Devious Double IPA
Sun Up Brewing Co.

Copper in color with a wispy, whitish head. Aromas are just barely in evidence, with some faint peppery shots thrown up. Precious little personality so far.

The flavor is a bit off-putting in its pine-pepper focus. "Dark" hopping far overpowers any fruitiness, even citric notes, though both are in evidence throughout. Hot finish, full body that borders on hurting drinkability, but the aggressive hops do more in that area than the mouthfeel.

Give it a shot if you're into very hoppy beers. I had mine almost a year after Gueuzedude, and my glass didn't register nearly as much of the fruitiness he notes, so your mileage may vary.

Sampled at 1702, December 2009
The beer arrives from the tap with a lightly hazy copper color. The head is a wispy, pale ring of a head. The damn beer is filled to the top of the snifter and I find it hard to smell a thing; light notes of tropical fruit, grapefruit and lychee as well as some alcohol are noticeable, but they are all much more faint than they should be (this is just more justification for my preference to have everything in a tulip glass filled no more than 2/3 full).

The beer has a nice bitterness to it up front; there is a pine-bitterness that tingles the tongue. It is also a touch more cold than I might prefer. The beer finishes with ample tropical fruit flavors. The hops in fact, because of the fruitiness, contribute a perceived sweetness. This really opens up as it warms up, it becomes much fruitier and there is a solid anchoring bitterness that is not too aggressive for a Double IPA. The body has some heft to it, perhaps a touch more than I might prefer, but it is still quite quaffable.

This is definitely a nice Double IPA. I like the ample hop-fruit character and tempering bitterness that this beer has. It is definitely a hop dominated beer, so if you are looking for malt then definitely pass this one by.