TPK
Varietal Beer Company

Hot stuff. Pours a clear amber with abundant foam in the Stella Artois goblet. Quite fragrant with lemon and pine. Chinook and Citra are the hops listed on the label. Mild flavors for such a ferocious alcohol heat. Tastes of biscuits with unripe apricot. Light body with a sharp finish. Interesting, but a tongue numb-er. Next experiment is to see how much of this is takes to turn a Rice Lager into an IPA. From the 16 oz can purchased at Elizabeth Station. Date is 2024.

This monstrous WCTIPA pours a slightly unfiltered golden color and sports a soapy white head that provides a nice ring around the body of the beer and a decent amount of lacing, which is surprising, given the gravity of this beer (10.5% ABV).

The nose is led by a magnificent orange blossom note that absolutely shines, and there’s also a bit of grapefruit and pine tossed in for good measure, as well as a bit of caramalt.

The caramalt is more pronounced on the taste, and resides at the back of the palate, which is good, because the orange blossom, grapefruit flavors, annd pine flavors are ….. brawny. Like massively brawny.

But they’re balanced by the caramalt, and the 10.5% ABV is hidden by the crisp and crushingly dry mouthfeel - until it settles in your chest and you realize you grabbed a tiger by the tail and he’s very willing to bite you.

This is world class, IMHO, a beer I’d stand in line to acquire.

Poured into a Seattle Beer Week pint glass. Pours a medium golden amber with a fine, two finger white head with great retention and thick lacing. Aroma of pale malt, citrus and piney hops, grapefruit, orange and light stone fruit. Flavor is pale malt with a touch of caramel, piney and citrus hops, orange, pine, grapefruit and light stone fruit esters. Nicely and assertively bitter with lingering citrus rind, pine and fruit esters. Medium bodied with moderate creaminess, nice mouth feel. Just the kind of imperial IPA I love: fine West Coast style citrus and pine hops and other interesting flavors (in this case the bright stone fruit ester notes) appearing during the taste. A particularly creamy and solid head added to the experience, along with a sturdy malt body and mouth feel. This looks, smells, feel and tastes great. Nicely done.

2024-03-03
16oz can served in a footed pilsner glass. Not sure, but I think the can is dated 01/25/24.

Pours clear golden light amber, nice tall head, dense, slow to fade, plenty of active carbonation. Smell is screaming bright citrus and orange blossom notes.

Taste is boozy, sweet honey and floral malts all over the place, orange zest and pine resin bitterness is clawing at the corners and will eventually invade and overwhelm. But wow, that booziness. Having trouble deciding if I like it or if it's too much -- very borderline, and I suspect I'm more tolerant of booziness than most.

Mouthfeel is dangerously light, smooth, and clean. Overall, this is a very nice beer, dangerous with the light feeling; only the boozy flavor gives a strong warning about the deep waters ahead.