Deschutes Sagefight Imperial IPA Review

Name: Deschutes Sagefight Imperial IPA
Style: Imperial IPA
ABV: 8%
IBUs: 75

Well, Deschutes' love affair with IPAs keeps chugging along with the release of Sagefight Imperial IPA, which is their newest IPA offering. The twist on this IPA is that it's made with botanical sage and juniper berries. Why the name? According to Deschutes, Team Hops and Team Botanicals (Yes, those are the names actually used on the label) are supposed to square up against one another in the flavor, calling it a "true battle royale." I say let's just try this beer out and see how it is.

Appearance - Mildly hazy dark orange color with a light amount of visible carbonation. The head is fairly foamy with some good retention, along with the lacing which is also quite abundant and sticky.

Aroma - Fairly strong bitter piney hops and resin with some juniper berries and other floral/woodsy aromas, which I'm assuming is the sage being used in the brewing process. This is where I say that I have never had sage before and wouldn't know what it smells or tastes like so it's a shot in the dark for me here.

Taste - Bitter resin hops upfront with a juniper and woodsy/floral taste in the middle (again, which I think is the sage) with a caramel/toffee malt backbone towards the end of the palate. As for the aftertaste, it's more of that bitter hoppiness with some mild booze heat and a hint of sage.

It's definitely more of a hop forward beer, but the "botanicals" are certainly nothing to scoff at either as they make themselves known and actually makes this beer stand apart from other Imperial IPAs. In fact, having this more than makes up for the disappointment that was Hopzeit from earlier this fall. So if you so happen to see this, you definitely need to check this one out.

Deschutes Sagefight Imperial IPA - 9/10