Imperial IPA
Ass Clown Brewing

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pours a beautiful murky yellow with dash of orange poured in small off white head falls quick but does lace well.

Aroma is nice sweet tropical fruits, nice floral notes and pine hints all blended together. Pineapple, mango, passion fruit some sweet malts that may be the floral i'm noticing.

Taste is like the nose good doses of hops fruity notes and sweetness move to grapefruit/orange rind like bitterness with a sprinkling of pine needles. Nice juicy fruity IPA with a good resin bite at the end. Being an Impy IPA the alcohol is well hidden and doesn't raise its head at all really.

Mouthfeel is on the lighter side might be due to the peppy carbonation making it feel lighter though. Goes down smooth and easy.

Overall I am enjoying this one a good and fairly well balanced big IPA, tons of hop flavors and aromas but don't have to scrap the resin off your tongue for the next sip. Would defiantly have this one again.

 

This home-state Imperial IPA is a moderately hazy, effervescent deep-gold beer with a giant, pebbly ivory-colored head; head retention is slight but lacing is very good, consisting of sticky bands and caves. The nose is big and enticing; it leads with bright fermented pineapple, backed by grapefruit and weedy florals with hints of yeast and body odor, with modest alcohol overtones riding atop it all. Up front, the palate is fairly bitter pineapple with a more subtle cannabis character and hints of bittersweet nutty malt. Mid-palate the perceived bitterness recedes to a light level as the nutty malt character overtakes the hops and the slightly caramelish bready malt foundation shows through. Some pine and grapefruit notes and a very slight grassy character start to show, and there is a significant boozy undertone. The finish is a moderate nutty pine flavor, followed by a flash of caramel and then a medium, slightly grassy pine rebound bitterness that lasts for quite awhile. Retrogustative olfaction is grassy/melonish. Mouthfeel is a bit thin for the medium body, and is slightly astringent; the texture is slightly creamy and very slightly peppery from the somewhat restrained carbonation. (16 oz can, 57 days after pkg)

 

Well, with a date of July 26,2016 on the bottom of the can I believe it's been called out of retirement...and for good reason. This is an outstanding example of the so-called "west coast style" IIPA, nice orange-straw color, decent hop aroma and biterness, and well-hidden alcohol. IMHO, this is what a IIPA should be, anything else is something else, maybe they (east coasters) should be called "regal" IPA's so there's no confusion...again IMHO. BTW...not retired!

Poured into a Wicked Weed snifter. Bottom of can says 07/26/16.

A- Pours a medium amber color with a full inch of off-white head that retains well before becoming a thick ring around the edge of the glass and a full sheet of surface foam. Resilient lacing leaves small clots behind.

S- Big juicy, bright hop aroma brings to mind pineapple, peach and mango. There's also a decent amount of cereal grain malt sweetness. Slight alcohol fume.

T- More bitter than expected but there's plenty of citrusy hop flavor to go with it. Notes of orange, tangerine and pine. It's so bitter but juicy at the same time that creates a tartness sensation. The 8% ABV is noticeable but not deterrent.

M- Very sharp from the hops with medium carbonation and a body leaning toward the lighter side.

O- This is a massive hop attack and in a good way. It's one of those beers I like to describe as "assertively balanced" where there's a ton of flavor but it all works in a way that goes down smoothly. Good to see that Ass Clown is starting to show they're a force to be reckoned with.

 

I got this beer in a pint can from a fresh delivery to Raleigh. Nice deep gold/orange beer with a puffy white head that takes a minute or two to fade and leaves behind some sticky lacing. Tons of fruit in the nose like grapefruit, mango, orange with a pine blast and a nice malty sweetness. The taste is really smooth upfront with juicy citrus and sweet caramel flavored malt. The beer finishes with a nice piney bitterness and it lingers a bit but is not overpowering. Can't taste the alcohol in this IIPA. This is a really solid beer that I am happy I purchased.

 

 

 

 

22oz bomber. No bottle date but can't be more than two weeks old based on release date.
Appearance: hazy orange with a small amount of lacing.
Aroma: grapefruit and tropical fruits.
Taste: this is where it gets good. Very west-coast style with lots of tropical fruits (guava, mango), along with some citrusy and piney notes. Very light on the malt, some sweetness, with a balanced, yet noticeable amount of hoppiness.
Feel: very light and balanced and the booze is extremely well disguised for 8%. Remarkably smooth.
Summary: one of the best dipa's i have enjoyed in North Carolina, and for that matter, on the east coast. Reminds me in some ways of some of the stone enjoy by batches and some other hop forward and fruit inspired IPAs, but it is unique in its own right. It's not cheap, but don't hesitate to pick some up if you see it around, these folks make some great brews and this is top of the pile for me if you're into very well-crafted west coast IPAs.