Rogue Brutal IPA

From Newport, Oregon's Rogue Ales comes Brutal IPA. At 6.5% alcohol, Brutal IPA has some heft, without being inaccessible. It has a serious 59 IBUs and comes in 650mL bottles that are emblazoned with a pretty rad dude.

Brutal IPA is cloudy, and has a dull orange colour. It pours to the south of an unyielding of-white head. Sniffing through that dense foam, I detected an amply hopped aroma with notes of grapefruit, just as the bottle foretold. Given the aroma, there is less citrus in the flavour than I was expecting. It's certainly there, but interwoven with some notes of caramel and some raisin-y bitterness.

Brutal IPA is a very subtle India Pale Ale.  It has considerable hop bombast, but somewhat tempered. It's very smooth and mellow for an I.P.A., while still delivering the bitter, dry finish that I was hoping for. Everything that I have tried from Rogue has been pretty much excellent, and their Brutal IPA doesn't disappoint.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.