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A nice double IPA from Coronado – a lot of malt, but the hops and bitterness still show through on a very nice citrusy, hoppy, w/a bit of pine flavor brew. Not a lot of head and high alcohol, but the alcohol was not prominent. Still, a nice effort from Coronado.

Served In: Pint Glass

*Uploading my old reviews, this one has a review date of: 8-19-07. If I can acquire the beer again I will re-review it*

This is the newest bottled beer from the Coronado Brewing Company. I love the little info on the side bottle: “Coming in at 8.5% ABV, CBC Idiot is an all natural India Pale Ale. Brewed with over 3 lbs. of hops per barrel! Watch out, the unfiltered ‘San Diego IPA’ has been known to reduce even the most intelligent to a blithering ‘Idiot.’” Now, on to the beer itself.

“Idiot” pours a nice golden color with a modest finger of head, and with a very good retention. The aroma is malty with a slight biscuit and bread dough in the mix. The hops dominate after that and it is easy to detect the grapefruit, orange and citrus hops, which leaves me with the impression that it might be a fairly balanced beer. A good dose of hop juice in the aroma, close to a DIPA.

The taste is sweet at first but the hops dominate this one. There is some citrus and bitterness that end up in a nice dry finish. The alcohol is just a tad noticeable and as it warms up the malt takes more notice because of the mouthfeel this baby carries! From the first sip it feels thick and it feels like a ‘big beer’. The carbonation is a just a tad on the low side or maybe it’s just the amount of malt this beer has.

This is a good hop-head fix for when you’re in the need of something hoppy and filling. Definitely worth getting your hands on a bottle, and probably the best Coronado has put on the shelves so far.

Served In: Pint Glass

A vigorous pour into my 25cl tulip glass yields a fluffy, initially three-finger thick, pale tan colored head that rises just above the rim of my glass. As the head slowly subsides with a nice layer of thick lacing that sticks to the sides of my glass. The beer is an amber color that shows hazy'ish, orange-red tinged, copper color when held up to the light. As I am visually inspecting this beer a sticky mix of malt and hop aromas are noticeable. A more focused inspection yields a hop-fruity nose of candied, ruby-red grapefruit zest, ample lychee, bright tangelo and some lighter tropical fruit notes. A substantial, though clearly secondary, crystal malt character contributes a caramelized, sweetened tea note as well as a light toasted malt note and a hint of biscuit flavors. The finish picks up a slightly rank, herbal hop note that reminds me of hemp oil and garlic chives, but it is quite soft and you really have to dig for it; though now that I have noticed it, the aroma is much more noticeable.

The flavor has a lot more of that herbal hop character to it than the aroma initially suggested, but there is still a substantial hop-fruitiness. Up front, sweet flavors of lychee, bergamot oil, and candied kumquats yields to herbal notes of hemp oil and garlic chives, yet still retains a fruity hop presence. The bitterness is actually not all that huge here, though it is definitely present and contributes throughout each sip. This gets a bit green and astringent towards the finish, but there is lots of sticky malt character to balance this out and to help carry the fruiter hop character. Speaking of malt, it is clearly a supporting character here, but does contribute quite a bit to this beer; flavors of toasted malt, light citrus-infused toffee, some sweet tea crystal malt notes and a caramelized malt sweetness. The heft of this beer's body is pretty close to spot on for a double IPA; it is drinkable enough and does not have a body that would suggest that of a Barleywine.

As the beer warms up it gets a bit hot from some alcohol notes towards the finish, though when cooler it did seem to hide the alcohol fairly well. This is actually not nearly as aggressively-balanced towards the hops side of the spectrum as it could be. A more expressive, intense, hop fruitiness would be a welcome addition and would help to temper the crystal malt addition which can be just a wee bit too much at times.

Purchased: South Bay Drugs, Imperial Beach CA

Served In: Tulip

A: Unfiltered burnt umber color with gentle bubble movement. Head is medium sized, simple off white color with a greenish tint.

S: Strawberry rhubarb, papaya, orange with a rye twist and a smidge of caramel.

T: Starts off with rye flavors. Is there rye in this beer? Perhaps its just the orange hop notes that are doing it to me. Very fruity, almost jam like. Lots of strawberry and rhubarb with perhaps even some vanilla. The bitterness is for the most part contained except for tickling around the tongue and lingering bitterness long after the swallow. Quality caramel and butterscotch that usually only comes with an aged beer. Finishes with ripe pear, little bit of spicy honey and green apple skin

M: Medium body, soft mouthfeel with some carbo sting.

D: Not bad. I’d recommend it. Nice flavor.

Served In: Wine Glass

A - Nice orange colored body with a slight chill haze. Head is light tan, about a half inch and very thick and fluffy looking. Shows no signs of leaving anytime soon.

S - Nice fruity hop nose balanced by some malty sweetness. Reminds me of Two Hearted for some reason. Orange. Very pleasant.

T - Starts off with malty sweetness that actually goes on through the whole experience. Unusual for an IPA. Bitterness and hoppiness come in at the same time and intermingle. Some orange peel and resin with a medium bitter bite on the tongue. You get about 7 seconds of the hops before it goes into more of the malty sweetness again. Aftertaste is slightly bitter. Moderate alcohol flavors present.

M - On the heavier side of medium bodied. Slightly biting carbonation.

O - I like this just fine. Good single IPA that could be bordering on the DIPA category. Would prefer a little more work towards the hoppy side, but this is a nicely balanced brew that is very quaffable.

Served In: Pint Glass