“Let get this straight – being hobo does not mean you do not enjoy the zesty, fruity, piney, green pleasures of potent hops once in a while. It does not mean you can not separate the wheat from the chaff. It does not mean you can not be a total beer maniac. Too long the stock yeast er synonymous with boozy malt liquor or obnoxious lagers, but the stock yeast is the seriously perfect clean canvas for showcasing the beauty and potent aromas of hops. This is why Two Beer now are presenting “Brown Paper Bag” an 8.5% Imperial Pilsner brewed with a solid mængde af melanodin and caramel malts two provide the lager yeast some backbone and two smoothen out the potent yet fruity Mosaic, Citra and Amarillo hops. And for all of you beer geek hobos – we pre-packed this sucker for you!”
Served in a flute glass. In true To Øl fashion these guys have bended and warped the usual as this pilsner pours a light copper colour with deep orange hues that are unveiled when held to the light. A big gushing three finger head is generated which steadily reduced and settled to a dense cap with healthy lacing be shed. Ooph! Quite a pungent scent invades the olfactory, similar to how a good imperial IPA would. Big, lifted citrus notes like grapefruit, passion fruit and orange come pouring out. Certainly some resinous notes coming forward too and the 8.5% ABV is sharp and strident. Something quite sweet here as well, kind of like hard candy/toffee apple and kiwifruit. All this over a caramel malt base. We’re digging it. In the mouth it holds a good weight. Full and frothy in texture with a vibrant Co2 level. A hint of dryness to the back with a loose grip as it slides down. A slight alcohol astringency is felt on entry but that’s to be expected with imperials. Boosting the warmth is a Barleywine-like presence of rich toffee malt and orange rind. A smooth transition in to a somewhat pithy grapefruit flavour bridges the mid and leads on to a sharp, dry finish with an assertive bitterness on the rear palate. A suggestion of malt sweetness does take the edge off a little but essentially this is one seriously hop-charged pilsner. As we pointed toward earlier, this imperial pils has a definite definite barleywine complexity that’s further emphasised by an intense hop bitterness. This is a slightly aggressive, hard hitting beer and we like it . What are we saying? How can you not like a To Ol beer? These guys are geniuses!