale, namely, there isn't much of it. The body isn't too thick, but is semi-thick, perhaps about 3/4 of the way to medium on a scale of light/medium/thick. The beer's color is a translucent but not transparent, harvest orange.

The beer's flavor is really quite unique for the American Double/Imperial genre in that I believe that they have managed to pull off quite an impressive feat. It is perhaps somewhat well known, that Alpha hops acid, often reflected in a beer's IBU count, is the bitter and pain relieving side of hops, while the Beta hops acid brings to bear the fragrant flowery side of hops giving beer its sweetness, florid smell etc.

This beer is unique I think in a sense, because it manages to still pull off the American Double/Imperial, semi-thick tasty side of the beer, all the whilst keeping the Beta hops acid flavor of florid sweetness sort of cocooned into a corner of the taste. Hence while one may be used to a variety of different Alpha hops acid tastes in a Double/Imperial beer/ale(which can be very rich), this beer somehow manages to bring that bitter side of hops to bear, but sort of schmoozes it in with a sort of suggestion of beta hops sweet floridness, hence giving the beer a sort of semi-sweet coating to the otherwise rich Alpha-hop body of flavor and hence sort of blankets the otherwise bitter hops acid present in the beer.

In effect, one might argue that this beer brings in the sort of taste of a beer like the Kenyan "Tusker" for example, and sort of covers over the Alpha hops bitterness initial "bite" with said beta-hop-acid taste, making for a very diverse and flavorful American Double/Imperial. It is semi-impressive in that this isn't often found in an American Double/Imperial, and hence I would encourage anyone to try this beer, for I believe it represents a unique and quite good take per se, on the American Double/Imperial genre of beer. A great tasty and satisfying American Double/Imperial.

For a similar type of beer, one might want to try some of Weyerbacher's American Double/Imperial style beers/ales.
Oct 11, 2015
Photo of rapayn01
Reviewed by rapayn01 from Kentucky

3.75/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Jungle Jim's made an offer I couldn't refuse: $4 for a four pack of bottles! The beer featured a big hop taste, but it was also pretty boozy as many imperials are.
Sep 23, 2015
 
Rated: 3.72 by trxxpaxxs from New York

Aug 26, 2015
Photo of papat444
Rated by papat444 from Canada (QC)

3.75/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Flashback #157
Aug 18, 2015
 
Rated: 4 by weezarc from Maryland

Aug 18, 2015
 
Rated: 3.99 by JDizzle from Indiana

Aug 14, 2015
Photo of scotorum
Reviewed by scotorum from Massachusetts

3.87/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Became intrigued by the ads I've seen for this new Matt Brewing offering over the past months. Bought recently as a single in another part of my state, we seldom see Saranac anywhere anymore. They seem to have pulled in their distribution footprint somewhat.

Bottling code suggest this dates back to mid-December 2014. So it's very old for an IIPA.

a: Clear amber with an inch thick white head which receded to thin surface foam and patchy to spotty lacing.

s: Odd mild woody notes, then some light vinegar.

t: Follows the nose somewhat, believe it or not, along with some light orangy citrus. Moderate bitterness fades fairly fast on the dry finish. Very slight vinegary aftertaste early on. Highish ABV is well covered.

m: Medium, very good body and carbonation tingle.

o; Not as bad as it might sound, quite tasty in a Lagunitas Brown Shugga sort of way, although leaves more bitterness on the tongue. No doubt suffers somewhat from being eight months old, but is still quite quaffable. I'd buy again, especially if I can find it fresher.
Aug 12, 2015
Photo of Suds
Reviewed by Suds from Missouri

4.09/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
An Amber, orange looked liquid, with a foamy white head...sweet, fruity (grapefruit) aroma. The taste is sweetish, with a lot of hop and malt flavor. The hops are fresh tasting and the ABV is notable. Complex and full bodied. Very enjoyable.
Jul 24, 2015
Photo of 4thFloyd
Reviewed by 4thFloyd from Indiana

4.11/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
A clear dark golden color with a nice offwhite head. A moderate aroma which is very sweet and malty with some citrus and tropical fruits. Flavor is also very malty and sweet for an imperial IPA. Fruity hops provide a little bitterness and some balance but still dominated by the malt. Nice full flavor and smoothness with very little alcohol detected.
Jul 23, 2015
 
Rated: 4.05 by Dirtyhands from Maryland

Jul 17, 2015
Saranac Imperial IPA from Matt Brewing Company / Saranac Brewery
Beer rating: 87 out of 100 with 73 ratings