Name: Ska Brewing: Decadent Imperial IPA
Brewed In/Type: Durango, CO / Double IPA
Bought at/Price: Binny's / $5.99 22oz
Dennis: Usually when you have double IPA's you get hop's to the Nth degree and a strong bitter flavor. This brew however seems to take a more subtle approach. At first, I wouldn't have believed you if you told me this was a double IPA. I also wouldn't have believed it was 10% alcohol either. I think what they did was skip on the dry hopping (which is just smell really) and actually added some Belgian sugars to it to hide the alcohol and soften the hop bitters. Honestly, at first I was disappointed, but as I drank I really have come to respect the power behind this beer.
Jen: At first whiff, all I get is mild hops and the sweetness of caramel malts that I'd not expect from an Imperial IPA. The taste is in the same boat. It has a nice piney and grape-fruity hop flavor, but then this weird sweetness sneaks up on you. I would usual expect a punch of hops with a mild malt backbone, but this seems to be a balance of the two. I do appreciate the fact that it is 10% ABV and you can't tell, but I don't find myself wanting more.
Rating: 3.25 out of 5