Avery Brewing Co. Their dictator series. The Maharaja IPA. Batch #13. March 2011. 102 IBU'S. 10.54% abv. This IPA is all sorts of interesting. Vanilla or Caramel hint? Citrus, which is to be expected from an IPA. Grapefruit. But something almost smells sweeter, like a sweet melon. Or even a grape or pear. I'm having a hard time pin pointing the specific fruit. But it's not the normal citrus I encounter with IPA's. It is, but there is also so much more to this. Very floral, but not extremely aromatic. Less pine and less bitter, but only to the aromatic component to the brew for the later, not in it's taste. It's very malty, which seems unusual for an IPA. It also carries with it a strong alcoholic bite to it, but not as strong as a Belgian (thought it carries with it the alcohol content of a higher Belgian). It's clean. Crisp, but not very light. Amber pour, slight head. Still drinkable. I never thought I’d say this, but this is an IPA I would like to try pairing with an interesting dessert, like a creme brulee. Or perhaps a fruity, nutty, or poppy salad. A lighter marinated chicken, or a lemon zested fish, but not peppered or heavily spiced. This is a very majestic brew. I imagine royalty would enjoy it. I wouldn't choose to drink this on its own again, but pair it with food. But it must be noted that if this was brewed in March, its effect might be completely different as I consumed it a little into May. It's very common for aromatic compounds to be lost during this time frame. [Question to others and what I'm unaware of is if the strong taste of alcohol would increase with time, and if there are IPA"s that can be slightly cellared? Also, is the degradation of aromatic compounds the melon or malty flavors I now detect? Or is this the actual purpose of the brew?] Image from http://www.averybrewing.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=86&Itemid=75 (my own camera seems to be unwilling this week)
