Still enjoying my time at the beach, I came across to cracking this one open too. I honestly had no idea what I was getting into when I opened it. Brown Shugga substitute gave me the impression that it was something similar, not the opposite of what was there.
Beer was poured into a pint glass, where I was able to get about a finger of head. The color was somewhere between brown and amber, which gave me the impression that I was going to be drinking more of a malt focused beer than a hop focused beer. Sharp aromas of pine and woodsy hops stood out over everything else, but I could also pick out the malt base as well. (Edit: I don't know what beer I had at the beach, but the flavor and aroma profile are totally different than listed. First of all, this bad boy is a citrus bomb. Imagine sweet tangerines, pummelo, and candy. It's one of the most aromatic beers I've had the pleasure of having. You can't not take a whiff of this beer and not get excited.)
For a DIPA, I thought I'd have more pucker effect. Instead, it tasted more like your standard IPA, except it had some sweeter undercurrents, primarily because you need more malt to get the high alcohol content that comes from a DIPA. The only thing is that the alcohol content isn't all that high at 7.85% I'll be honest, I wasn't as focused on trying to get every little flavor and taste nuance out of this one..after all, with friends present and games happening, it's easier to just drink than to drink and appreciate. That said, for my first DIPA (or at least the first I can remember..), this was just as easy to drink as a regular American IPA. I think I'll have some more in the future! (Edit: Again, having enjoyed this since then, all I can think is "Sweet Mother of God". What I said about the aroma? It comes right through in the taste. Malt forward and sweet, but very full flavored with the citrus. Yes, there's some bitter bite and a bit of pine in the beer as well, but it's more citrus forward than pine forward, and for someone like me, that's a winner. Reigning champ in the DIPA department!)
Grade: B A+
Price Paid: $1.79 (12 oz bottle)
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