Altered Beast DIPA
Paddock Wood Brewing Co.

16oz glass at the Underground. This brewery's Loki aged in Bourbon barrels.

This beer appears a murky, dark bronzed amber hue, with one skinny finger of puffy, foamy, and slightly bubbly ecru head, which leaves some attractive approaching storm front lace around the glass as things slowly abate.

It smells of pungent floral, citrusy (orange and white grapefruit) and piney hops, subtle Bourbon barrel astringencies - wet wood, vanilla, and spicy alcohol - crackery caramel malt, and further herbal, sprucey, and earthy hops. The taste is zesty florals up front once again, with a sturdy bready caramel sweetness, a reduced Kentucky boozy woodiness, real vanilla, and more leafy, herbal, and pine/spruce hop bitterness.

The bubbles are pretty well understated in their plain Jane frothiness, the body a dense middleweight, and generally smooth, the hops apparently busy elsewhere, to our mutual benefit. It finishes off-dry, with the complex hops pushing the barrel character farther out of my palate's sphere.

I've been awaiting this one's arrival in Alberta for a few years, believe it or not, and it doesn't disappoint. More aggressively hoppy than overly barrel-tainted, which is a-ok by this observer, especially since the base IPA is so well-made in the first place.