Double IPA from Naparbier, probably the most influential and best known (though not the first) of these new generation Spanish craft brewers. Bottle from Etre Gourmet. Medium thick, snow white, densely moussy head, lacing in disparate ’dots’ and quickly thinning in the middle, over a lightly hazy, warmly and deeply orange golden beer with amberish tinge and some strings of tiny bubbles rising up here and there, more equally hazy amber with sediment. Very aromatic nose, impressions of half-dried orange peel and lots of it, biscuit, olive oil, dried mango cubes, Turkish delight even, green tomato, freshly cut red bell peppers, quite prominent ’real’ hay, fresh parsley somewhere, overripe lime flesh, lychee, pink pepper, dried bitter herbs (wormwood leaves), bitter honey, fainter hints of grilled chicken and barbecue spices, iron and even onsetting ’rusty’ oxidation though this bottle is not very old, bitterroot liqueur, warm toast, dried apricot. Fruity onset, clean but vivid, with hints of dried mango, starfruit, some lychee and blood orange, sweetish and sourish with a green olive-like, subtle umami touch, medium carbonated, slick but thick and very oily, almost glueish mouthfeel. A vague salty accent announces the hops, growing in intensity over a mellow, supple, very biscuity and lightly toasty malt sweet body, ending in expressive citrussy (blood orange, pink grapefruit) retronasal aromas with a dash of pine thrown in; meanwhile, down in the mouth, a coating of resinous, grapefruit peel- and tonic water-like hop bitterness covers the finish, lingering on the root of the tongue for a long time alongside some warming, gin-like alcohol. Typical West Coast DIPA I’d say, though perhaps just a tad less harshly hoppy than many actual American examples in this segment - which I think is a good thing in this case, allowing for the sweet aromas of whichever fruity hop was used to truly shine. The lovely biscuity malt sweetness shines as well and is matched perfectly with the sweet and still grapefruity and piney hop character. A very generous beer, radiant and technically perfect, though perhaps a bit too old already - shame, I think this is as lush as any American DIPA when fresh. Still lush and very aromatic though, so I’m not complaining. Naparbier once again proves that they have mastered the Anglo-Saxon top-fermented craft beer styles to perfection. A real treat on a spring afternoon, with the nods to blood oranges and green olives almost making me dream of the Spanish sun.