Beer: Three Floyd's Fantabulous Resplendence XI Anniversary
Brewery Location: Munster, IN
Beer Style: American IPA
ABV: 7%
I can't believe a year has passed already since the first Fantabulous came out last year. I had heard it was out in Chicago, but didn't know it was around Indianapolis already, and got lucky when I went to the store, because a whole case of it was sitting on the floor just waiting to be put on the shelf. I've got one bottle of the X anniversary left, but that was a DIPA and could hold up to aging, but I won't be aging this years offering because of the lower ABV. Everyone who reads this blog knows that I am a fan of FFF's, and was excited to give another one of their beers a try.
I will also preface this by saying that you should try and have this as close to cellar temp as possible. It really opened up at that point and was a much better drinking experience. It was too cold when I served it and everything was quite muted, but it really opened up as it warmed.
This beer pours a light copper color with a small one fingers worth of head, and it didn't really leave any lacing on my glass. The smell is a nice change of pace from FFF's. The hops are still there quite a bit, just not hit you in the face boldness. I get plenty of floral hops in the bouquet, earthyness, pine, and a bit of pineapple and grapefruit. The flavor profile starts off with a good dose of earthy bitterness quickly followed by the citrus fruit upfront. The malt really comes out nicely to balance out the bitterness. The malt has plenty of caramel and soft toffee notes for balance. I do get a bit of a bitter tea like flavor in the finish. This beer was brewed with jasmine, (unconfirmed, but that is the rumor) but I can't really say if that is the flavor I am picking up on. I think it is a nice mix of flavors that compliment each other quite well. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with just about the perfect amount of carbonation. I do pick up the bitter tea/tannin flavor strongly in the finish, but the alcohol is well hidden. The drinkability is quite nice on this beer and well balanced. I will be having my other bottle in the near future.
I like how this showcased some more range out of FFF's. This isn't an over the top hop-bomb, but a well crafted and balanced beer. The herbs they used in the brew really come out and compliment the hops better than I would have thought they would. My only real complaint about this beer is the price. It was $11.99 for a bomber of this beer. That is pushing my limit for a regular IPA, but since it was a limited brew I gave it a shot. Enjoy it while you can find it around town.
Here is also another write up from a blog-o-sphere friend. Generik's Tap.
Cheers!
Matt
2 comments:
I am getting hooked up with some more of this either tonight or tomorrow and looking forward to it. When I do I will get a better review up for sure. As much as I remember from my first bottle I think this would hold up to some aging fairly well. I fully expect to have some bottles left next year when XII comes out. Really wish I had some more of the original, that was a fantastic brew.
Hey Matt, thanks again for the heads-up on this beer. I agree with you that it's pretty good, but way too expensive. I mean, 12 bucks for a bomber of a "pretty good" IPA is just too much, and this is coming from a FFF's fanboy. If this weren't a Limited Edition release, there's no way I'd pick it up over a bomber of Dreadnaught or sixer of Gumballhead or Alpha King. It's price point just doesn't make any sense.
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