3C Extreme Ale
Nodding Head Brewery

 

 

Chinook! Cascade! Centennial! Yaahooo!

A: Partly clear deep amber color with a sun setting orange highlight under an off white foamy head.

S: A fragrant berry and peach nectar hop nose. Sweet malt undertone.

M/T: A cool temperature cask feel that opens up with a big hop presence but tame and balanced palate. A creamy malt center that leads to a light grapefruit bitter finish.

D: Hopheads Rejoice! Embrace the cask!

Tried this on a recent trip to Philly. Tried the Nodding Head brewery on a whim, so glad I did. I tried a few different beers in Philly; this one was, by far, my favorite. Beautiful, amber red in color with lovely head and lacing throughout. The best part is the small and taste--big juicy citrusy, hops with some nice fruitiness too.

A pint glass served at the brewpub. The 3C name refers to Chinook, Centennial and Cascase hops.

A: The DIPA is a coppery amber color, shiny like an orange penny. No sediment but a 1 finger head sits atop the glass. Recession is fairly slow.

S: The beer smells like an orchard with lots of fresh citrusy orange peel permeating all aspects of the ale. Absolutely mouthwatering.

T: The taste is bitter and astringent, full of hops and little else. The centennial and cascade have done their part, adding an orange rind flavor that conjures up Two Hearted or Furious. The chinook adds a slightly medicinal citrus flavor that deviates from the orange rind. Boozy warmth pervades the ale. The finish is long on bitterness, flicking at the tastebuds.

M: The mouthfeel is a hophead's delight, lots of citrusy flavor with medicinal and rind characteristics. Embrace the bite!

D: A pint or two may be enough, but the alcohol is low and the hops are flowing.

Had this beer at Ortino's Northside during their DIPA festival.

The beer pours a light orange color without much head or lacing. On the nose one gets a blast of pine and citrus, a quick reminder what we're drinking today (DIPA's and lots of em). The beer comes across as a pretty sizeable DIPA, with lots of sweet malt up front, but bracing citrus/bitterness on the finish. Flavors include cherry cough drop and sweet orange citrus. The abv. is pretty noticeable (I'd guess in the 9% to 10% range), but is not obtrusive or overdone. The beer is medium bodied.

This is a good solid DIPA. Nice job by Nodding head.

Pours clear amber with two fingers of big bubbles and lots of lace. It'd be a four for sure if it weren't clear. Charcoal filters are for water, not beer.

The aroma is filled with really nice blended hops-- I know I've had the three C's about a million times before, but the citrus from the cascade and the pine from the centennial both really come through nicely and in good balance. I'll admit that I still have no idea what chinook tastes like, but I think it's probably doing about the same thing as the cascade.

The taste opens up with grapefruit and bitter oranges, with pine coming in half a second later. Fruity and piney hops flavors last through mid-palate without a trace of malt and hang around well into the finish. The finish is tacky, lip-smacking bitterness.

The mouthfeel is bright and slightly creamy. Like a lot of other DIPAs, this is the only evidence of malt in the entire beer.

Drinkability is great; the bitterness is reined in enough to keep the beer quenching.

It pours a classic, clear amber, the stuff of guidelines. A finger of dense, off-white head settles soon to a frothy quilt. Spirals of lacing descend the inside of the glass.

A brief flash of caramel malt blinks sweetly before the hops lay claim to the air, with resiny pine, ripe orange, and pulpy grapefruit dogfighting. A glimpse of alcohol is brief but notable.

Upon sipping, the malt again is first out of the gate, with a fruity caramel character trotting with a fair sweetness in saddle. The hop flavors ride up along the rail, but this time with as much bitterness as distinct tastes making moves, so the pine is redolent but bitter, the orange citrusy but bitter, and the grapefruit dry and juicy but bitter. Alcohol is very fleeting in the face of such bitterness. The malt regains the lead briefly with a touch of baked biscuit, but the finish is, can you guess? Yes, it is bitter, bitter, and bitter, and quite crisp and lingering. Forget tasting anything subtle after this. But it's a hophead's delight, that's for sure.

Medium bodied, the malt is chewy, the hops are searing, and the end is a very clean but temporarily insensate palate.

Talk about an aptly named beer. The hops dominate and extenuate, though the malt is not MIA. But there's really no pretense at balance here, and that is not a knock. I love the hops, my friends, and this one delivers in spades. I don't know the ABV, but it is a warmer, so it's not puny, that's for certain. What really makes this a limited drinker is the bitterness. Bitterness? Yes, bitterness. Though, if one is in the proper mood, perhaps more than one, or even two, is just the ticket. Either way, it's well done, enjoyable for delivering on what it promises, and memorable.

Appearance: Arrives at the bar with a clear amber color and a solid head that leaves behind much lacing

Smell: Fruity hop aroma

Taste: Fruity hop blast up front followed by an intensely bitter finish

Mouthfeel: Thick and slightly sticky with low carbonation

Drinkability: One solid DIPA

Served on-tap at the brewpub during Happy Hour on my recent trip to Philadelphia.

Poured a mohagony brown in color with a stubborn scuzzy head. Lots of pretty lace ringing around the glass. Pungent nose was full of fruity, earthy hops.

Chewy bastard. Kind of reminded me of an old ship--if one could taste an old wooden ship. Earthy and pungent and full of rotten, sweet wood. Fruity esthers came through as peachy. Dryish but full mouthfeel really made this an exemplary attempt at the style. Really enjoyed this one and I only wish I could have hung around for another pint.

Tasted On-Tap 03/08/06 & 03/09/06 at the Nodding Head brewpub.

Dark golden color with a decent off-white head and good carbonation. Prominent hop aroma and flavor in both the nose and mouth. Not nearly as grapefruity as the BPA; more of a general highly bitter citrus hop character. Very bitter as expected with a decent but slightly lacking malt body. Somewhat out of balance... Medium-full bodied and warming from the alcohol finish but it also finishes very bitter.

Nice but not quite as good or as balanced as their BPA.

Appears a deep transparent amber with a great head retention and a 1 finger off-white head. Tons of lacing is so solid that is covers the entire glass and lasts for almost the entire enjoyment of the beverage.
Smell is of lots of pine and orange with a nice biscuity malt as a backbone.
Taste is of the same wonderfully done aromas, leaving me with a few nice hop burps to remind me that this is a goody.
Mouthfeel is sweet, biscuity, orange/pine resounding the front of the tongue with the piney sap taste lasting after the swallow.
Drinkability on this is great. The bartender was unsure of the exact abv but he said it was between 7.5-10%. In any case, it wasn't very noticable and this is a winner.

Being from the West Coast and a fan of the big, bold obnoxiously-hopped San Diego-style IPA's, this beer was quite enjoyable. I can't recall which hops the bartender had said were used in the boil during the brewing (he may have said Cascade) but it had an outstanding hop style and delivery. The malt came through with many interesting aromas and flavors. It was so good, we came back that same night to enjoy a pitcher.

A great IPA in my opinion (or Double IPA if we need to get technical). Poured nice and clean with a rich amber color. The hop aroma hits your nose well before your lips touch the glass. It was well balanced with the malt undertone and the hoppiness was perfect. Definately one of their best and well worth the trip to the brewery in Philly.

Served as a sample at the 2004 Penn Festival. The color was copper, with a nice head. The smell was a nice citrusy hoppiness. The taste is a good mix of citrus and piney hops, with a noticable maltiness in it, and just a bit of alcohol. Mouthfeel was average. As for drinkability, this would be one that I could have several of.

One of my favorites from the festival. A good, tasty Imperial IPA, with a nice balance within. Quite good, and one that I'd love to have again.

Pours a slightly hazed golden copper formed with a white frothy head leaves behind ample lacing nice appearance. Deep pine cone and light grapefruit scented hops flow toward my senses some caramel malts are present to balance out the mix at this party, nice aromatics loads of hops. Taste extreme bitterness fruity bursts full of hop flavor excellent stuff with some balancing caramel notes this beer is hoppy. The mouthfeel coats the palate with sticky hop resins medium bodied quite impressive smooth carbonation. Drinkability, well if you like hops this one has bitterness and flavor with somewhat of a hop profile more toward the hop direction of bitterness can be unbalanced but not undrinkable still craving the flavor of this one.

This one has a copper colored body with a head that is long-lasting. The hops in here are piney and strong in the aroma, but they fade into the background in the flavor as the malts come up to take control. The malty flavor of the 3C is very biscuit-like.

crystal clear autumn reddish-orange, with an ivory colored head that mostly disappears. small patches of lace stick to the glass. clean and somewhat powerful christmas-tree hop aroma, with light fruity scents in the background. on the light side of medium- bodied, smooth with an even carbonation. ample backbone of crystal malt and tropical fruit holds up momentarily prior to huge resinous pine cone hop flavor. more subtle floral and minty hop flavors in the end, the finish is long and pleasantly bitter. this is a well built ale and a nice stab at the style, though i prefer my i2pa's to have a little more body. still highly recommended.

The beer pours a nice amber color with a lacey white head. The aroma is outstanding. It has a very intense hop scent that is very pleasant. It is balanced with a nice mix of pale, carapils, and light crystal malts. The taste is awesome. It has a very nice hop flavor that leaves a aftertaste on top of a very malty core. The mouthfeel is near perfect. It is a full bodied brew with adequate carbonation. This is an excellent brew. It drinks very well; another outstanding imperial IPA. This is my favorite style to drink.

Have had this on cask twice and draught twice, so this review is an amalgamation of them all.

Orange amber color with a good thin lace. Not much of a head and decent carbonation. Dead clear, though, impressive because many Imperial IPAs get pretty hazed from the high malt and high hop contents.

Smells like thick, wet hop leaves dripping with thick, juicy scents. I would describe it as notes of pine sap and hyacinth flowers in bloom supported by a caramel sweetness from the malt. Sometimes its scent can be rough and chalky, in line with its extreme amounts of Chinook, Centennial, and Cascades.

Taste is all lemon and limes with husky bitterness and a little bit of chalky dryness. The malt underneath is syrupy sweet but not overbearing or undue, especially compared to the heady hop flavor. After the first couple, and shocking, drinks the sappy oil flavors and feel builds up to complete a full pine needle flavor. All in all, fresh and verdant, with each ingredient coming through quite clear. Moderate mouthfeel.

Quite good, straightforward, and surprising because this is the only beer Nodding Head makes over the 5% abv line. More than just an Eastcoaster suping up an normal IPA, the drinkability is outstanding because it was so flavored with fresh hops yet with so little bitterness and low malt sweetness.