Tag Archives: IPA

Founders Dark Penanace

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Dark Penance is a big 100 IBU Imperial Black IPA from Grand Rapids, MI based Founders Brewing Company. It’s certainly hoppy, but it has a solid malt backbone that balances it out, making it fully worthy of that Imperial classification. The nose is spicy with prunes, caramel, and earth. The middle has sweet dark fruit and brown sugar, balanced by bitter coffee notes. More earth and spice and tart cherries are waiting in the finish with a slight metallic bitterness right at the end. The body is medium to heavy and the alcohol is a stout 8.9% ABC. This makes for an excellent fall or winter evening beverage.

I give it a 4.6 out of 5.

Triple C 3C India Pale Ale

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From right here in Charlotte, Triple C Brewing Company is now canning 3C IPA, a traditional American IPA. The nose is packed with citrus and tropical fruit. The middle has lemon, grapefruit, a bit of ginger and then fades to a finish heavy with pine and grapefruit rind. The alcohol level is in the standard range for this style at a comfortable 6.2% ABV, and the body is medium weight. A very nice American IPA, hoppy without being crazy. It’s well balanced and a beautiful example of the style.

I give it a 4.4 out of 5.

Stone Collective Distortion IPA

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This review is the second 9.3% ABV Stone offering in a row, and this is the Collective Distortion IPA, an Imperial IPA brewed with elderberries and coriander. It’s not just a touch of elderberries and coriander either, their presence is pronounced. The nose is heavily scented with elderberry and citrus. The coriander is a strong note in the middle along with honey and licorice, and the finish brings back the elderberry and heavy grapefruit. This is a sticky, full bodied, full flavor beer. The flavor is unique and strong and I like it, but i don’t love it.

I give it a 4 out of 5.

Moylan’s Hop Craic XXXX IPA

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Moylan’s Brewing Company of Novato, California is a specialist in big beers, be they Imperial IPAs, Scotch Ales, or Barleywine-style ales. (Among others.) However, they felt they hadn’t taken the Imperial IPA theme quite far enough, and perhaps to rectify that, a Quadruple IPA might be in order. Thus, we have Hop Craic, a American Quadruple IPA. This is a massive IPA in every measure. It’s got a heavy body, the alcohol is a stout 10.4% ABV, and the hop notes are huge and balanced with strong malt flavors. The nose is strongly orange citrus but with a bit of molasses in the background. The middle bursts with lemon and orange, followed by pine, but then transitions into a heavily malty finish with notes of toasted grain and packed with brown sugar and syrup. The end of the finish is burned toast and pine. It’s exceptionally well balanced for such a powerful beer, and I’m enjoying it immensely.

I give it a 4.5 out of 5.

Stone Enjoy By 10.31.14 IPA

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It is October 31st, 2014, and so on this night traditionally dominated by fancy dress and confections, I find the time has come to enjoy my bomber of Stone’s Enjoy By 10.31.14 IPA. The “Enjoy By” series is an occasionally brewed Imperial IPA meant to be consumed fresh, thus the prominent date in the title. It, like any Stone IPA is massively hoppy and staggeringly good. The nose is packed with heavy citrus and pine. The middle laced with lemon, grapefruit, pine, and just a hint of grass and brown sugar. The finish is bitter and piney and gives the beer a profile that is reminiscent of Stone’s ultimate hop-bomb, Ruination. The body is fairly heavy and the alcohol is a hefty 9.4% ABV, but it’s actually quite subtle, buried under the intensity of the fresh hops. Another top-notch offering from Stone, and you should look for an Enjoy By if you like massively hoppy west-coast IPAs.

I give it a 4.8 out of 5.

HogWild IPA

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HogWild IPA is an American IPA from North Carolina’s own Aviator Brewing Company. It’s pretty standard for the style. The nose has a lot of lemon and is slightly grassy. The middle is lemony again, but with a bit of grain that builds into a bready finish with some caramel, but still some bitter citrus notes, and that citrus is still lemon. It’s a good, simple beer, without anything that makes it particularly remarkable. The body is of medium weight, and the alcohol level is 6.7% ABV.

I give it a 3.8 out of 5.

Stone Go To IPA

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Session IPAs are one of the new hotness categories that are popping up everywhere, and Stone’s entry into this market is To Go IPA.  In true Stone style, the cap decries light, easy-to-drink beer, so while it comes equipped with a session-style 4.5% ABV, it also has all the bold hop flavor we’ve come to expect from Stone.  The nose is bright with loads of pine needles and grapefruit.  The middle has pine resin, and grapefruit rind.  The citrus in the finish morphs into lemon and there’s a little bit of grain that tastes like wheat.  The body of this beer is light to medium as pretty much expected.  This is a fun beer, but slightly incongruous, with the lighter body but the big, bold, bitter flavors.  I liked it a lot, and it’s certainly different, but not really a lawnmower beer.

I give it a 4.2 out of 5.

 

Stone RuinTen IPA

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Since yesterday was IPA Day, I decided to celebrate it last night with the biggest, baddest IPA around. Stone’s RuinTen is an “extreme” version of their already insane Runation IPA which is an Imperial IPA designed to “ruin your palate” with over-the-top intensely bitter hops. So yeah, an extreme version of that. True to its billing, this is a big version of Ruination. I wouldn’t say that it’s any more bitter, however. It generally has the same flavor profile and intensity, but with a heavier body and more alcohol. They’ve cranked up the quantity of ingredients to get here, of course, but if any of it shows through, it’s a bit more citrus sweetness from heavy orange and grapefruit notes in the middle and finish than any additional bitterness. So overall there is a ton of pine, and a ton of grapefruit and orange, both bitter and sweet. The body is heavy, and the alcohol level is a relatively high 10.8% ABV. This is still a big, over-the-top bitter west-coast style Imperial IPA like Ruination, but if anything it’s slightly more well rounded and an excellent, excellent beer.

I give it a 4.9 out of 5.

Total Eclipse Of The Hop

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Trust the Canadians to come up with an excellent pun for the name of an Imperial IPA of the American style. In this case, it’s the Canadians of Howe Sound Inn & Brewing Company of British Columbia. The nose has faint citrus and pine, and is predominantly malty, reminding me of maple syrup. The middle packs a bitter punch of citrus rind and pine. The strong bitterness is reminiscent of Stone’s Ruination or Green Flash’s Palate Wrecker. The finish is well rounded citrus flavors with some sweet grapefruit and orange to temper the bitterness. The body is medium to heavy and the alcohol is 8.0% ABV which is about what you’d expect for a big Imperial IPA. This is a big, tasty, bitter beer, and more proof that the Canadians know how to brew a beer properly.

I give it a 4.4 out of 5.

Anchor IPA

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Anchor Brewing of San Francisco, CA, best known for Anchor Steam, their California Common Beer, also offers an IPA, much like every other ale brewery in the United States at this juncture in time. This is a west-coast style offering and the nose has grapefruit and orange and is slightly floral. The middle has more grapefruit and a bit of grain and pine. The finish is lemony. It’s a nice offering, flavorful and medium bodied with an alcohol content of 6.5% ABV.

I give it a 4.0 out of 5.