On The Wings Of Armageddon
DC Brau Brewing Co.

From the small can dated 10/24/2024, it pours a clear golden color with a nice white head that reduces and leaves lacing. The nose gets a pungent smell with notes of citrus. The mouth follows with a piney flavor hitting the mouth and leaving a mild resiny aftertaste.

I enjoyed this beer the first time I had it. Not a lot of beers feature Falconer's Flight. It's golden with maybe some chill haze but really mostly old school looking, in a not bad way. It's malty with undercutting bitterness, not really something I enjoy these days.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the Wings of Armageddon from DC Brau. Purchased 11/10/20 for $2.31 (Including tax and discount) for 12 oz can ($ 0.192/oz) from State Line Liquors in Elkton, MD. Reviewed 12/30/20.
Stamped on bottom of can “TAKE OFF 10/20/2020 3371”. On room temperature shelf at store and stored at home at 42 degrees. Served at 54 degrees in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. Final temperature 56.3 degrees.
Appearance – 4.5.
First pour – Straw (SRM 3), clear.
Body – Pale gold (SRM 4), hazy. When held to direct light, same but translucent with slight effervescence noted.
Head – Large (Maximum 5.5 cm, aggressive center pour), ivory, medium density, average retention, diminishing to a six to eight mm crown fed two places by effervescence, and a rocky partial cap. Head retraction leaves torn curtain lacing.
Lacing – Excellent! Wide irregular band of tiny to small bubbles having alpine stalagmites and Indian subcontinent stalactites. See also above.
Aroma – 4.5 – Citrus mixed with pine with some follow-up resin, no malt, no yeast. Lasts although it weakens.
Flavor – 4.5 – Begins with a bit of resiny wood (!) (not oak), a little malt, no yeast. No alcohol (9.2 % ABV, as marked on container) found in either nose or taste but a slight gastric warming does occur. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl. Ends with a medium woody bitterness.
Palate – 4.25 – Medium, almost creamy, soft but lively carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 4.5 Excellent old school IPA, bitter and flavorful. I could drink a TON of these if they were only available in my area!

 

 

 

Thanks to Ozzylizard for this one, from a LIF box during the recent NBS BIF #12. 12oz can (dated 10/20/20) poured into 14oz teku. Poured a clean, clear dark gold color with over an inch of white head that had very good retention and moderate lacing.

Big, bold hops (citrus mostly, but some pine) at the front of the nose, with a touch of malt sweetness at the back end.

Same on the tongue, with a nice bitterness on the finish.

The body was medium-full, smooth, and had a bit of a sticky-sweet finish.

Drinkability was very good, the alcohol was nicely integrated into the beer.

Overall, a nice old-school ImpIPA. Worth trying if you see it.

12oz can purchased from the fridge as a 4-pack for $12.99. Canned on 10/20/20, so this is exactly 5 weeks old.

Look: Has a west coast all-the-way kind of look to it. Beautiful orange bordering on amber color. This is essentially clear, with just a fine suspension of particulate floating in there. Tiny bubbles are rising up in the glass. A nice two finger head on the pour has dissipated to a whispy white foam on the edges of the glass.

Smell: Very pungent initially with oniony notes. Lots of resinous pine and orange rind, dank and peppery notes. Very earthy. Subtle sweetness underneath. As I get into it, I can pick up on other fruit flavors like mango, grapefruit, and cantaloupe. Also getting green bell pepper.

Taste: Mmmm. It's dangerously drinkable at 9.2% ABV, especially considering how hoppy this beer is. Kudos to DC Brau for striking this kind of balance also between hop aroma and flavor and maltiness without producing overpowering bitterness. Up front, this beer exhibits a lot of sweetness - tastes very much like candied orange. Then the sweetness is quickly overtaken by pithy hop bitterness - notes of pine and grapefruit zest. The finish is very dry and welcomed with this kind of beer because the alcohol is so high and it takes a lot of malt to make a beer like this, really works well. While the finish is decidedly bitter, it doesn't linger so long and your palate feels ready to dive right back in for another sip.

Feel: This is a medium bodied with a moderately oily mouthfeel. It's drinks relatively light and crisp given the weight of it.

Overall: It's one of the better west coast double IPAs that I have had. Considering that this is 9.2% ABV and the massive amount of hops and malt that was used to brew this beer, it's extremely well made. It's not my favorite of this style, but I definitely enjoy it. A nice showcase of the Falconer's Flight proprietary hop blend.

12oz can into a pint glass. Canned 10/20/20, so not even 3 weeks old.

Looks fantastic in the glass. Clear deep golden yellow body. Small bright white head persists in decent form throughout leaving excellent lacing.

Strong hoppy aroma.

On tasting, it's one aggressive beer. Highly bitter with a drying grapefruit hit. However, it's also heavily malty and quite sweet. They both duke it out in the mouth with no clear winner, except for me, who is loving it.

Mouth closing in on full, finish bittersweet followed by a dryness.

Overall, another beer I've been wanting for a while. Usually older than 3 months when it appears around here. Excellent DIPA.

 

 

Pours a hazy golden brown with a very small head that quickly fades away. No strong pine or citrus smells from this beer, just the smell of amarillo hops. The taste of caramel malt hops our at first, followed by notes of citrus including mango. The mouth feel afterward is decently heavy, but not all that heavy for an Imperial IPA with 9.2% ABV.

Can Feb 2020, delicious imperial Ipa that grows as it warms, tons of subtle complexity. Well done!