88 Rating: 4th Anniversary Double IPA, Garage Brewing Co.

Double IPA | Seasonal | United States

By Tracy Hensley

Judges Rating: 85
Aroma: 20
Appearance: 5
Flavor: 36
Mouthfeel: 7
Overall Impression: 17

This hazy Double IPA leads with ethanol and hop bitterness, followed by unusual, but interesting, aromas of white milk chocolate and aggressive resin flavors.   
It starts with a moderate aroma of lemon peel, well-blended pine resin, candied vanilla caramel wafers, and white milk chocolate.  Pine resin and white chocolate-dipped buttery graham biscuit notes come forward after a few minutes.   
The Double IPA is a hazy ruddy amber color with a creamy unbleached lace-colored head that creates a patchy film on the top of the beer.   
The first sip is pine resin forward, followed quickly by graham crackers coated in aggressive hop bitterness with a lingering pithy aftertaste.  Overtime, heat coats my mouth and warms my lips, tongue, and throat.   The medium body combined with medium plus carbonation causes a biting prickling sensation exacerbated by alcoholic heat.
Drinkability is a hallmark of the Double IPA style (2015 Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) Category 22A).  However, here the diacetyl as well as intense ethanol and resin bitterness character, creates an off-balanced beer.  I was able to tame some, but not all, of the aggressive hop bitterness with four-year old Pacific Northwest cheddar.  Overall, the whole is greater than its parts.