Infidel Imperial IPA
NINE G Brewing Company

Infidel Imperial IPAInfidel Imperial IPA
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From:
NINE G Brewing Company
 
Indiana, United States
Style:
Imperial IPA
ABV:
8.4%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.92 | pDev: 12.24%
Reviews:
31
Ratings:
31
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Dec 01, 2007
Added:
Jun 11, 2006
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Ratings by aforbes10:
Photo of aforbes10
Reviewed by aforbes10 from Iowa

2.21/5  rDev -43.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2
Ok, i finally got to try Infidel, the double IPA that the new brewery in town has been promising since it opened in December. Man, i've been excited about this beer.

My buddy dispholidus1 brought a 4-pack over and we set to trying...
Poured orange and bubbly with a nice looking head. not cloudy at all. Looks decent. Smells hoppy and sweet, not bad but not great either. There's a dirtiness (like actual dirt) to the odor that i don't expect from an IPA. Taste is pretty bad. Lots of hop oil flavor and tons of sugary sweetness, but it's not balanced at all. It kind of tastes like they used a whole bunch of different hops, added them randomly at all different times in the process and then just called it a double IPA. The alcohol isn't hidden well either. It's hard to drink (not because its a big beer, just because it tastes bad) and doesn't leave you wanting more. This is nowhere near as good as Dogfish, Rogue, 3 Floyds double IPAs. I'm really disappointed.
Jul 11, 2006
More User Ratings:
Photo of ncvbc
Reviewed by ncvbc from North Carolina

3.62/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Deep murky amber orange. Lively carbonation which is tough to see due to the clouds. A thin white head with little retention. Smell doesn't have the hop presence I'd expected. Very sweet malt here with some honey, caramel, and toffee essence. Some apple is present in the smell with hints of grapefruit and piney hops. Malts come through first with the taste as well. Some caramel again and sugary sweetness. Apple is again present and after the sweetness comes the grapefruit and piney hops, a bitter finish. Medium bodied with good carbonation and a slight tingle on the tongue but not as hoppy as others. More chewy than resinous. Doesn't fit too well with the style for me but still pretty easy to drink. The malts and hops fight for dominance but neither really do. A struggle to balance. All around pretty good and interesting for sure.

Thanks goes to alexgash for the extra!
Dec 01, 2007
Photo of orbitalr0x
Reviewed by orbitalr0x from Illinois

3.7/5  rDev -5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
12oz bottle. Pours into my glass a crystalline deep amber orange with a half inch of white head that quickly falls to a ring atop the brew. Aromas start out with deep caramel and toffee tones. Resinous, herbal piney hops are still there in nice supply but seem to have faded a bit. Light citrus. Somewhat floral, more on the malty side of the spectrum.

First sip brings a sweet caramelized toffee malt upfront that moves into resinous, piney hop flavors. Light citrus tones as well. The hops bring some bitterness against the sweet malts, however the maltiness wins out in the finish. The hops have faded here and seem a bit dirty. Still not bad!

Mouthfeel is medium bodied and a bit slick. Good subtle carbonation. It fills the mouth well and goes down smooth. Overall, drinkability has suffered some due to age and I wish I could've had this fresh. However, it doesn't look like I'll ever be coming across this one again. It's morphing more towards a barleywine now. If you run across this beer by chance you might as well give it a shot while you can!
Nov 13, 2007
Photo of Overlord
Reviewed by Overlord from California

4.39/5  rDev +12%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Thanks Cliff.

Magnificent brew. Didn't expect much, but blown away. Pours a reddish orange, relatively small head. Smell was gigantic, one of the more powerful smelling brews I can recall.

Taste was delicious sweet malt, big sweet fruit flavors (red grapefruit ... orange ... citrus.. mango?) and tons of hops that weren't bitter at all.

Greatly enjoyed.
Oct 27, 2007
Photo of dedrinker
Reviewed by dedrinker from Kansas

4/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
You know what? I came upon this all prejudiced by the label - "oh great - another beer employs Stone-esque language on the label warning of taste-bud abuse mingled with insults" only to enjoy this one in the end. It poured a pleasant hazy peach color with little head that soon disappeared. Aroma was distant but soon came into focus as pineapple, a little grapefruit and perhaps a little marmalade; putting me in the mood for breakfast with my grandmother. We would eat some toasted English muffins with butter and marmalade before moving on to the bacon and eggs. I begged her not to smoke those Kools, but what the hay - she died ten years ago. The flavor was hoppy up front, but somewhat restrained, perhaps due to it's being old - the bottle says, "Please Enjoy Before: 32336177." Wow! what am I to make of that? It seems like the number can be translated as, "shoulda had this one fresh on tap somewhere in South Bend, Indiana." Still - it's hoppiness hints at true west coast character with floral hoppiness stuck right between aroma and flavor - the far back end of the top of my mouth (soft palette) In some ways this is a kinder, gentler DIPA while still carrying all the key attributes. Something leafy and fruity on the finish. This would be a great morning beer. My grandmother would roll over in her grave if she knew I would wake up at 7:00 am on my day off just to drink this and read the paper.
Oct 23, 2007
Photo of WesWes
Reviewed by WesWes from New York

4.15/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
The beer pours a hazy orange color with a thick frothy offwhite head that slowly fades to lacing. The aroma is good. It has a solid malt aroma that boasts of pale, Munich, and bisquit malts. It has a wonderful breadlike aroma as well as mild hop scent that just peaks through the malts. The taste is good as well. It has a sweet malty flavor that goes down easy with breadlike character. It finishes with a tremendous hop explosion and a lingering bitterness. It's well balanced. The mouthfeel is great. It is a full bodied beer with adequate carbonation. This is a great Imperial IPA. It's not all about the hops, although they're present and accounted for. The malt content really adds balance and increases the drinkability.
Oct 08, 2007
Photo of jjayjaye
Reviewed by jjayjaye from New York

4.1/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Pours a cloudy orange amber color with a shallow foamy off white head that fades fairly quickly. A bunch of thin lacing enjoyed the entire length of the glass. A big whiff of bready maltiness as the cap was removed. Full bodied, the mouth feel is thick without being syrupy and smooth until the bitter kick of grassy hops lunges onto the roof of the mouth and lingers appropriately. While slightly understated, it has a nice sweet malty taste that mixes well with the piny hop character. The 8.4% ABV doesn't take a stance until swallowed. I real good drinker IMO. Really glad that i had the opportunity to try it..darn, its the last one. Cheers!
Oct 05, 2007
Photo of Phatz
Reviewed by Phatz from Pennsylvania

4.32/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Appearance: pours a rusty ruby color with a short tan head that fades fast and leave little lace.

Smell: The smell of honeycomb and perfume hops that lean heavily to citrus and a touch of pine sap then and balance with toasted malt element and some fruity attribute. The alcohol shows through a bit as well.

Taste: The hops are huge in this beer. And yet they are not offensively bitter because of the sweet backbone that is adequate to support the high IBU. Ripe citrus rind and hop resin with a sweet pink grapefruit and honey in the finish. Long after the swallow my mouth is still suffering magnificently from the intense drying bitter hops that annihilated my palate. It seems to get more bitter after it is long gone than it was across the tongue. The alcohol shows through at the finish and in the aftertaste but is not as invasive in the flavor as I would have guessed from the aroma.

Mouthfeel: The mouthfeel is bitter and active with hop pin and needles and alcohol heat on the cheeks and yet slightly sweet and thick.

Drinkability: This is a monster worthy of the name Infidel. It is a very tasty sipper for sure.

Hope this is helpful.
Cheers!
Sep 12, 2007
Photo of rhoadsrage
Reviewed by rhoadsrage from Illinois

4.2/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
(Served in a tulip glass)

A- This beer has a warm hazy caramel brown body with a sticky light beige head that turns rocky but last a good bit. There are several long strands of tiny bubbles gliding up to the surface.

S- The smell of green grassy hops with a light pungent quality is stronger than the sweet caramel malt flavors that come through.

T- This beer has a sweet sticky caramel flavor that is soon overpowered by a green hop flavor with notes of grapefruit rind bitterness. There is a big pungent hop finish that hangs on after the finish. After a bit of warming there is some light toasted malt and pale malt flavors that come through in the beginning.

M- This beer has a medium mouthfeel and a creamy texture for most of the drink. When the head is gone it loses the creamy texture. There is no real alcohol heat at the finish.

D- This beer has big sweet malt and big pungent hops. Very well built and nice to drink.
Jul 26, 2007
Photo of oberon
Reviewed by oberon from North Carolina

3.76/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Poured into a standard pint glass a hazed burnt orange with a creamy-like tight slight off white head that left spotty lace as it never fully settled.A real noticeable alcohol presence in the nose along with some tangerine and orange not your typical American DIPA aroma but not all bad.Flavors are not as big in the hop department as to be expected for the style hop flavors come in the form over very ripe tangerine and orange with some noticeable resiny qualities a real nutty malt character shows thru as well as slightly hot alcohol presence in the finish.Not bad a somewhat different take on the style here,I liked the creamy mouthfeel as well.
Jul 04, 2007
Photo of brdc
Reviewed by brdc from Wisconsin

3.53/5  rDev -9.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Thanks Derek for the offering.
It is good looking but rather strange; golden with a reddish hue, but cloudy, and not cloudy as a wheat beer, but cloudy as if someone mixed a different drink in there. Still looks nice, and different.
It has a pleasant, fruity hoppy nose with some discernible roasted malts, better balanced than the average american IPA.
Taste is classical american IPA, hops and more hops, although this one still has some (minimal) malts noticeable in the mix.
A pleasant brew, most will like it more than me, but IPAs are not my favorite style, unfortunately.
Apr 19, 2007
Photo of brewcrew76
Reviewed by brewcrew76 from Wisconsin

3.98/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
A - Pours a orange golden with a 2 finger white head that coats the glass with sticky, soapy lacing.

S - Piney, grapefruit, flowery hops with a hint of grainy sweet caramel.

T - Bitter grapefruit and piney hops up front with a tocuh of malt balance and a bitter finsih.

M - Medium body with biting carbonation and a dry, almost chalky, finish.

D - A solid DIPA. Glad I got to try it before it disappears.
Mar 28, 2007
Photo of froggyfrog
Reviewed by froggyfrog from Pennsylvania

3.49/5  rDev -11%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
12 ounce bottle. Snifter.

A: A murky bubble-crazed dark orange beer with a white pond scum head.

S: Darker fruits and refined sugar.

T: Bitter citrus hop flavor, fall fruits and alcohol.

MF: Semi-sweet and syrupy.

D: An average ale. Alcohol is a little hot.
Mar 12, 2007
Photo of ppoitras
Reviewed by ppoitras from Massachusetts

3.68/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
12oz bottle obtained via trade with CRJMellor.

Poured into a pint glass mug, formed a 1 1/4" beige head over the slightly cloudy amber brew. Head holds on nicely, with plenty of lace. Aroma is malt sweetness coupled with grassy hops and alcoholic tinges. Taste stays the course, with the alcohol more hidden than in the nose, and hops bitterness coming on strong at the end. Mouthfeel and drinkability are both reasonably nice, but not much really jumps out at me on this one. A pleasing standard DIPA though, no detractions of note.
Feb 10, 2007
Photo of TurdFurgison
Reviewed by TurdFurgison from Ohio

4.23/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Poured from a 12oz bottle bought in Detroit a few weeks ago. I left in it my secondary refrigerator and forgot about it. Then I found it again, but forgot about it once more before opening it tonight.

The appearance is brilliant, slightly hazy pale orange color and white foam which shrinks to about 1/8" thick and then stays there. Awesome, and the aroma is so good too, grapefruity citruc with massive malt underneath, just about right. The flavor is a little more one-dimensional than you'd think from the smell, more hops than anything, but still really good. Thick mouthfeel and all, nicely done.
Feb 02, 2007
Photo of bjohnson
Reviewed by bjohnson from Massachusetts

4.13/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
A: Poured into a snifter. Very hazy light rust color with a frothy one finger white head that holds a thick film of retention. Sweet coral like lacing.
S: Nice juicy fruit notes penetrate--mostly citrus notes. Fresh with a bit of pine. With a swirl a thick maltyness can be detected.
T/M: Good blast of fruit and pine hops up front. Smooth with a grapefruit presence that's slightly sweet in the finish and aftertaste. Excellent bitterness level leaves the mouth quite dry with subtle tingly sensations of pine. The bitterness is like a hammer on the tongue. Biscuity malt is there, but definitely takes a back seat to the hops. Nice mouthfeel with slight pepper and spicy notes. Definitely what a dipa should taste like.
D: Very drinkable. Damn nice dipa from the midwest. Glad I received this in a trade. High abv does not impact the flavors much.
Dec 19, 2006
Photo of blackie
Reviewed by blackie from Oregon

3.83/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
appearance: The pour gives a nice 0.5" off white head that slowly falls back to leave a considerable layer of foam for quite awhile. The beer is a medium, copperish amber in color.

smell: Big, piney and citrusy American hops with a grainy, sweet malt presence. Some caramel and some herbal tea notes.

mouthfeel: The carbonation is light and smooth, and the body a full-on medium

taste: Big hop flavor with a decent amount of sweet, grainy malt flavors for some balance. The hops could be a little more distinct and crisp, but they do give some nice fruity, piney flavors. The bitterness comes out primarily in the finish, lingering with some caramel malt sugars.

drinkability: Quite easy, a good dipa

Bottle shipped by dirtylou from Madison after a visit to his #2 alma matter for a match
Dec 05, 2006
Photo of scruffwhor
Reviewed by scruffwhor from Illinois

4.33/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
8.4% abv, says so on the bottle.

Appearance- A lightly hazy white bread crust amber with strong bubbles and a bomberful of suds. Hreat lacing. Stuck to the sides of my glass in even concentric rings.

Smell- Grapfruit zest with biscuits whilke running through a field blooming lavender.

Taste- Starts with the ligtly toasted malts that give the sweet flavor of almost perfectly toasted white bread. The hops come on in all their floral and zesty, spicey glory. Cleansing my palate and washing all other flavors off my tongue.

Mouthfeel- Very cleansing. Would have been awesome with some flavorful, spicey food.

This was one of my fav IPAs. One that I would like to have in the fridge regularly.
Nov 17, 2006
Photo of mcallister
Reviewed by mcallister from Ohio

2.98/5  rDev -24%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2
I rate this one so highly mainly because of the head. It pours a magical shade of amber with twinges of red. The head is large fluffy slightly off whte and retains itself now for over 5 minutes. Leaving beautiful lacing down the glass that sticks like honey.

A pale malt aroma with some fowery, earthy hop spiraled about. A slight smell of nectarine, and apricot as well.

Not the greatest DIPA but satisfactory. The mouthfeel is awful leaving a layer of filth in your mouth that reminds me of just vomiting after a long night. The hops are very bitter and out of whack. No real direction they are going in. The nice subtle malt does a good job of trying to balance but just doesn't reach it's task.

I think that this review tells itself in drinkability
Nov 09, 2006
Photo of dirtylou
Reviewed by dirtylou from Oklahoma

4/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
12oz single, got a 4 pack at CityWide Liquors at grape/edison in mishawaka...a new brewery in south bend? I'll drink to that

appearance: interesting label bearing the image of satan himself, which is odd given theres a church about every 20 feet in south bend...pours into widemouth wine glass...glowing orange-copper body with a light bubbly beige foam head...lacing is bubbly and light

smell: aroma is mysteriously tropical...pungent citrus, mango, grapefruit, light apricot...nice pine compliment. lots and lots of hops

taste: This is a nice dipa for sure and its rating is clearly being weighted down by 2 unusually low scores...bitterness level is quite high, piercingly bitter ruby red grapefruit, dripping pine, orange-citrus, mango and other tropical syrupy fruit...nice effort from the new kids on the block

mouthfeel: high bitterness, abv not abrasive

drinkability: pretty good considering the bitterness
Nov 08, 2006
Infidel Imperial IPA from NINE G Brewing Company
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 31 ratings