(Bottle, Akkurat, Stockholm, 31 March 2010) Dark amber colour with frothy, beige head. Fruity, hoppy nose with notes of pine needles, citrus, caramel and a touch of chocolate. Fruity, hoppy taste with pine needles, black-currant and caramel. Above medium body, balanced sweetness. Generous piney bitterness. Well balanced with alcohol well hidden. Very nice one.

Poured a clear reddish/yellow color with a white head. Aroma is a nice strong hoppy aroma, touch of malts. Flavor is hoppy, very hoppy. Alcohol finish along with the hops.

The label noted that this was a contract brew through flying dog. Sampled from a 12 oz brown bottle this beer poured a hazy dark orange-brown color with a large brown head that lingered and produced good lacing. The aroma was harshly hoppy with notes of brown sugar, pineapple, cocoa and nut - a nicely complex and interesting blend. The flavor was malty and toasty with solid notes of cocoa, nut, pine, grapefruit and brown sugar. A surprisingly short finish. Fairly full bodied. Nice.

Bottle from joshuahfl. Pours dark amber red with a decent beige head. Rich malty aroma overtopped by floral hop. Medium body with frothy carbonation. Flavor is heavy roast caramel and a pretty good amount of floral hop. It is more sweet than not in the finish. Tends more towards amber than IPA, but maybe that’s just me. One heck of a flavor no matter how you categorize it.

Location: 12 oz bottle from Wine and Beer Westpark, 12/7/09

Aroma: Nose starts off quite hot, beyond that I got some resiny hops, some caramel, and some citrus hops
Appearance: Pours a dark brownish-red color with a thin off-white head that leaves just a few spots of lace
Flavor: Taste is medium-heavy hoppy bitterness up-front with a big malt backbone that almost balances it
Palate: The ABV is quite well-hidden considering the nose in this full bodied, smooth, highly drinkable brew
Overall Impression: The nose would make you think you were stepping into a barleywine or something, since it is quite hot, but the beer itself tastes much balanced, and the alcohol is pretty well hidden. It is interesting, I'm not sure I can recall another beer with so much booze on the nose that drinks so smoothly and hides its ABV so well. Anyway, this is really what I took away most from this one, but it is quite a nice beer, one I would certainly be happy to enjoy again.

bottle at Ft Wayne tasting - Pours hazy red with a lingering light tan head. The aroma is of caramel malt and citrus hops. The flavor is of course well hopped with some good citrus and pine notes. Some roast caramel malts make an appearance in this tasty, medium bodied brew.

Bottle with thanks to alexsdad. Pours a dark reddish color with a fairly small head. Aromas are thick with brown sugar, dates and citrus hops. In many respects its nose makes me think it sits at the intersection of barley wine and IIPA styles, even before I take a sip. While this is definitely a malt-driven example of the style, it is a good one. Flavors are heavily sweet and malty, but there is quite a bit of warmth from the alcohol and a fairly hoppy finish.

Pours deep ruby red with light tan head. Aromas of grapefruit and toasted malts. Slightly sweet caramel malt flavor with some grapefruit hop bitterness and alcohol. Medium body with average carbonation. The malt profile definately dominated the falvors and the alcohol taste was a bit too much, but overall it was a decent brew.