Avery The Maharaja

After my recent binging on German style beers, I've gone back to something that is definitely American in nature, BIG and Powerful Imperial IPA's. This one in particular is part of Avery Brewing's Dictator series (of which the Kaiser is also a part of).
The Beer: This one weighs in at a powerful 102 IBU's and 10.2 % abv. It pours an orangish amber with a thick white head that sticks around, sliding down the glass leaving a thick resin of lacing. The nose is unsurprisingly massive hops. I could smell the grapefruit as soon as I started pouring the bottle into the glass. There's also some candied apricots and mild notes of malt. The mouth is more of the same. Lots of hops, grapefruit, and some piney qualities as well. The mouthfeel is thick and creamy a little bit resiny. What makes this beer great though is its malt. This is a incredibly well balanced DIPA. With nice malt backbone that keeps this beer from being overly astringent. My wife who dislikes most of the DIPA's that I love really enjoyed this one due to its maltiness. Avery has made a very drinkable DIPA. Well rounded with not a lot of alcohol burn, just enough for you to know its there. A great DIPA, this one gets a strong A from me. Here's what the folks at BA had to say.