Houblon Chouffe Dobbelen IPA Tripel - Brasserie D'Achouffe (Belgium)

Chouffe Houblon Dobbelen IPA Tripel - Brasserie D'Achouffe (Belgium) 9.0%

Gold, slightly cloudy in a glass with a big head of white and very light foam. A yeasty, nectar and herbal aroma with hints of mint and flowers. There is a bitterness of hops lingering in the background. The sediment at the bottom of the bottle is very fine but it does add to yeasty characteristic of this fine Belgian ale.

Bitter taste but also sweet and yeasty. Pine hops flavour without any sticky resin flavour; more like a dry bitterness that has flashes of pineapple to my taste. The pineapple may be as a result of mixing with some of the nectar and floral flavours of the yeast. The flavour is just what I expect from a Tripel: herbal yeast notes with floral hints while being sweet with some honey tones except it also has strong hops flavours and is not heavy on the tongue. In fact, many Belgian Golden Ales, Dubbels and Tripels are often a little syrupy (though in a good way) but I think Chouffe Houblon high alcohol content thins this beer a little so it plays lighter and thinner on the tongue, even though it is quite deliciously sweet. The bitterness of the hops also cleans out any very sweet highs. This is a really nice Belgian IPA or Double IPA if that's what they are calling it.

Boneshaker Unfiltered IPA - Amsterdam Brewery (Canada - Ontario - Toronto)

Boneshaker Unfiltered IPA - Amsterdam Brewery (Canada - Ontario - Toronto) 7.1%

A deep, slightly orange and nearly glowing amber in a glass with an off-white head that fades fairly quickly but leaves pleasant lacing. Grapefruit, mango and passionfruit dominated hops aroma at first, but then it mellows into an aroma featuring more melon and resin tones. A swirl of the glass with bring back a finger of foam as well as the hoppy tropical highlights of mango and passionfruit for a moment. The taste is of resin and cedar mellowed with some melon and mango tones; strong hops bitterness and a sweet malty body that is caramelized and a little sticky like a Red Ale. The finish reveals some very nice caramel tones and the aftertaste is very much bitter for the most part but eventually fades into a nice grain flavour with lingering notes of pine. No alcohol taste that I detected but there is enough in this fine ale to set your tongue tingling at times.

Boneshaker is a very nice India Pale Ale and, seeing as how it tips the scales at 7.1%, it could even be considered to be a very nice Imperial IPA. Lots more tropical fruit flavours than other IPAs but that's part of the reason why IPAs are fun: sure they are almost all very hoppy but they can be hoppy in dramatically different ways. One final note about the hops-borne tropical fruit flavours, they come out even more so as the beer warms a little which decreases the extent of the bitterness.

Twice As Mad Tom IPA - Muskoka Brewery (Canada - Ontario - Bracebridge)

Twice As Mad Tom IPA - Muskoka Brewery (Canada - Ontario - Bracebridge) 8.4%

A colour between gold and brass in a glass with a thin darkened off-white head. Very sprucey and sweet aroma. The taste is bitter but also very sweet and loaded with a lovely sprucey hops flavour. A bit of sticky resin in the finish and aftertaste but overall this is a sweet and light-on-the-tongue Double India Pale Ale full of great "forest" flavours as well as a little citrus and floral touches. Deceptively high in alcohol: it certainly doesn't taste 8.4% alcohol.

Propeller Double IPA (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 8.2%

Propeller Double IPA (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 8.2%

Very strong hoppy pine aroma with a bright citrus (mix of lemon and orange) element. A dark brass colour in a glass.

Very bitter with plenty of wooden, earthy tones mixed in with the strong hops flavour. A sweet and toasty, nearly caramelized, malt flavour mixes with the bitterness of hops to remind me of a tart unripe dark cherry in a very, very good way.

Propeller's Double IPA is a great way to beat the heat and a good beer to share to unwind after a day at the office. Just like the label says this is a "TRUE hop bomb, for TRUE hop heads". It's hops character is nicely accentuated by the malt to make a beer that is more than just really hoppy. A can't miss for you hopheads out there.

Hoppelganer Double IPA - Rockbottom Brewpub (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax)

Hoppelganer Double IPA - Rockbottom Brewpub (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 8.0%

The powerfully hoppy aroma is strongly citrus, floral (maybe even apricot) with pine and some melon that, in combination, have some touches of pineapple. Apricot-orange and cloudy in a glass. The taste is very bitter and pumped full of pine. Malty sweetness tries to get through but gets deliciously stomped on by spicy hops loaded with citrus tones. An awesome Double IPA from my favourite brewpub in Halifax.