Armadillo Comet IPA
Epic Brewing Company

16oz can at SpaceBar. Drinking from can so appearance is unavailable. Nose is a big healthy dose of old school hops, from the days before the haze. Taste is also a blast of bitterness, some caramel matt's but mostly strong, in your face hoppiness.

 

 

Clear dark amber brew with adequate foam in the Stella Artois goblet. Aroma of cedar, orange, and an intensity of strange fruit. Flavor, though is astonishing. Mango nectar, orange peel, and a musty, woody, fruity finish. Yes it's hugely bitter, but somehow not unpleasant, taken one sip at a time. Big malt, some sweetness, but very well balanced.

This is one of the best parings of high alcohol and high hop dosage I have encountered. It's like Big Bad Baptist only with pale malt. Crazy and should be on every hop lover's must try list. Intergalactic armadillowhalez! From the 16 oz space capsule, date not downloadable. You should read Epic's entertaining web page on this beer.

Armadillo Comet IPA from Epic Brewing. Purchased on 5 Aug 21 from Franklin Beer, Franklin, PA. $4.00 (Including tax) per 16 oz can ($0.250/oz). In the reefer at the store, stored at home at 42 degrees. Reviewed 12/8/21. Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Stamped on bottom of can “497 10/13/2021”. Served at 43.7 degrees in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. Final temperature 49.2 degrees.
Appearance – 4.
First pour – Straw (SRM 3), clear.
Body – Pale Gold (SRM 4), hazily opaque. When rear-lite, translucent. Lots of effervescence.
Head – Large (Maximum four cm, aggressive center pour), floral white, high density, fair retention, diminishing to an eight to twelve mm dense crown and a rocky complete cap. Very delicate torn curtain lacing remains above the cap as the head retracts. Second pour produces a tight one cm head.
Lacing – Excellent! Wide thick bands of extremely tiny bubbles. See also above.
Aroma – 4 – Pine resin, some grapefruit, hint of malt, no yeast.
Flavor – 4 – Begins highly bitter and resinous. No malt. No yeast. No ethanol (9.5 % ABV, as marked on container) taste. No gastric warming initially, but it begins to gradually build. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl.
Palate – 4 – Medium, approaching creamy, soft carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 4 For the degree of effervescence present, the carbonation has a surprisingly soft feel. This is very much an old-school West Coast IPA. Good!

16oz canned the 2nd week of July, poured into a pub nonic. Bright clear orange with an off-white head. Stronger West Coast influences in this one with malty pine, resin, earthy caramel, with some pineapple and pear as well. Moderate bitterness and booze from the abv as well as a solid medium-to-full body.

 

 

 

16oz can (date blurred, unreadable) poured into 16oz tulip. Poured a very cloudy, but still translucent, yellow-orange color with less than a half-inch of white head that had moderate retention and lacing.

Frooty hops at the front of the aroma, with just a touch of malt backbone.

Similar on the tongue, with some hop bit across the middle and back. A bit of alcohol at the back end too.

The body was typical for the style, medium-full, was a bit coarse across the tongue, and had a dry-ish finish.

Drinkability was good, about what you expect from the style.

Overall, a solid take on the style. Worth a shot if you see it.