Summit 10 Cubed Imperial IPA

Muddy Pig is tapping this at noon tomorrow. I'm heading there around 2. They have more than enough to last the day.

This is a really interesting beer. 10 malts, 10 hops and 10% ABV. Not an "Imperial IPA" in the traditional sense (I called it one before I tried the beer, I was wrong). Now, I would probably classify it as an "American Strong Ale". 10 Cubed has a big, bready malt backbone. This beer is hoppy up front but almost finishes like a Fat Tire (IMHO). I've never really had a beer like this. It has a lot going on and is really fun to drink. Just don't go into drinking this beer thinking about Hopslam or Abrasive. This is something very different.

 

What's the story on this? One off? Availability?

Thanks!

 

One off. Brewed for Muddy Pig's 10th anniversary. Damian made it on our new pilot brew house. I believe there are 4 or 5 kegs total. We most likely won't brew this beer in a larger scale. It would be difficult to occupy our full size fermenters for the length of time that it takes this beer to mature.

 

I'm planning on stopping by the Pig in the afternoon to try this. Looking forward to it.

 

Have to go to a wedding today but might try to swing over Sunday to see if they still have any left.

 

Drinking this at the bar right now, and I have no idea what I would call this. Firstly, the promos advertised 10%, but the flyer at the bar says 7%. My guess is the 7 is accurate. It's way too malty for me to feel comfortable calling it an imperial IPA, but it is definitely not in the strong ale wheelhouse either. An interesting beer for sure, the kind I hope the new pilot system allows them to brew more often.

 

The BA definanition of an American Strong Ale is...

American Strong Ale



Description:
Catch all style category for beers from 7.0 percent alcohol by volume and above. Some may even be as high as 25% abv. Characteristics will greatly vary; some have similarities to Barley-wines and Old Ales. Barrel aging is certainly not out of the question.

The beer is unique, over 7% and can't really be lumped into a specific style category.

 

Description:
Catch all style category for beers from 7.0 percent alcohol by volume and above. Some may even be as high as 25% abv. Characteristics will greatly vary; some have similarities to Barley-wines and Old Ales. Barrel aging is certainly not out of the question.

The beer is unique, over 7% and can't really be lumped into a specific style category.[/quote]

Interesting, I guess I didn't consider how variable the category is, I think most of the 'American Strong Ales' I've had have been stronger in content. I must say, it felt stronger when I got up and walked around in that heat...and the bitterness has stuck with me for awhile. A lot going on

 

I just added the beer as an American Strong Ale at 10%. The posters at the Pig said "10 hops, 10 malts, 10% alcohol." It tasted very good. I had a couple glasses and well I thought it was fairly strong it didn't quite feel like I drank an entire imperial bomber. Walking around in the 90 degree heat made it hard to tell.

 

I tried to snag a brewer to ask whether it was in fact 10%, as the posters said, or 7%, as described on the handouts at the bar...Jon???

 

It is 7%. The posters that say 10% were made by our distributor. The brewers toned back the final product to make it more drinkable. Ask for the spec sheet at the Muddy Pig. Many of our employees (and a few pig employees) picked the 10 hops/malts for this beer. Then, one of our brewers had to figure out some kind of brew with all of these ingredients. Cool experiment that lead to some confusion.

I was asking questions myself that were just answered today.

 

Any of this still on at the Pig? My only day off tomorrow and want to get over there and visit Kristian and the crew.