Temporary borrowed photo until my sister emails me mine. (Hurry up Olivia!)
Name: Armageddon
Brewery: Epic (Auckland, New Zealand)
Style: IPA
ABV: 6.6%
Source: O’Carrolls Freehouse
I know what you’re probably thinking.
“Uh… Duhhhh Alice, you’ve already done the Armageddon.” Amirite?
Well guess what? I actually haven’t! But because it’s such an obvious beer to blog about and I’ve done all the other Epic’s so far, you’d be forgiven for assuming I had. Hell, I actually thought for some time that I’d already done the Armageddon, which is partly why it’s taken so long.
I’ve had the Armageddon so many zillions of times now that I actually find it very hard to say what it tastes like – it simply tastes like Armageddon to me, like Coke just tastes like Coke.
But because that wouldn’t be a particularly great description for the blog, I spent some time at O’Carrolls on Friday night sniffing and sipping this with a screwed-up face (to the despair of my company) trying to go back in time to my first taste.
The first thing to say is that its obviously very hoppy. I think this was one of the first big hop beers ever produced in New Zealand (along with the Hallertau MHL) and is probably responsible for turning more than a few New Zealanders into the big hop heads that they are today.
The hops are American and give a typical citrus, pine aroma, as well as sweeter fruits like mango and peach, and a little hint of cat pee (which honestly is not a bad thing in this context).
In the mouth the hops are big, flavorful and fruity, with an underlay of bready or biscuity malt. As well as those fruits mentioned, I get a kind of lemon/limey flavour that I find distinctive to the Amrageddon, although I may not be picking that quite right. It feels smooth and medium-bodied in the mouth, and has a bitter finish with a lengthy hop aftertaste.
The Armageddon (on tap especially) is an excellent drop, and a good secret weapon for converting people to craft beer. In fact – it was this on tap at O’Carrolls that made my Mum declare: “I’ve crossed the divide. I’ll never drink Steinlager again.”
Your Mum is obviously awesome