I saw a bomber of this Great Divide double IPA at Total win and had to buy it, because it said “wood aged” and I love wood aged IPAs/porters.
Also, it’s a Great Divide beer so it was a safe assumption that it was going to be a good beer. The first thing noticeable about the beer is the color of the pour, it’s a nice amber color. It also has quite a bit of scents. There’s some oak, citrus and some sweeter citrus.
The beer isn’t nearly as in your face hoppy as one would expect on the initial taste. There is a lot of oakiness and some cedar however, as well as a bit of an alcohol finish.
Overall it was disappointing from what I actually expected, but it was still a very good beer. I just had some high hopes for I don’t know exactly what. I’d definitely buy it again and enjoy it, as it’s a very complex beer and good for sippin’.
I completely forgot about updating my Tumblr with things I like, like beer. I’m going to make an effort to get back to posting about beer I drink because people seemed to like it.
Anyway, last night I had the always good Titan IPA by Great Divide. I’ve yet to have a Great Divide brew that I do not like, and I’m a very picky beer drinker. It’s a very good IPA right up there with Bell’s Two Hearted (which is my favorite). It’s got a good punch with it at 7.1% ABV but not too strong that you can’t drink a few of them.
As you can see, even with the Instagram filter, it pours a nice amber color with minimal head. You can smell the classic pine from the hops with a little bit of lemon and other citrus. Right away you can get the citrus (grapefruit) from the hops and it finishes very clean with a good hop aftertastes. It’s better than the average IPA and is a good one to have in the “Oh, yeah I’ll pick up a six pack of that while I’m here” rotation.
For those who don’t know, Intuition Ale is a local Jacksonville brewery, and in my opinion the best local brewery. They do a lot of Belgian beers which I’m not a fan of, but they also do a lot of different IPA’s, which I am a massive fan of. On my last trip to the Tap Room I had one of my favorites, Rail Spur Double IPA.
Rail Spur comes in at 8.7% ABV and has the distinct IPA smell, citrus and pine. It’s a nice amber color on the pour. The smell of the beer follows the taste, as you get the clear pine from the hops and the bitter grapefruit/citrus finish. It’s a very good double IPA and it’s even better that it’s from a local brewery who recently started canning their beer.
I’m not sure if they’ll ever can Rail Spur, but if they did I would buy the hell out if it.
Nerdgasm.
Way out west there was this fella I wanna tell ya about. Goes by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least that was the handle his loving parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. See, this Lebowski, he called himself “The Dude”. Now, “Dude” - there’s a name no man would self-apply where I come from. But then there was a lot about the Dude that didn’t make a whole lot of sense. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that’s why I found the place so darned interestin’. See, they call Los Angeles the “City Of Angels”; but I didn’t find it to be that, exactly. But I’ll allow it as there are some nice folks there. ‘Course I ain’t never been to London, and I ain’t never seen France. And I ain’t never seen no queen in her damned undies, so the feller says. But I’ll tell you what - after seeing Los Angeles, and this here story I’m about to unfold, well, I guess I seen somethin’ every bit as stupefyin’ as you’d seen in any of them other places. And in English, too. So I can die with a smile on my face, without feelin’ like the good Lord gypped me. Now this here story I’m about to unfold took place in the early ’90s - just about the time of our conflict with Sad’m and the I-raqis. I only mention it because sometimes there’s a man… I won’t say a hero, ‘cause, what’s a hero? Sometimes, there’s a man. And I’m talkin’ about the Dude here - the Dude from Los Angeles. Sometimes, there’s a man, well, he’s the man for his time and place. He fits right in there. And that’s the Dude. The Dude, from Los Angeles. And even if he’s a lazy man - and the Dude was most certainly that. Quite possibly the laziest in all of Los Angeles County, which would place him high in the runnin’ for laziest worldwide. Sometimes there’s a man, sometimes, there’s a man. Well, I lost my train of thought here. But… aw, hell. I’ve done introduced it enough.
I had this Great Divide Belgian Style Yeti Imperial Stout (long name) at Engine 15 on draft last weekend. I’m a big fan of most of the Great Divide brews but not a fan of belgian style beers, but I was already kind of drunk so I ordered it.
It’s a nice dark chocolate, almost black color with a toasted marshmallow looking head (FANCY). Like typical Yeti, you get a lot of chocolate and coffee smells on the nose with a little bit of alcohol (it’s 9.5% ABV). On the first taste it’s pretty fruity flavored kind of like most belgians and sweeter than expected. You also get a little bit of espresso flavor and I think some fig.
It’s a “big beer” though, so don’t even think about pounding a few, it’s definitely meant to be sipped slowly, as the flavors evolve a bit as the beer warms (ie, you’ll get a little bit of a banana flavor). As I mentioned I’m not really a fan of most belgian style beers, but this was another good brew by Great Divide.
I saw a bomber of this Great Divide double IPA at Total win and had to buy it, because it said “wood aged” and I love wood aged IPAs/porters.
For those who don’t know, Intuition Ale is a local Jacksonville brewery, and in my opinion the best local brewery. They do a lot of Belgian beers which I’m not a fan of, but they also do a lot of different IPA’s, which I am a massive fan of. On my last trip to the Tap Room I had one of my favorites, Rail Spur Double IPA.
I had this Great Divide Belgian Style Yeti Imperial Stout (long name) at Engine 15 on draft last weekend. I’m a big fan of most of the Great Divide brews but not a fan of belgian style beers, but I was already kind of drunk so I ordered it.