Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Beer Tasting: Sly Fox Odyssey Imperial IPA


The Beer: Sly Fox Odyssey Imperial IPA
Style: Double IPA
Reviews: Beer Advocate Rate Beer
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Packaging & Date Stamping: 22 oz. brown bottle; no date stamp

From where & how stored: Purchased from the Phoenixville location in Dec. 2006 and refrigerated at 42F since then

Pricing: $5.50 per bottle

Availability: Once-a-year as the culmination brew in the annual "IPA Project"

ABV, IBU, and Other Available Stats: 8.4% ABV, 18.6 OG, 90 IBUs
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Bryan's Notes
The Look:
- clean filtered
- bright, bronze color
- decent tight, frothy head holds up for a while
- drapes over the walls

The Aroma:
- citrus hop aroma dominate the otherwise understated nose

The Taste:
- bit of metallic, bitter finish
- decent malt profile to round out the hops kick
- but overall not overwhelmingly hops or malt, guess it's more balanced than I was expecting (not an insult)
- notes of alcohol and bigger hops come out as it warms

The Verdict: Seems to be a very solid IPA. A good intro IPA/double IPA suitable for newbies who want to jump into this style. Preferred just a shade on the cooler side of room temperature.
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Adam's Notes
The Look:
- sunshine yellow

The Aroma:
- nose isn't huge, but substantial signals what is to come
- hops at first; it doesn't stand out, seems a little too subtle

The Taste:
- Let it warm and lo and behold there it is nice round hoppy sweetness
- not too syrupy
- clean on the palate

The Verdict: I will buy a couple bottles of this to enjoy slowly and remind me of summertime while keeping me warm this winter. Don't make the mistake of drinking it cold. This is a civilized well balanced hoppy double IPA. It's from the East Coast to boot!

3 comments:

Eli said...

I had the one you guys sent me over the weekend.

Verdict: Absolutely love it!

Adam said...

Good to hear :-)

I really want to check this out again. My notes weren't very good.

Loren said...

Brian never ceases to amaze me with his talent for mixing hops without creating a mess in the end.

This years Odyssey just screams English DIPA to me.

Unique, low key and earthy. NOT your typical American "C" hop bomb for sure. Which explains a lack of love, for the most part, on BA/RB.

Love it.

Cheers!