Harpoon Leviathan Imperial IPA

Brewery: Harpoon Brewery
Location: Boston, MA
Style: IPA
Brewery Website
Rating: B+

Tonight we have the Harpoon Leviathan Imperial IPA. This is a big IPA, weighing in at at 10% ABV. The Leviathan IPA is golden amber in color, and looks a bit on the light side for a big IPA. It pours with a thick, bubbly, off-white head that leaves a trail of sticky lace on the glass as it recedes. The nose has piney and floral hops aromas, along with some grapefruit and a hint of sweet malt.

The Leviathan IPA has a hoppy twinge up front and the bitterness slowly ramps up from there. There are notes of winy alcohol, sweet cereal malt, bubblegum and sweet corn. The hops flavor is led by floral and herbal notes, along with some pine. There is a long, herbal-hop finish with lingering bitterness. The body is on the heavy side with a tannin-like astringency.

The Leviathan IPA is rather unique in the way the hops take on primarily a floral/herbal flavor profile. Matched with a bit of sweet maltiness way in the background, and the bitter notes from the hops, these flavors are reminiscent of an herbaceous liqueur. While these flavors are tucked away in the background it does add an interesting layer of complexity to the flavor profile. This is quite an interesting take on an IPA without reaching way out into left field.