Oskar Blues Gubna Imperial IPA Review
Hailing from tiny Lyons, CO, the Oskar Blues brew pub has shot into the stratosphere of craft brewing over the past few years with their (then) revolutionary canned craft beer. They immediately won us over with Dale's Pale Ale and Old Chub Scotch Ale, and continued to woo us with their Imperial Red, Gordon, and their Imperial Stout, Ten FIDY, both in cans. They recently moved Ten FIDY to a seasonal brew schedule, leaving half the year open for something new. What did they fill it with? GUBNA Imperial India Pale Ale! More hops, more malt! This monster clocks in at 10%abv. Now, let's get down to the good part and taste it.
Appearance: Gubna pours almost orange enough to be described as pumpkin colored, except for the fact that it's crystal clear. A white head forms as the carbonation cascades through the beer, looking a lot like the well-known "Guinness" cascade... this time, though, it's because the beer is fairly thick coming in at 10% abv. The head sticks around for quite some time and definitely leaves its mark in the from of lacing all the way down the glass.
Smell: As soon as I pour this beer, all I can smell is hops. As I'm taking the picture you know what I smell? Hops! The aroma has permeated the room! Aromas of dank hemp and pine are all you can get until you stick your nose nearly into the foam. Once you do, you can pick up a trace of alcohol which should be expected for a beer of this strength. There's not much malt to smell or yeast influence... or they may just be covered up by HOPS!!! As it warms up, you get some orange from the hops as well. Weird, it looks orange and tastes a bit like oranges...
Taste: Bitter and oily hops are the first thing you get in this beer and they coat your mouth for the long haul. The mouthfeel is slick, but the beer is try which is quite contradictory. There is just the mildest hint of residual sweetness, but the dryness really helps to showcase the humulus lupulus that this brew is definitely all about. Even as I'm typing I have some bitter hops in the back of my mouth. As Gubna warms up you get a bit of malt sweetness on the front... nothing more, no real malt character to speak of before the hops sweep back in to take over the show. It's at this point, though, that the alcohol starts to come through a little bit giving a mild solvent finish to the beer. This is the only real problem I can find with it, but it's not a big problem.
Oskar Blues delivers another winner with their Imperial IPA, Gubna! The only thing I would ask is that they tame it down to around 8.5%abv. I'd be able to drink more of it then and I think that would help the solventy finish I'm getting.
