Draft Notes

Breckenridge Brewery 471 Small Batch Double IPA

This week I wanted to take a look at another Imperial IPA, this time by Breckenridge Brewery out of Breckenridge, Colorado. I would like to see how this one measures up to one of my all-time favorite beers, Deviant Dale’s, which is also from the Rocky Mountain state. The brewery was founded in 1990 by a self-proclaimed ski bum home brewer just off the popular slopes of Breckenridge. A couple of years later as the brewery grew; they expanded with an additional facility in Denver. Today they distribute to 32 states, so most of you should be able to find a Breckenridge Brewery beer at your local beer oasis. I primarily see the Avalanche Amber and Lucky U IPA, but in Virginia/DC I am also able to get some of their Seasonal and the Small Batch series. The Imperial/Double IPA I will be reviewing today is the 471 Small Batch. This beer combines Munich, Pale, Carapils, Caramel-30, and Torrified Wheat malts along-side of Chinook, Centennial, Simcoe, and Fuggle hops. The ABV is 9.2% and IBU measures in a 70, so I am expecting a nice hop punch out of this one and curious to see how well they balance all those malts with the hops.

This beer’s appearance is a deep copper with a creamy white head leaving moderate amounts of lacing on the glass. The aromas include apricots, citrus, pine, and an earthy/grassy scent. All very nice as is expected with most IPAs (at least in my opinion), especially the doubles. The tastes I find are citrusy hops, grapefruit, and pine. Additionally, there definitely is a little sweetness to be found, followed by a bitter finish. Not as hoppy as expected, but it is very well balanced with the hops and malts coming together quite well. There really is minimal alcohol taste for a 9.2% ABV which is a result of this nice balance. The mouth feel is fairly light with medium carbonation. Overall, I would say this is another very solid DIPA and one that I would recommend you try if you can get your hands on it. I can’t say it quite meets Deviant Dale’s (Oskar Blues) level, but give it a shot as you will not be disappointed. I will rate Breckenridge Brewery’s 471 Small Batch Double IPA 4 Mugs out of 5 on the Draft Notes Scale.

Learn more about Breckenridge Brewery at: http://www.breckbrew.com/.