Great Beyond Double IPA
Brewery Ommegang
Story by:
Chris Guest
Double IPA
Year-Round
New York
United States
Judges Ratings 89
Aroma: 20 / 24
Flavor: 36 / 40
Appearance: 6 / 6
Mouthfeel: 10 / 10
Overall Impression: 17 / 20
Description
The first beer Ommegang has released since it was named Champion Brewery and Brewmaster for mid-sized breweries at the 2016 World Beer Cup, Great Beyond Double IPA is a build upon the highly successful Nirvana IPA. Nirvana debuted almost exactly one-year ago throughout the brewery’s northeast backyard of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. In only 12 months, as reported by IRI in NY Food data, Nirvana is already the #3 selling NY-IPA. Overall, it is the #13 selling IPA 6-pack despite having weighted distribution well below 50%.
“Double IPA is a style we were excited to brew – it’s a further exploration beyond the Belgian-styles we are known for historically,” said Phil Leinhart, Brewmaster for Brewery Ommegang. “Nirvana received such a great reaction, of course we wanted to see if we could take that to another level. And I’m really excited we are sharing this beer nationally – unlike Nirvana which we restrict to our heartland, fans everywhere can enjoy Great Beyond and tell us what they think.”
Beverage Profile
ABV: 8.80%
IBUs: 83
Served at: ()
Hops: Columbus, Cascade, Centennial, Mosaic, Calypso, Mandarina Bavaria
Malts: Pilsner, Munich 20, Flaked Oats
Judges Review
By Josh Weikert
Judges Ratings 89
Aroma: 20 / 24 / 24
Flavor: 36 / 40 / 40
Appearance: 6 / 6 / 6
Mouthfeel: 10 / 10 / 10
Overall Impression: 17 / 20 / 20
Ommegang’s first-ever Double IPA is a solid entry into the category.
It pours clear and gold with a thin white head. The aroma is hop-forward, as you might imagine, with notes of pine, tropical fruit and citrus — though it isn’t as prominent as you’d find in other beers in this category. The low grainy malt background is nice, though.
The flavor is fruity and pleasantly sweet — not syrupy, and well-balanced by medium-high hop bitterness. The fruit character seems to be a balance of the hop flavors and some pear/berry esters. There’s a medium-low bready malt backbone, and the finish is semi-dry with a lingering citrus character. The mouthfeel is characterized by a low but persistent alcohol warmth.
Overall, this is a very good DIPA that might benefit from a more pronounced hop aroma and flavor, but shouldn’t change a thing when it comes to producing a drinkable higher-ABV beer!
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