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• Appearance: A beautiful deep, clear orange. Nice head that slowly collapses leaving sticky burst bubbles on the glass.
• Smell: Excellent citrus and spice hop aroma hits first, followed by a whiff of caramelized malt.
• Taste: As the Stonehenge replica made of hop bales on the label would suggest, hops, both bitter and flavor, are the showcase here. Citrus and spice sitting on top of a very supportive malt backbone. The sweetness you’d expect from a high-alcohol beer is there, but is supportive … not overpowering. Could be just a touch more balanced?
• Mouthfeel: Good full-bodied beer with decent carbonation. Could have used just a small bit more carbonation (not a major problem … still plenty of carbonation to be had).
• Drinkability: I bought a case. This beer is easy to spend time with, and I’m glad that I have more in the cellar to enjoy over time.

• Appearance: Opaque, mahogony, beautiful light toffee head that lasts and finally settles leaving plenty of bubbles drying on the glass as it settles onto the surface of the beer.
• Smell: Plenty of deep caramelized malt. Burnt sugar, slight initial smell of bourbon and hint of raisin under all of that.
• Taste: Wow! Despite the big alcohol, I was surprised how easily this beer went down. Plenty of what you’d expect given the dark, oily look of it: flavors from malts like highly-kilned crystal, chocolate, and black patent are all over the place. But balanced … incredible depth of flavor and balance. Plenty of those complexities come from, as the label says, 33% of the beer being aged in bourbon barrels and French oak. Can’t pick out the bourbon flavor nor an obvious use of licorice. It is just a creamy, roasty deep balanced flavor from start to finish.
• Mouthfeel: Great mouthfeel. Excellent coating of the tongue imparts flavor all over.
• Drinkability: This thing went down quickly. Be careful, but buy several so you can explore The Abyss more than once. You’ll most definitely want to.

• Appearance: A slightly red-hued amber with a decent off-white head that clings to the side of the glass.
• Smell: Roasty up front. Solid hop aroma. Some bubblegum?
• Taste: A good roasty, toasty malt presence with some caramel is butted up against a solid hop bitterness and flavor. Substantial alcohol. Some spice at the end. Not as balanced as I remember previous years. Third and fourth sips appear more balanced than the first (result of hops for sure). Finishes with roasty/hop flavors.
• Mouthfeel: Great mouthfeel. Good coating of the tongue imparts flavor all over with a lingering finish in the back of the mouth.
• Drinkability: I seem to remember this as better in previous years. Still very high up among my favorite winter ales. I will gladly finish the 6 pack I bought.

• Appearance: Pours a beautiful pale golden orange with a decent off-white head.
• Smell: A spicy hop aroma butting up against a good amount of fruit/citrus.
• Taste: Solid malt backbone, and great hop flavor. Citrus more apparent in the aftertaste. Not overly bitter. There are some grassy, fruity, and a good amount of spicy flavors that are not present in the many Northwest IPA’s I’ve tried that rely exclusively on Cascade hops. This is what their website says is the exclusive hop used in brewing this beer. I’m not sure where these flavors come from … but I’m sure glad they’re there!
• Mouthfeel: Solid body that feels solid on the tongue at the start, then dissipates well.
• Drinkability: A unique IPA for this NW IPA drinker. Would definitely have liked to bring some back with me had it not been for all the other Holiday Gifts I was lugging back with me.

• Appearance: Pours pale orange to amber with a small white head settling in with some lacing.
• Smell: A good spicy, citrusy Cascade aroma.
• Taste: For a pale ale, this one is all hop. Spicy, oily, lingering fresh hop flavor. Citrus flavors of grapefruit, orange, tangerine. Bitterness and medium malt flavors right before the bitter and citrus finishes out.
• Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with a good carbonation. The oily mouthfeel seems to different than the typical tongue-coating I’m accustomed to, but it is very pleasant. Fresh hops give a nice difference here.
• Drinkability: Fresh hop ale the way your mother intended it (or even if she didn’t intend it … you should pick this one up)! A special beer that should not be missed.

• Appearance: Pours a beautiful pale copper orange
• Smell: Citrus hops all over. orange, grapefruit, some spiciness
• Taste: This is a big northwest IPA. Despite the 44 IBUs reported on the Elysian’s web site, the bitterness comes through clean and finishes big. I get lots of the hop flavor as well with big grapefruit and orange citrus with a bit of a spicy kick in the middle. The malt presence is there in the beginning, but appears to settle into a subtle backdrop supporting the strong hop finish.
• Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with solid carbonation
• Drinkability: If you’re into northwest hops, this one goes down easy. A great session IPA to pair with food.

Had it not been for the 9.9% ABV, I’d be having 44 oz instead of the single bomber. I’ve got a couple more of these, and will continue to cellar them to see how well it ages. I’m willing to bet the next one will be fantastic!