Cigar City Brewing Improv Imperial Dark Rye Ale

Improv Imperial Dark Rye Ale

 

Cigar City Brewing in Tampa, Florida, United States 🇺🇸

  Speciality Grain - Rye / Roggenbier Special
Score
7.32
ABV: 9.0% IBU: - Ticks: 50
What you have here is an Imperial Dark Rye Ale. Isn’t that a lot to be going on in just one beer? Well yes, it is. But that is the point. Layers. Flavor elements building on and playing off of preceding elements, like a building wave; a growing crescendum of taste bud temptation; a wall of sound expressed through flavor and channeled toward your mouth. This beer isn’t for everyone. In many ways it is more than just a little weird. It certainly doesn’t fit easily into any category. In the spirit of all great things that are conceived in the moment, but perfected through passionate repetition it started life as an improvisation and grew from there. And it might not be for you. But if the thought of big spicy rye notes, a wallop of a hop punch, multitudinous layers of caramel, sweet malt and a respectable balancing gravity sound intriguing then you might want to wing it and give Improv a try.
 

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8.8
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9

Beer pours out quite thick and a very dark brown with a thick fluffy mocha head with aesome lacing. Aroma is juicy piney hops, sweet malty caramel, and sweet rye bread. Flavor is hoppy but the rye also makes an appearance. Lots of nice caramel bready sweet malts. Wow I love this.

Tried on 28 Feb 2025 at 05:28


7
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

Bottle split at the Manny G tasting, from an IP trade - as Improv, 28/06/14. Opaque dark mahogany brown with a big old frothy tan head. Nose is dark fruit, brown bread, spice, earthy. Taste comprises earthy hops, rye bread, spice, light cocoa powder, hints of tropical fruit peel, grain. Medium bodied, fine carbonation, light hop rinse in the close. Decent enough offering but not one I’d rush back to.

Tried from Bottle on 30 Jun 2014 at 13:11


6.6
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

Bottle shared in London - thanks to Colin. Pours clear amber with a huge, light tan head. The nose holds toasted grains, dry caramel. Medium to big sweet flavor with ripe berries, crunchy leaves, more caramel, toast, earth. Full bodied with lively carbonation. Lightly warming on the finish with toasted herbs, earth, leaves, grape skins, burnt grains. So so. Some interesting elements but not terribly drinkable.

Tried from Bottle on 28 Jun 2014 at 08:55


6.9
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7.5

Bottle thanks to Colin. It pours deep brown with a massive light tan head. The nose is roasty, caramel, dried fruits, fruit cake, raisin, brown sugar and cake. The taste is rich, roasty, earth, toast, cocoa, dark fruit, brown sugar and ash with a dry finish. Medium body and fine carbonation. Tasty and rather drinkable. Solid.

Tried from Bottle on 28 Jun 2014 at 08:53


7.8
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6

Appearance a dark cloudy cider color with an off white head. Aroma of rye and fruit taste bitter with a hoppy taste. Lingers on the palate

Tried on 27 May 2013 at 17:54


7.2
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

From a 75 cl bottle shared at home. Grassy hop nose. Surprisingly light bodied with a strong malt backbone.

Tried from Bottle on 27 May 2013 at 16:57


7.4
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

24th July 2011
Opaque dark brown beer. Thick head - a vibrant cream colour! Softish smooth palate. Nice malt, rich but not overly so. A little rye spice. Trace of caramel and a whisper of chocolate. Nice mild fruity undertone - cherry and orange. Rye comes to the fore again with good citrus hops. Mildly bitter aftertaste. Well joined up.

Tried on 20 Jan 2013 at 08:31


8
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Bottle at Redlight Redlight. This brew pours a deep dark brown color with a medium thick beige head that dissipates slowly. Small patches of lacing. The aroma is bready malts, chocolate and oak. Full, smooth body with flavors that change sip to sip. Notes of cocoa, earthy malt, caramel and tart fruit throughout. The finish is rich and malty with a fruity aftertaste. Pretty good all around.

Tried from Bottle on 21 Aug 2012 at 14:00


7.3
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 8

750 ml bottle shared @ tkrjukoffs CCB Day tasting. Pours hazy wooden brown with a small bubbly offwhite head that quickly dissipates while leaving some small lacing on the glass. Smell is sweet and malty with oatmeal, rye bread, wood, brazil nuts, vanilla essence, golden syrup, orange zest, wet soil and hints of rubber. Taste is slightly sweet and bitter with caramel, sweet dark rye bread, grass, pine, burnt wood, wet soil, resin, plums, brown sugar, roasted nuts, orange peal and hints of moss and wet soil. Mouthfeel is slightly oily bitter and medium bodied. Finish is slightly sweet and slightly bitter with dark bread, resinous wood, roasted oatmeal flakes, grass, orange peal and grape zest.

Tried from Bottle on 07 Jul 2012 at 03:32


8.1
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5

750mL bottle, pours a dark reddish brown with a small tan head. Aroma of rye, harsh citrus hops and darkly roasted malt - not much of the oatmeal. Nose is very much like a black IPA. Flavour also resembles a black IPA, with dark roasted malt upfront, and lots of harsh hops kicking in later, finishing off the mouthfeel, with no detection of ABV. Remarkably well-balanced and refined - easy drinking for what this is. Delicious.

Tried from Bottle on 19 May 2012 at 23:24