Cheeky Monkey ‘Imperial Monk’ Red IPA

Rating:

59939702_1082973215220156_5610720399596716032_n“The Imperial Monk is an amplified version of their core range session red ale, Travelling Monk, where the flavours coalesce rather than dominate – more a strong, silent type than a mouthy brat – and a beer that head brewer Ross Terlick says the brewing team has long dreamt of brewing.”

Glassware: IPA glass.

Appearance: Deep ruby red to burgundy with a sturdy two and a bit finger head. It settles to a thick overlay and weaves a healthy lace down the walls of the glass.

Aroma: Pungent! It’s bursting with rich toffee and treacle, brioche, toffee apple, buttered toast, cedar, blood orange and paw paw. There’s something that hits a really funky note here and there…it’s very intermittent and it almost hints at raw sewage. Not ideal! Thankfully the other aromas are much more dominant.

Flavour: Very malt forward on entry….lots of buttery toffee, caramel and toasty malts with the bitter citrus and warming booze tacking on early in the mid. Lightly roasted malt moves in to ruby grapefruit and orange peel and then on to a super bitter finish which really goes the distance.

Mouthfeel: Dry and warming with a fairly aggressive bitterness. Medium-full body. The 8.3% AbV plays a significant role.

Overall: Look it definitely isn’t one of the best red IPA’s we’ve tried but it does hold its own. Well balanced and full flavoured. Not bad.