Small Batch. Big Taste.

Okay. How about a Breckenridge Brewery triple play? Yesterday it was their Avalanche Ale and the Vanilla Porter. I sampled those two beers awhile back and today, I broke into a long-stored bottle of their Small Batch 471 Double Hopped India Pale Ale. (Whew, that’s a mouthful and so’s this beer, man!)

To begin, it’s known that I originally hail from a small mountain county in Colorado, but I want it known that I’m not turning into a shill for a Colorado craft brewer. Honest. (Here is where I confess that I’ve got a Coors Brewing Company sticker on the back of my truck.) As proof, I’ll point to the lukewarm review I gave other Breckenridge products I’ve tried recently. They’re okay, but they just don’t knock my socks off.

Now, for this here “small batch” stuff. Small Batch 471 is something akin to an inside joke, I think. It’s a special recipe, I guess, that the factory hacks allowed the working grunts to run with and if that’s the case, I’m glad they did. I’ve proclaimed my disdain for overly hopped beers in the past – most recently the weird and quirky “Hazed and Infused” from Boulder Brewing (a Colorado brewer…hmmm.), but this Small Batch is a horse of a different color. For starters, it’s an ass-kicker at 9.2% abv. Secondly, it’s a wallet-buster, given that I paid $2.69 for a single at my local cigar and booze emporium. Oh well, I’m a sucker for a painted label bottle and a clever name. I bought it. I own it. I tried it.

The Tasting
Breckenridge Brewing’s Small Batch 471 Double Hopped IPA gives off a fruity, hoppy aroma in the bottle and pours a dark orange that is not the least bit clear. A head of about one finger is produced with a moderately aggressive pour. The initial taste is very hoppy with an alcohol bite and a finish than hints strongly of spiced orange. This stuff is really good but really strong. I believe it might be a nice beer to drink on a dark December evening while one waits for Santa to drop a Beer of the Month certificate in your stocking. I’m going to go out and buy another bottle just for that occasion! Hey, Santa, I’ve been good!

Here’s the link to Breckenridge Brewing’s web page for Small Batch 471. It’s good to know they make it year ‘round. http://www.breckbrew.com/beer/smallbatch.html

Here’s what the RateBeer crowd has to say about 471:
http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/breckenridge-471-small-batch-ipa/34157/954/

Here’s the Beer Advocate page for Small Batch 471. I especially like the comment made by one boozer, wherein he/she opined, “Would be a great session beer except for the 9.2.” I love it! (Pot would be great in cigarettes, except for the law.)
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/759/22527

Here’s a nice post at Hops and Barley Blog:
http://www.hopsandbarleyblog.com/2008/02/breckenridge-brewery-small-batch-471.html