Evelyn's Imperial Sunshine
Hopworks Brewery

16oz can from Hops & Bottles. Deep golden, hazy, lasting foamy cap. Musty, grainy aroma. Hops are first in the taste, fruity flavors, sweetness towards the back and a full mouthfeel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Clear pale gold colour with a smooth white head. Good head retention.

Bright floral hops with a distinct grapefruit edge. Very light malt. Slightly resinous. I like this.

Light malt with a hefty dose of bitterness. I don't really believe this is 90IBUs. For me the slightly citrussy hop character is muted on the palate and not as good as the aroma.

Medium-light body with moderate carbonation. Fine.

A nice beer but lacking in the pungent hop flavour that makes an IIPA an IIPA.

On tap at Hopworks in Portland Oregon.

A: 1.8" white head over nearly clear straw liquid.

S: The smell is peppery with hops and yeast.

T: Peppery, citrus, with a nice aftertaste.

M: Medium level of fine carbonation.

O: A smooth and refreshing Imperial IPA.

On tap at Apex today.

Evelyn pours an orange amber color with good head retention and considerable lacing. The nose as expected, is all IPA goodness, showing a considerable amount of orange and grapefruit citrus, lemon zest and pine. The flavor profile replicates the nose pretty closely, with this excellent DIPA showing considerable bitterness in the attractive, dry finish. I get just a hint of alcohol in the finish, but otherwise there's not a lot not to like about this medium bodied, crisp, well balanced DIPA. The beer shows a bit of malt sweetness in the mid palate, but this is a West Coast IPA all the way, and so one dominated by a significant amount of hoppy bitterness. The finish, of course, is long, dry and bitter.

In many ways, the beer reminds me of a slightly bigger, boozier, drier and ultimatley hoppier version of the two hearted from Bell's. In any event, this is a another well crafted IPA from the talented folks at HUB.

There aren't words of thanks sufficient to express my appreciation to oregonskibum for this ode to hop artistry of a beer.

My glass is filled with a cold and cloudy amber gold brew that's refractively cloudy through, topped by skim of off white shade. Lace is played up to the rim of this beauty of a beer. Come here.

The nose is citrus, and vegetal hop zest, full of the best promoters of longing thirst, you know, the aroma that first feels like it's sparkling in your nose, than goes crazy with sweet malt ghosts and complex boasts of lupulin amaze.

A bell has rung upon my tongue, a bright peal of hops that tell of Oregon vocanic ash soil, moist sunshine, and toil of loving growers. Citrus, pine, sweet notes, caress the tongue, cradle the palate. This beer is so well attenuated it is hard to believe there is any sweet at all. But it is the hops, the beauty of their brilliant yet understated presentation, that allows that slightest sweet to shine and balance. The finish is full of luscious hop goodness, the citrus gets bitter, and the pine dries, but never beyond the limit of clean flavor. My Lord, this is delicious!

Despite the fact that this is one of the tastiest IIPA, it is mouthfeel where this one really excels. The bold flavors are so light on palate it defies explanation. I thought PTE drank easily, this drinks so easily it is somewhat scary. Very low carb. keeps it perky, doen't interfere (factor of shipping? whatever. it's perfect). Highly resinous, yet doesn't build or clog taste sensors, superior finish, extremely refreshing.

Drinkability? I'm sorry the scale for rating this goes only to 5. I could drink this until the Sun cools sufficiently for life to start on Planet Mercury.

Impression: Oregon is the finest state in the Union for craft beer, and this is absolutely one of their finest!

Served at the pub in a tall mug at the 2010 release night. Delivered full with little to no head. Review from memory.

A: Color is a yellow with some light orange hues. Very light for an IPA. Arrived with little head, although a thin white head appeared after swirling. There was a nice ring of lacing left after each taste.

S: Hops, hops and more hops. Lots of piney and citrus hops dominate. The smell is clean, crisp and refreshing. Excellent and one of the better DIPA smells next to PtE.

T: The taste doesn't disappoint. A strong wave of more piney and citrus hops are apparent on first taste. There is a sweet, almost honey like taste that balances out the hops nicely. There is relatively little bitterness on the finish for an 90 IBU, 7.4% beer. The hops are present throughout, yet don't leave a bad bitter after taste like some big IBU beers can do.

M: Medium body, moderate carbonation. Perfectly balanced with a creamy mouthfeel.

D: This is an amazing DIPA. HUB packs a huge hop presence with a relatively light (okay, medium) bodied beer that is super easy to drink. This is a beer that is almost sessionable. It doesn't pack quite the hop 'slap' that it did the first year it was brewed (2008), but this version seems a little more drinkable. It reminds me of Hopslam with a little less pronounced honey flavor.

I've never seen a paler India Pale Ale. Evelyn's Sunshine arrives as its name suggests, in bright sunny yellow with a paleness and clarity usually reserved for anemic lagers. Yet the hop aroma is tremendous, forming itself along classic Northwestern lines. It's like entering a pine forest in spring. The flavor similarly emulates these sappy, piney hop resins while still balanced by full malty contours. The beer also shows an elegant head of white lather and trails vast amounts of adhesive lace. Delivers the goods in abundance though I'm not inclined to tag this an imperial IPA as Hopworks suggests.