Skyline Imperial Pale
Fitger's Brewhouse

 

Picked this up about a year ago, been storeing it in the fridge since at 40 degrees.

Poured from a growler into my Sam Adams Turbulator. A hiss from the twisting of the cap. Plenty of carbonation in this, with a 3 insh white foamy head. Leaving a mound of retention and very thick sticky lace.
The color is a semi-hazy darker golden orange color.

The aroma is still exceptionally hoppy. Big juicy grapefruit and pine with a sweet orange peel smell. Sweet malt and also a good dose of grain maltyness.

Mouthfeel is smooth and carbonated with a hop oil texture. Carbonation through the first sip becoming more smooth and creamy into and through the swallow. Creamyness is not a huge part of the mouthfeel though as it is a bit thin at the same time.

The taste upfront is mildly sweet with plenty of grain taste, and oh so hoppy into the swallow. Bigpine bitters with grapefruit and alot of citrus flavors. A peppery lemon zest hop bitter linger after the swallow. This is soo fresh tasteing even after a year of sitting. I cant imagine how hoppy this must have been fresh.
No warmth in aroma or flavor. It tastes like its only 5%

Outstanding brew, its too bad its retired.

From a growler, was a wonderful orange. Maybe a bit of haze (dry hoping?) Thin to almost no head.

Strong hops aroma, thinking of grapefruit. But do get a some of the malt.

When I first taste it I get a strong citrus hops, that grapefuit. Then I get some nice balance with a carmal malt. Finishes dry with the hops again. Nice balance of sweet/citrus.

Fairly thick bodied. Good.

Very drinkable. Very well balanced. Surprising that it could be so balanced with such strong hops. Well done.

Originally reviewed on December 21, 2005. On tap at the brewpub. Cask. Pours a hazed ruby orange with some ambe tinge. A gelatinous cask head of quivering lemon merangue tops. Candy-like resin and floral aroma, light oranges and tangy lime juics. Flavor is a gentle oakiness, blended with some reserved mellow outward hoppiness and a good kick of diacetyl butterscotch. Some quiet creaminess and a hint of raw grain. Palate is hop dry and grassy. Decent.

Had the pleasure of trying this brew several times during the course of last summer; review is from notes.

Pours a beautiful, deep copper with overtones of orange and ruby. The smell of grapefruit is evident in the aroma, and even more present in taste.

Hops are strong and forceful early in the tasting, but followed and well-balanced by citrus flavors, especially grapefruit. The aftertaste is especially smooth and manages a nice balance between hops and other aromas (again, mostly citrus). Given the especially high ABV, the length and balance of flavors may be the most impressive part of this beer.

Drinkable in spite of (or mabye because of) high alcohol content. All-around excellent example of a Double IPA.

From a growler filled July 5. Growler opened on July 13....a hinged 16 ounce bottle then filled and shipped to me..drinking it on July 16th...as expected carbonation is low but everything else is fantastic..

I don't think this is classified correctly as an Imperial IPA...I think they were after a regular pale but a bigger one....and that is what this tastes like...does not seem like even a regular IPA but more of a big Pale Ale...

Now that doesn't mean this is void of hops...quite the opposite...the nose features a big citrus nose with oranges and pinneapples...combined with a nice dose of caramel and brown sugar...

The taste is actually pretty big on the malt with a lot of caramel shining through and the hops now turning a bit more piney...finishes dry...body is medium to on the high side of medium...

Quite a tasty pale ale...deeper in the malt fades some and the hops begin to take over the playground...really closes with a jagged brash hop bitterness after beginning with a malt heavy lean....nice hop burps...top quality brew here...

Big Thanks to Big Hugey for sharing a bottle from his growler he aquired via Tavern Jeff..

From a growler filled July 5. I'm sampling on July 13.

Nicely hazed shimmering orange/copper appearance. Thin but creamy ivory white head. Retention is good and the lacing is better. There is a spectacular blend of malt and hops on the nose. The malts almost intrigue me more than the hops. They are sweet toffee and caramel sprinkled with brown sugar. There's some hop aroma as well. Spicy, raw, pungent and piney. Great nose. There's a complete 180 when I taste this nectar. It's all about the hops baby. And that's not to say the malts don't support, cuz they do. But the bitterness really stands out. Not exactly a clean bitterness, but rather one that grabs your fucking palate and throws it around like a rag doll. Quite raw and abrasive. And it lingers for an eternity. And I love it. The hop flavors are pungent and resiny, citric and piney, orangey and rind-like. The malts that lay down the backbone provide some sweet toffee tones. The mouthfeel is slightly prickly and the body is about medium or a little better. Drinkability is out of this world.

8 West Coast Hops?? I can believe it. This one is a marvel.

I can't wait to get Tanked tommorow night.

Thanks for the hop juice (and hop burps) Tavernjef.

From a growler, filled right up to the very brim!
Pours out a hazy, deep orange hue, with a good, 1/4" layer of creamy film with definite staying power, never left the glass.
Nice hops in the aroma, with plenty of maltiness, as well. There's a blended fruity factor, with nothing sticking out, a nice mix of berries, apples, strawberries, and distinct caramel undertones. i like this unique aroma, it's sweet, but complex.
And ever-so tasty! A pale ale that surpasses the usual in maltiness, in hops, and in alcohol, and attitude. This is an active ale, shall we say, has a lot going on, and I like that! Flavor never ends and looms large on the palate, just coats the senses and takes over. Thick mouthfeel, and just a shade away from cloying. An unusual take on a pale ale, that's for sure, quite an uncommon drink, but one I can truly appreciate, and it's certainly not for everybody! I have a hard time giving it a rating, for it's so one of a kind, (though I know there other entries in the Imperial Pale Ale field, I won't address that at this time), I must say that I can imagine returning to this again and again, from time to time.
this is also my first full sample of Fitger's beer, all the other having been small samples at festivals.I can't wait to try more!

On cask at the brewpub - Clearish off-gold yellow color with a finger high white head of tight whipped froth and tons of globby thick ink blot lacing. Aroma is super nice and soft with a playful hoppyness, amazingly complex but soft. Very flowery with good amounts of resin, well rounded citrus, super fresh cut pine and hay thats really interesting. Aromatic!! Lovely! It even has a nice touch of warming alcohol in there. But the soft complexity of this nose is just crazy nice! Taste has the alcoholic warmth right upfront, quite a boost at first and was served as one of the warmest cask beers I've come across so that really added to it I think. The hops are extremely mellow on the palate, very soft and delicate. Almost too much so, where they'd go? At first it seems the hops mix a little weirdly with the alcoholic warmth this has but after about half the glass this became a wonderful treat. The hoppyness seemed to end abruptly at first in a loft of nothingness but seemed to gain as you continue on. Soft pine, flowers, and playfully rounded grapefruit pops at the finish kinda late which made a nice effect. Overall this was very warming with just enough hoppyness to make it interesting. Feel has a nice and easy mellow cask feel and texture thats touching on fluffy. A big time warmer with soft subtle hops, kinda different, a strange twist on a pale ale, but pretty enjoyable. Did I say it was warm? Cozy...