Victory
Yakima Twilight Ale
Review Date
Life is good these
days. It seems the hop shortage is over, and brewers everywhere are rolling
out a veritable plethora of hop infused brews to celebrate. In America, one
of the premier hop-growing areas in the country is Washington State's Yakima
Valley. To celebrate the region's contribution to the American craft brew
revolution, the fine folks at Downington, Pennsylvania's Victory Brewing
Company have concocted another winner in Victory Yakima Twilight Ale. Yakima Twilight Ale is
a "Dark IPA", or an India Pale Ale brewed with dark malts. I think such beers
are truly wonderful, and if you've never tried one, you really should. The
marriage of sweet, chocolaty dark malt with spicy, floral bitter hops is
absolutely sublime when done right. Fortunately, Yakima Twilight is done right. Victory crafts Yakima
Twilight Ale from imported German malts and four varieties of fresh, whole
flower Yakima Valley-grown hops (per their website). As per usual with Victory,
they're not saying which varieties of hops they use. But they use a lot of them,
and they certainly dominate this delightfully strong, 8.7% alcohol by volume
sipping brew.
This one, of course,
has both in abundance. Taking a sip, I'm immediately impressed with the malt,
deep and dark, a little chocolaty, slightly nutty but not as caramelly as your
normal IPA or even a barleywine (which big IPAs can approach in character). The
hops show up quickly and increase into the finish where they become very piney
and resiny in aroma and flavor. A long, dry bitter hop buzz develops on the
tongue and lingers there, too. Not to be outdone, a very warming alcohol burn is
apparent too. I've always loved the
combination of dark malts and bitter hops, and this is one of the best of them.
I've always been surprised the pairing doesn't happen more often, but I'm glad
Victory has unleashed one upon beer lovers as they have here. It ranks right up
there with Barell House Boss Cox Double Dark IPA as one of my favorites. A bit pricey at
$10.49 a six-pack, but a bargain at the price in the final analysis, I think.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
Also From This Brewery
Victory Yakima
Twilight Ale pours to a surprisingly dark mahogany color with a thick, very
creamy tan colored head formation and a lively, spicy, piney hop nose. A
prodigious layer of tan Brussels lace clings to the sides of my Hop Devil pint
glass as the liquid descends. I actually just got home with my six pack of this
one, and as I couldn't wait to dive into a bottle (I just love Victory's beers,
after all), so mine is cool, but not cold. That's my drinking preference anyway,
as it allows you to more fully appreciate the beer's flavor and aroma. I needn't
have hurried to pop one, though; the bottle says I have until December 10th of
2010 to drink the stuff.
