Bitter Root Brewing in Hamilton, Montana

I’m going to try something a little different this week guys, and I’m hoping it goes well. If you enjoy it, let me know. If you all don’t like, well let me know that too. Anyway, it is Bitter Root Brewing week here at BarBEERians, so we will be featuring reviews of their beers, current news, and even a review of their recent beer paired dinner! Kicking it off is a review of their Power of Ten Imperial IPA they brewed last fall to celebrate the increase in legal ABV for beer in Montana. One of the other activities I am involved in is coaching a middle school math team, so as far as I’m concerned the concept of the Power of Ten IPA is simply genius. It is an Imperial IPA with an ABV just under 10%, 100 IBUs, and is their 1000th brew! Brilliant, absolutely brilliant!

We happened to have a bomber of this one time IPA hanging out waiting for the right time to be cracked. Well that time was mid last week when we had a friend in town and went out to get some dinner at Toi’s Thai, which is a great place because you can bring in your own beer or wine and there is no corking fee! The Power of Ten seemed like a good beer to bring down, because I generally like the pairing of a spicy citrus beer with some spicy food!

The Power of Ten filled the glasses with a cloudy, unfiltered, thick brew the color of sun-bleached golden locks. A strong citrus aroma of primarily grapefruit and pineapple, with some musty/dusty tones foreshadowing a delightfully full flavor profile. The thick mouth feel filled the palate with citrus hops that followed the nose, mostly pineapple with a tinge of grapefruit bitterness and a slight astringency. The malt character was mild, but balanced with the hops which were mostly fruity and not overly bitter. For being 10%, the alcohol character was well hidden, making this imperial IPA incredibly drinkable.

I’m not sure where you can find the Power of Ten anymore, but if you find it, get it. This IPA was very good, and probably the best Imperial IPA I’ve had. I went great with our spicy meal and I imagine it would be fabulous with some spicy-citrus BBQ ribs. If you didn’t get a chance to have this brew, get to lobbing Tony and Jake to do another batch of it this summer or fall, its worth making the trip to Hamilton for.