Maharaja
Avery Brewing Company

 

Pours a beautiful orange/gold but tons of small bits floating around. I didn't realize this sixer is nearly a year old, but the aroma is still full of orange and pine. Taste follows the nose. Very clean tasting and the alcohol is well hidden. Considering this was packaged last January I am surprised how clean this tastes. I need to pick up a fresher batch.

 

Purchased as single at Pilgrim's Market in CdA, ID - canned May 10/23. 10.0% ABV.
Pours a chill hazed golden apricot bronze with two fingers of creamy off white/tawny tinged head.
Nose is a burst of hops - citrus/orange, piney resin, some tropical fruit, and even a bit of peach. There is a tiny bit of a soapy floral aroma and notes of caramel malt.
Taste is initially sweet citrus, mango, again some peach, with caramel malt. Resinous pine, a herbal dank and sticky bitterness slowly builds. There is almost a touch of vanilla orange creamsicle sweetness.
Full and sticky bittersweet mouthfeel with a pleasant alcoholic warmth.

 

Excellent imperial. Very heavily hopped. Crisp and drinkable despite the higher ABV. The hops bites like a snake as you sip it, but it quickly fades away and is replaced by a mild sweetness. There's nothing overly complex going on here. No exotic notes to speak of. It's a fairly basic imperial IPA in composition, but man is it done well. Will be buying this again, and would probably put it in my top 5 list for imperials.

A borderline world-class imperial IPA in my opinion. It's good. Give it a try. I'm always impressed with Avery beers, whether it be an IPA, a stout, or whatever else.

L- Beautiful golden orange that you can barely see through. Billowy white head that is slowly dissipating. I wouldn't say turbid, but lots of small floaties

S- piney and rosin. With some Citrus zest

T- sweet with a boozy bite. Slight bitterness that lingers on the tongue. Orange Citrus notes.

F- slick with a little chewiness. Lightly carbonated but still bright.

O- Very enjoyable for a 10% IPA. I wasn't expecting it drinking this clean.

1/27/2023 brew date. Very drinkable double IPA. Many DIPAs at 9% or above start to taste funny, like too much sugar residue, or just bland or unbalanced in some way. This one tastes very solid. A bit piney, hoppy, bitter, like an IPA should taste. I say this is well done, and I've had most DIPAs out there. Worth the $3 a can at 10% ABV.

From a can produced 1/27/23. Amber color with an inch of foamy tan colored head. Piney hop smell. Full bodied. Big caramel malt flavor followed by dank piney hops. This thing packs a punch!

 

12oz can purchased from the fridge as a single for $3.50. Canned on 10/4/2022, which makes this one day shy of three months old.

Look: Pours a very nice copper color with a slight haze and a fluffy/rocky beige-colored head.

Smell: Strong, hoppy aromas of citrus (grapefruit), pine, and dank notes. Not much else to say. It smells like it will be a bit boozy and there are a lot of spicy hop characteristics coming through. Overall, the aromas are a bit muted.

Taste: My first impression is that this beer does taste very boozy. Up front there is a nice caramel malt backbone, which pretty quickly is overtaken by a plethora of spicy and dank hops. The finish is very bitter with tons of pine resin and some grapefruit rind and pith. It finishes on the dry side and it leaves a warming sensation in the chest.

Feel: It has a slick, oily kind of mouthfeel that is also a bit chewy. Carbonated appropriately. It's also boozy.

Overall: This is very much a West Coast style Imperial IPA. It uses predominantly old school hop varieties and its expression is very much old school. I probably had this beer many years ago and I doubt that I was able to appreciate it then. Honestly, for me it's enjoyable yet I find it to be a bit boring. It's not my favorite style of beer, but I can definitely appreciate it for what it is. It's well-made and given that it is three months old, it doesn't seem like it has suffered much due to age.

From the can/website:
The Maharaja flaunts his authority over a deranged amount of hops: tangy, vibrant, and intense along with an insane amount of malted barley – fashioning a dark amber hue and exquisite malt essence. Maharaja is derived from the sanskrit words mahat, meaning “great”, and rajan, meaning “king”. Much like its namesake, this Imperial IPA is regal, mighty, and dank. With citrusy hops and caramel toffee malts as his servants, he rules both with a heavy hand. Don't be fooled by unassuming drinkability, this beer is potent. Welcome to his kingdom!

REGAL | MIGHTY | DANK

Brewed with Rocky Mountain water, malted barley (C-120, Aromatic, 2-Row), hop varieties (Columbus, Chinook, Centennial, Simcoe), dry-hop varieties (Idaho 7, Vic Secret, Simcoe) & yeast (House Ale Strain)

I used to drink this one back in 2014/15 in bombers when I could get it. I recently picked up some cans and although I enjoyed it, did not have the same reaction to what I remembered in the past. The nose on it is what really convinced me something was different. I used to be blown away by just how big and fruity the smell on it was, but the cans were muted in comparison. Still a great beer.

 

this is some good stuff - even though i broke one of my rules & picked this one up less than fresh. package 1/27/22, consumed 7/1/22 - happy 4th. still good - my rating reflects past fresher versions.
L: from the can - stylish.
S: sweet, pine
T: lots of hoppy notes crashing through. piney, bitterness. boozy
F: rich and smooth
O: it's a winner - belongs in your rotation if you like this style.

Pours a rich dark gold with ample head. Smells fruity, herbal and hoppy. The taste is grapefruit, orange, lemon, piney, and pretty bitter on the back end but it’s a mostly good finish. This is a dry, hoppy, strong DIPA that is more than serviceable for the price, cheers!

 

 

 

 

This is an amazing beer. I have no idea why the named it after the official beer from India. The Indian made beer is like a nice coors lite. This is a man's beer. Fruity mango. Nice balance between 10% and sweet n bitter. Love it. Get it if you can