Random pickup from WF. Drake's is a regional-ish brewery that I had been planning on visiting but after this one, I might be reconsidering. There is nothing quite right about this beer. Maybe I got a bad bottle. Maybe. But the reality is that this beer is brown. It is an imperial IPA. Already off to a bad start. Head retention is low but not surprising. Aroma was pungent and strong but not in the bagged pellet hop kind of way, more like a vegetal, dark-salad-greens-going-mushy kind of way. A tinge of metallic, maybe little roasted malt. I enjoy high IBU beers and this is no lightweight at 90 IBU, but again, something is not right. taste is too malty, too toasty to the point of being burnt with an unpleasant, stale hop finish. It doesn't come off as 90 IBU, and there is no balance to the hop character, no distinctive hop flavors or aromas. It reminds me a bit of a time in high school when a crate of pears got left in the trunk of a car for a couple months and baked in the sun everyday. Oh, I just got the notion of coagulated blood as well. That burnt taste is actually a bit rusty.
Just taking a look at the bottle now, this received a silver medal at GABF 2009. Honestly, I have to believe that this must be a bad bottle because this is a terrible beer to have won a silver at GABF. Unless there were only two beers in the Imperial IPA category that year. Even then, I would be hesitant to award a medal to such a screwy output.
- Appearance: Dark but transparent brown.
- Smell: Resiny, sharp hop smell, a bit off.
- Taste: Malt is overdone, hops are bitter but old and stale tasting. Burnt finish.
- Mouthfeel: Average for the style.
- Drinkability and Overall: 9.75%ABV and 90 IBU isn't necessarily meant to be a sesion beer but even as an imperial IPA, something is really off with this one. Not terribly enjoyable, not quite offensive.
You guys, I'm not even going to finish this beer. It's that bad. Move on the the next review which is what I did.
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