Great Divide Brewing Co. Yeti

Good evening all. I'm currently in the process of uploading my second solo video beer review, so I thought it would be best to do a written one as well just so my legions of dedicated supporters won't feel deprived of my musings and ramblings. This post is all about Yeti, an Imperial Stout from Great Divide Brewing Co. based in Denver, Colorado. Despite having a few of their offerings in the cellar, to date I've only tried Titan IPA and found that to be very good, so hopefully the trend shall continue with this beer. Review after the pic....

Yeti (9.5% ABV) pours a jet black colour with a light brown head that dissipates to a patchy covering over the surface of the beer. The aroma is very rich and sweet, reminiscent of some of BrewDog's imperial stouts, with caramel, chocolate, coffee, yeast extract, roasted malt, dark fruits, hoppy citrus fruits and candy sugar. Smells amazing, particularly when I've had a lot of imperial stouts recently that focused more on the slightly bitter and piquant qualities that roasted malt can impart on a beer. The sweetness is almost reminiscent of a barley wine, which makes sense when reading the bottle description as it certainly sounds like they've whacked a considerable quantity of hops into this beer. The taste is an interesting blend of resinous/fruity hops and dark roasted malt flavours, making this a borderline-black IPA! There's plenty of chocolate, coffee, caramel, citrus fruits, yeast extract and a warming alcohol quality during drinking, with the finish being quite dry but not particularly bitter despite the significant hop additions. The mouthfeel is quite thick and the beer is moderately carbonated, which compliments the hoppy flavours as well as the darker ones. Overall, a very interesting imperial stout that manages to balance a significant sweetness and plenty of roasted malt flavours with a noticeable fruitiness from the aroma hops, creating a pseudo-black IPA in the process. I'd definitely get this again as I'm a big fan of the flavour combinations that come through in this offering, fantastic stuff!

Until next time....

Great Divide Brewing Company Titan IPA

Good afternoon all. Last night I had two rather special beers, the first of which came all the way from Colorado, a state renowned for its brewing prowess with the likes of Odell, Left Hand, Avery and countless other big names all based there. That beer was Titan IPA, an American IPA from Great Divide Brewing Company. This is my first beer from Great Divide- despite having a number of their beers waiting patiently in the cellar- so hopefully the hype will be justified. Review after the pic....

Titan IPA (7.1% ABV) pours an amber colour with a thick white head that settles to a thin halo around the inside of the glass. Because of the bottle-conditioning, there is some lacing present during the first half of the beer. It does look great though, the picture doesn't do it enough justice. The aroma is more subdued than I was expecting, with piney/resinous hops, plenty of tropical fruits, a vinous quality, malt and some sweetness in the background. The resin comes through every so often, but the predominant hop aroma is definitely the citrus/tropical fruits. The taste is composed of citrus fruits, pine, malt and grapes, with the finish delivering a slight bitterness but nothing overly offensive. The mouthfeel is slightly thick with moderate carbonation. Overall, this is a very well-balanced IPA that delivers plenty of characteristic flavours with a pleasing yet assertive bitterness in the finish. It's not particularly "aggressive" as billed in the bottle description, but frankly the flavours and aromas will leave even the most ardent hophead pleased. Definitely recommended, I'm more tempted than ever now to reach into the cellar to try the other offerings I've got from Great Divide, so expect more appearances from these guys in the future!

Until next time....