Imperial Squatch
No-Li Brewhouse

I'm a big fan of imperials. The greats, North coast, Great Divide, Avery, and so many others are standards. This very drinkable offering from No-Li (Washington) Imperial Squatch is outstanding. I'm enjoying one ON DRAFT now, Wow ! I understand they sell in cans , but on tap, it'll make ya a believer.

19.2oz can picked up at Safeway in North Spokane, WA
Poured into a Reuben's then and now glass

P hazy deep orange/caramel color; 2f slightly off-white head; nice-looking brew
N soft-med yeast, green hops, and indiscernable fruity notes at first; light stone stone fruit as it opens up
T hearty caramely malt backbone supports indiscernable fruitiness, toasted, honey, and subtle floral notes; some citrus peel in the aftertaste; moderately sweet; admittedly muddled, but tasty and satisfying; 9% is extremely well hidden
Mf med to med-full; soft-med to med carb level
O kind of a strange one- wouldn't quite call it juicy; definitely on the malty and muddled side, but balanced enough to be enjoyable; good drinkability for the style/abv; I dig it

Review date: 04.03.25
Can date: 12.17.24

19.2 oz can, pours a nice golden color with some thicker haze and a hefty off-white head of lacing. Juicy nose with a pop of malt sweetness, floral and fruity with a nice bitterness, medium to full bodied.

Poured from a 19.2 ounce can dated 6-19-24 into a snifter at 49 degrees.

Look- Deep amber, tan creamy head, very hazy, above average head retention and lacing.

Smell- Bready, mandarin, slight pine, between weak and medium strength of scent.

Taste- Mandarin, bready, lingering pine at finish, between weak and medium strength of scent.

Feel- Medium body, average carbonation, mildly astringent, highly creamy, mildly mouth warming.

Overall- Deep amber and very hazy with above average head retention and lacing. Nose was bready with notes of mandarin and pine. Flavor was overwhelmed by bready malt with some undertones of mandarin and pine. Medium bodied with mild mouth warming properties and highly creamy. Overall way too much malt and not enough hop flavor for my palate.

19.2oz can from Safeway-Pullman. Hazy amber pour, rocky white head, clumps of lacing. Malty aroma, caramel, light citrus. Malty taste, caramel and a small citrus presence mirror the aroma. Smooth, mildly sweet, minor dryness. Smooth for a DIPA.

19.2oz can born on 11/03/23 and served in a stemless CBC tulip. Dark amber body, pretty hazy, but loads of head formation atop. Aroma is pretty sweet with citrus and apricots, but also some malty caramel goodness. Flavor provides more of an old school American IPA profile than I would have expected from an Imperial "Juicy Haze IPA". Yes, there's juice, but it's not overpoweringly fruity, even though it is sweet. There a reasonable amount of classic C-hop DIPA in the flavor, and some fresh green herbal/vegetal hops in the aroma. Mouth feel is nice and not over-carbed at all. Good but not great. Drinkable enough -- and more drinkable than it should be at 9.0% ABV. Only 45 IBUs.

Poured from 19.2oz stovepipe can into a dimpled mug. The label calls this a “juicy haze India pale ale”.

Appearance: dark amber-orange hue with plenty of haze and a tick head of frothy ivory foam with a bit of an orange cast. Seems legit.

Smell: sweet, bready malt, with some lightly citrusy hop notes. Kinda underwhelming for a 9% hazy DIPA.

Taste: fruiter than the aroma, which is nice; there’s mostly tropical, melon, and berry flavors here, with not much in the way of the citrus traditional to the style. It’s actually not too bad, and is relatively juicy, but again is kind of underwhelming.

Mouthfeel: medium body with a decent carbonation and creaminess.

Overall: another entry in the big library of 9% sweet stovepipe IPAs. I mean, it’s perfectly fine, but it’s not extraordinary.