Imperial Harpoon IPA

I still really enjoy Harpoon on a hot summer day. It’s nostalgic for me as it was one of the first craft beers I ever had. I’ll definitely look to try at least a can of this, but I can’t say I expect it to be anything incredible.

 

It was THE first IPA for me for sure. I remember it assaulting my taste buds but in a good way. I still enjoy those old school ones every so often.

 

I miss the Leviathan series.

 

Imperial IPA is shipping to their wholesaler for deliveries next week. There is also going to be 6 or 12 packs of Retro Rye IPA too, was hard to see in the picture I was shown.

 

My cousins drinks this like it's going out of style...every family gathering, bbq, etc he's got a few of them in the cooler at all times. I haven't had it in years and decided to revisit it this past summer....and wow....I was reminded that it's a solid floral IPA. Just enough bitterness but approachable for lots of people.

 

I loved Leviathan, especially since even as the hops dropped in intensity from sitting on the shelf, the malts really complemented the beer. It didn't "turn into a barleywine", but also did not just become a stale version of itself like so many other imperials do. I noticed the ABV of this one is lower, so it will likely taste different. Will try a single for science and buy more if it is enjoyable.

 

A neighbor of mine works for Harpoon. Gonna have to see what he says about it...

 

A neighbor of mine has a harpoon.

 

Man forgot about Leviathan. I used to trade those for stuff from a beer pen pal in the Midwest around the mid 2000’s. Got my first tastes of Bells, Three Floyd’s and a Black Albert trading those(along with a few Kate The Greats

Oh those days

 

First time I visited the brewery in college I did the “tasting” which was essentially just unlimited pours for a couple of hours. Multiple Leviathans on tap. Took back a 64 oz. growler of the Leviathan Imperial IPA and domed it that night with my roommate. Next morning was not great.

Those were some great beers. The barrel series bombers had some fun ones too.

 

Even harder for us...

Was their name either "Kris" or "Janis" and did they ever pull it out of their dirty red pajamas*?

* Oops. Misheard lyrics.

 

A few hours? I remember doing the tour and at the end you’d get about 15 minutes of unlimited sample pours. I always cranked Leviathan for the most bang for my buck.

 

Solid! Actually really enjoyed this. Saw it when I was in The City Beverage and had to grab it. Really enjoyable Rye spiced ipa

 

Fridays 4-5pm in the late "aughts" were my jam. They gave you a sample glass and poured as many samples as you cared for in that hour. May have told this story before, but one of those trips I filled a few growlers for my wedding weekend, and the taproom guys threw in several hats and shirts and didn't charge us for the growlers as wedding gifts. Good business move by them, as that freebie made us very loyal to Harpoon going forward and our purchases are probably a very large multiple of what we got for free that day!

My favorite Leviathan was Red Squared, had this fresh and it was a revelation. Was always a fan of red ales from college days, and to marry it with aggressive hopping and even more intense malt like Harpoon did... *chef's kiss*

 

Guess I need to actually look at my post after I put it up lol

 

This was at least an hour on a late Friday afternoon, it was a great thing.

Only thing that rivaled it was the Abita tour where they gave you a cup and let you pour your own beer. Good times.