FritzAle Imperial IPA
Ale-Mania

 

 

This is my personal favorite of the Fritz Ale offerings, however...
FRITZ ALE LOST THE RIGHT TO USE IT'S NAME- BEER WILL NO LONGER BE BREWED UNDER THIS BRAND!!!
I just wanted to warn anyone out there that if you're looking for this by the name 'Fritz Ale', you'll no longer be able to find it!!! The new name is now "AM- Ale Mania"!!!

The story is as follows: an "alternative" cola brand over here in Germany sued him for using "their name" which was "Fritz Cola" i.e. NOT "Fritz Ale" (!), but regardless somehow they finally won this dispute in court, which is basically a total bummer for both Fritz of 'Fritz Ale' (the guy's name really is 'Fritz'), but also for the entire CRAFT/INDEPENDENT beverage scene as the last thing we need is for the little guys to start fighting against each other, instead of for.

 

 

This beer pours a brown, copper color with a small head.

The smell is very hoppy with notes of exotic fruits and some citric Cascade-like hoppiness. The Beer is light malty and only has some notes of dextrines and some nutty flavors.

The taste is hoppy with the Amarillo fruity hops, combined with the harsh bitterness of the Cascade and Simcoe, which is not going overboard. The beer has a big mouthfeel, sticky and moderate syrupy. The bitterness is not too extreme, but offers a decent and sufficient bitter to linger for a couple of minutes. Great to see this beer in Germany!

 

Bottle: Poured a cloudy dirty beige color ale with a large off-white foamy head with great retention and some pretty good lacing. Aroma of citrus hops is dominating with bready malt backbone and dry hoppy notes also perceptible. Taste is dominated by medium citrus notes with a solid bready malt backbone and a dry hoppy finish. Body is full with limited filtration and great carbonation with no apparent alcohol. Interesting take on this American style by a German brewer though not as much floral hoppy notes as I was expecting.

Hazy copper-orange pour with two finger pure white head with great retention and lacing. Huge citrusy, tropical fruit nose with plenty of resiny hops as well as hints of pine. The taste is just as bold. Resiny fresh hops and tons of tangy citrus dominate. Hints of grapefruit and mango with a solid caramel malt base. The mouthfeel is thick and chewy with a great tangy bitter hop finish. If I didn't know better, I'd have thought I was drinking a West Coast IPA. And this one is scary drinkable for an Imperial. Hoping that FritzAle is breaking down barriers for the still young German craft beer scene. A great Imperial IPA!