Decadent Ales Citra Citra Citra
I know absolutely nothing about New York’s Decadent Ales other than what I’m told on the packaging of this can of Citra Citra Citra a couple of weeks ago. The brewery’s online presence is null so that’s pretty much a dead end, so let’s start with the can. This 10.8% ABV imperial IPA is brewed for the company by Connecticut’s Thimble Island Brewing and… that’s about it. Oh, I’m going to also assume that it’s heavily loaded with Citra hops.
Once we crack the can open, the immediate vicinity is filled with a luscious blend of pineapple, tangerine, grapefruit and soft melon notes. Leafy, piney hop notes linger at the edges, but not enough to temper fears of this big beer being more fruit juice than, you know, actual beer. Thankfully, a couple of sips are enough to settle and concerns.
Yes, there’s still a shit ton of fruit forward traits within this beer. So much so, that initially it comes across as an alcoholic pineapple juice. But just as soon as those thoughts begin to creep in, a welcome and much needed wave of pine, leafy notes and a good amount of bitterness arrive to save the day. The back half of the beer works well to keep the bit IPA from going from Citra Citra Citra to Fruit Fruit Fruit as everything eventually makes their way to a lightly drying and quite warming finish.
I was worried about this one at first, but I’m glad I stuck around long enough for that hop bitterness to check in and round out the experience. This is a pretty impressive beer, but I’m not sure whether I should seek out more from Decadent Ales or perhaps Thimble Island. Regardless, together they’ve crafted a heck of a tasty imperial IPA.