Hop On Top Imperial IPA
Sick N Twisted Brewing Co.

Delicious Imperial IPA! Palate wrecking goodness at 103 IBU's! Piney-resiny and super drying, Hop OnTop nails the resiquites perfectly of the Imperial west-coast style!

 

Copied from notes, taster flight in Deadwood SD

A rather too-dark honey gold, slight shades of tea, creamy head of 1 finger

Strange aromas of pretzel, toffee, caramel, Belgian Cara, and Belgian yeast

Caramel/Toffee on the flavor, with heavy heavy malt presence; sharp pine, grapefruit peel, evergreen, some odd candy necklace sweetness, "kind of a mess"

Feel I didn't really jot down, because I was almost sick of this beer by the third sip. I do remember a rather large alcohol heat presence and very low carbonation though.

Overall, chit-chat with the beertender revealed that this beer was indeed brewed with Belgian malts. It's there, in full force, and the caramel-toffee-pine-candy necklace-citrus-Belgian thing doesn't exactly balance well. My least favorite of the flight.

This is an old-school DIPA, through and through. From the dark copper color to the malt-driven nose, this certainly isn't some trendy haze bomb - but is that a bad thing? Touches of alcohol and dark fruits help to counteract the aroma of caramel and toffee nicely. The hoppiness (for better or worse) is limited to touches of pine, grass, earth, and grapefruit. It tastes similar to what the aroma presented. Actually though, the malt backbone seems more nuanced and even complex. Notes of vanilla and table sugar open it up, giving way to the expected caramel and toffee flavors. It finishes with a subtle hoppy bite - there isn't much fruit, but the pine is well restrained - and a kiss of alcoholic bite. This is more of a barleywine than a DIPA to me - not because "HYUK HYUK NOT HOPPY ENUFF", but because it has a big yet satisfying malt backbone balanced by a nice hop-laden bitterness that isn't overdone. Also barleywine-like is the soft, thick texture. It goes down easily for a 10% monster: credit given to the hoppiness cleansing the palate (nor does it seem to need strong carbonation). Some will find this overly malty, myself (and I say this as someone who thinks such a thing 85% of the time) I enjoy the way it works with the subtle hops and alcohol. My first tick from South Dakota ends up being satisfying, but not showstopping.

3.57/5: Hehe, innuendo (and a decent brew)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoyed on tap on the South Dakota tap takeover at Wooden Legs Brewing on 10/25/14
Poured into a pint with a small, white head that left spotty lacing.
Lots of citrus in the aroma with a little resinous pine and a bit of dankness as well.
Big citrus flavor -- lots of grapefruit pith as well as piney notes and a hint of grassiness as well. S lingering bitter bite on the tongue and a bit boozy as well.
Mouthfeel is light to medium and a bit sticky.
Overall, glad I got to try this very good IPA.