Tasting: Pliny the Elder clone

Since I won't have any of my currently fermenting beers ready for a couple months, I thought I'd do a tasting of a recent brew. This is a recipe based on Russian River's Pliny the Elder, perhaps the best double/imperial IPA in the world. The recipe I brewed, however, was a collaboration of what Vinnie Cilurzo published and Mike McDole's recipe (winner of 2007's Longshot competition).

Aroma: Extremely juicy and resiny hops, literally layer upon layer of hops. Little to no malt aroma; no alcohol. A touch of bright fruitiness from the yeast.

Appearance: Very hazy and cloudy. A deep burnt orange color with plenty of well sustained white head.

Flavor: Starts out with more of the woodsy, grapefruit like juice of the hops. Despite a low finishing gravity, this beer is quite thick, but never malty. The finish is very bitter, but smooth at the same time. A bit of alcohol warming at the end as well.

Mouthfeel: Moderate carbonation combined with the aformentioned thickness make this one a sipper (the main difference between this and the real Pliny).

Overall: This is perhaps one of the best beers I've made. Given the huge amount of hops (and money to pay for them) it is not one I can brew all the time. At around 8% abv, it's not a session beer, but one I can put a few away no problem.

Recipe:

OG 1.080 FG 1.016 IBU 217 ABV 8.3 % SRM 7

Specifics Boil Volume 7 gallons Batch Size 5.5 gallons Yeast US05 80% AA

Fermentables

% Weight	Weight (lbs)	Grain	Gravity Points	Color
86.2 %	14.00	American Two-row Pale	67.8	4.6
3.1 %	0.50	American Crystal 40L	2.2	3.6
3.1 %	0.50	American Soft White Wheat	2.6	0.3
7.7 %	1.25	Cane sugar	7.5	0.2
	16.25		80.2

Hops

% Wt	Weight (oz)	Hop	Form	AA%	AAU	Boil Time	Utilization	IBU
9.8 %	1.50	Amarillo	Whole/Plug	7.3	11.0	MH	0.075	11.1
13.1 %	2.00	Zeus	Whole/Plug	16.4	32.8	90	0.220	98.2
6.6 %	1.00	Chinook	Whole/Plug	13.0	13.0	90	0.220	38.9
6.6 %	1.00	Simcoe	Whole/Plug	12.9	12.9	45	0.189	33.1
6.6 %	1.00	Zeus	Whole/Plug	16.4	16.4	30	0.158	35.3
14.8 %	2.25	Centennial	Whole/Plug	9.0	20.3	0	0.000	0.0
6.6 %	1.00	Simcoe	Whole/Plug	12.9	12.9	0	0.000	0.0
13.1 %	2.00	Zeus	Whole/Plug	16.4	32.8	DH	0.000	0.0
11.5 %	1.75	Centennial	Whole/Plug	9.0	15.8	DH	0.000	0.0
11.5 %	1.75	Simcoe	Whole/Plug	12.9	22.6	DH	0.000	0.0
	15.25							216.6