Brooklyn, Brooklyn Blast IPA

Here's the lastest from our friends at Brooklyn Brewery. Brooklyn Brewery was founded in 1988. They pride themselves on brewing flavorful beers that enrich the life, tradition and culture of the communities it serves. This beer is made using using hops from both the United States and England to create their version of an IPA. 

If your look to pair this beer up with food, I would suggest cuisines including very spicy foods, especially Thai dishes, fiery Indian Vindaloos, Mexican dishes featuring habañero chilies, and Jamaican jerk chicken.

In general, IPA’s are commonly known to have an over abundance of hops usually detected up front in the beer and tend to overpower the malts used in the brewing process. Brooklyn Brewery seemed to hit the mark in finding a beautiful balance between hops and malts to create their Brooklyn Blast IPA.

Make no mistake about this IPA! Although it may be light in color with a slight amber hue, it has an 8.4% ABV content that is well disguised in a beer that could be underestimated. I found the Brooklyn Blast to have a very citrusy, hoppy flavor and a non-lingering, smooth finish. Brooklyn Brewery has certainly captured the essence of what an IPA should be in their version of the Brooklyn Blast. In general, IPA’s are not some of my favorites, but this one in particular comes highly recommended. I give this beer a 9.2 rating and suggest that any of the IPA lovers out there to give this one a try!  

Personal Rating: 9.2/10
Style Rating: 8.5/10

Stochasticity Project, Grapefruit Slam IPA

A new project from Stone Brewing Company. This beer doesn't have the classic stone look or even a mention of Stone Brewing on the label. When I first looked at the label, I thought it was just a bunch of random lines from a new brewery. Then I found a site that talked about it and highlighted the stone gargoyle hidden in the random lines. This make sense when you read the definition of Stochasticity on the back which is "There is no happenstance or coincidence. Dumb luck is a fallacy and randomness a commonly accepted mistruth. Much of what seemingly falls into place and seems so natural is a result of stochasticity, a concept embraced and exalted by this special and unpredictable series of beer, where exotic notions, ingredient and ideas coalesce at an interesting and often unexpected endpoint."

This is an Imperial IPA that lives up to the Stone Brewing connection that it has. A big, aggressive, extremely fresh DIPA (Double IPA) that has a long lingering finish. Rumor has it that this beer was released as a stone one off a few years back under the Runination Grapefruit Slam IPA label. This one reminds me of Stone's Enjoy By Series, which is based on very fresh beers shipped fast and meant to be drank right away. 

We opened this one in the store and gave everybody a sip. The hop heads loved it while everyone else thought it was to bitter. There was not much grapefruit juice flavor but a distinct bitter grapefruit flavor on the finish. A very delicious beer but not anything too different than what Stone normally puts out. I do love the brewery behind this named Koochenvagners Brewing Company. This looks like an homage to the names of the people behind this beer and Stone Brewing Company, Greg Koch (Kooch) and (en) Steven Wagner (Vagner). Overall, definitely a great value DIPA that delivers the goods and leave your taste buds all hopped up. This might not be back, so grab it while its still here.

Personal Rating: 9.9/10
Style Rating: 9.5/10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=850708005094

Saucony Brewing Company, Hop Suplex

A new brewery for us, but one that has been coming out with some really cool, unique beers. The last one that piqued my interest was named "Schnicklefritz" which is a Chocolate, Cherry Milk Stout. As a consumer, I picked this one up based on the awesome label and kicked up ABV (10%). 

According to the brewery, this is "Hop Suplex is juiced with six different hop varieties in the brew kettle and our slow, heavy weight dry-hop additions added by HopfenKubel. Hop Suplex Ale features Saucony's widest range of hop varieties and our most complex hopping schedule. Hop Suplex weighs in at 10% ABV compliments of a hefty grain bill, but a dose of honey balances the flavor and compliments the floral and strong citrus tones of grapefruit, melon, and gooseberry provided from our favorite selection of hops."

This was a total surprise beer that jumped out of the glass when I poured it. The super fresh, resiny hop aromas were so pungent it made me "Whoa" Joey-style. The color was a nice amber that was not the usual heavy handed malt base that these big double IPA's usually have. On the first sip, this beer rocked my taste buds with a complex pine, citrus, tropical fruit and grapefruit flavor followed by a delicious sticky resin flavor that lasted a very long time. I am a huge fan of this beer and can't wait to see what else this brewery has to offer. 

Saucony brewing won Rate Beer's Best New Brewery for Pennsylvannia for 2013. I have a good feeling that this brewery will quickly become incredibly popular, so snatch these up while they still flying under the radar. 

Personal Rating: 9.9/10
Style Rating: 9.5/10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=850708005094

Victory, Hop Ranch Imperial IPA

Here's a new release from Victory. This is a new winter seasonal available in 4 packs. A very unique Imperial IPA due to the fact that it uses 2 very new hops (mosaic and azacca) which were formally unnamed and only referred to as hop #369 (mosaic) and #483 (azacca). Mosaic has been around for a short time but is quickly being picked up and used by most craft brewers because of its complex aroma and piney yet fruit forward flavor. The azacca hop was release very recently by the american dwarf hop association and was named after the Haitian god of agriculture. It has a distinctive nose with notes of mango, apricot, apples, and pears. These two new hops are the only hops used in this brew but they provide a really complex range of flavors and aromas. 

This beer clocks in at 9% abv which does not put it in the "sessionable" category. However, they brewed this one with Pilsner malt to give it a real light body. It is just enough to stand up to the big, bitter hop flavors but not enough to fill you up.

This is another brew from Victory that is really making me look at this brewery in a new light. A solid release that will definitely wow the hop heads out there. If Victory keeps this up, they will be far ahead of their fellow craft brewers!

Personal Rating: 9.8/10
Style Rating: 9/10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
https://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=630279474044

Victory, Dirt Wolf Double IPA

Here is a new offering from Victory Brewing Company that brings them up to speed with some of their hot and heavy competition in the global hops race! I have to admit that I fell in love with Victory when I first got into craft beers, but as the years have gone on and more and more craft breweries popped up with new exciting styles and hop profiles, I had written Victory off as stagnant brewery. Then Summer Love came about and gave me a chance to reevaluate the brewery. This latest offering is just the kind of innovation that will win back hardcore hop heads that no longer swoon over heavy malty offerings like Hop Wallop or Hop Devil.

Dirt Wolf double IPA is a big, bold, hoppy brew that clocks in at 8.7% ABV and has a great hop line up of Citra, Chinook, Simcoe and the newest hop Mosaic. The aroma is a big resiny, piney hop punch that does not disapoint on the taste buds. The big resiny hop flavor coats the tongue without being heavy and malty. The old philosphy that a big, hoppy beer has to be tempered with a rich, malty backbone has been offically debunked with great beers like Lagunita's Little Sumpin Sumpin and Uinta's Hop Notch. This light bodied but super hopped up brew has been compared to the famous Heady Topper (which I can't comment on since I haven't had it yet) which is very high praise.

If you like Sierra Nevada's Hoptimum, Firestone Walker's Union Jack or Weyerbacher's Double Simcoe they I think you will fall in love with this brew. A must try for anyone who didn't think Victory could wow your tastebuds anymore.

Personal Rating: 9.5/10
Style Rating: 9.5/10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=630279393048

Colorado, Vixnu Imperial IPA

What we have here folks is the first Brazilian craft beer being imported into the United States. This is a Brazilian take on the very popular craft beer style of Imperial IPAs or as we call them DIPA (Double IPA). This Brazilian beer is named Vixnu after the Hindu god Vishnu the creator. It is brewed with a load of sticky hops and local rapadura sugar that kicks up the alcohol to 9.5%. The sugar provides a nice ABV without giving it a malty richness. This beer reminds me of the first IPA's that got me hooked on the hoppy bitter brew that has become my go to craft beer style.

The aromas on this beer are all tropical: pineapple, mango, passionfruit and a hint of lime zest. It is not very aggressive on the hop aromas, in fact I gave a sip to a few non-hopheads and they loved the smell but the hoppy, bitter finish did them in. The finish has a nice sticky, resiny finish that is not very long, but enough to satisfy. This would be a great session beer if it were not so high in alcohol. This didn't pose much of a problem for a professional like myself, as I downed the 600ml bottle in less then 15 mins while watching a great Eagles game (which doesn't happen every Sunday).

Overall this is a really unique beer that showcases the different takes on our American Double IPA style. The use of a local sugar and the fact that it is the first craft import from this country make this a high recommendation in my book. If you have some friends just dipping their toes into the IPA world, then this is a must for them. Look for more varieties from this brewery coming soon!

Personal Rating: 8.5 /10
Style Rating: 9/10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=7898925943808

Stone, RuinTen IPA

Its Back! Stone Ruination's Tenth Anniversary Release was so popular when it was released last year in 2012 that they decided to bring it back for a second go around. These crazy son of a guns took the already super ampped up Ruination IPA, which is brewed to killed your taste buds, and exposed it to Super Gamma Rays and more then five pounds of whole hops in each barrel to create this Hulk of a beer. As any of our blog readers know by now, we LOVE hops. The more the better and we have not met an IPA or DIPA we couldn't easily kickback with. However, I have to turn in my man card and admit that I struggled to get through this beast of a beer. I did finish it but it was so super bitter and hoppy that I nursed it like a fine Cognac.

When you first crack this brew, it is a rich golden amber color with a sticky lacing from the creamy white foam. The aromas really do jump from the glass and fill up the room. My wife could smell the hops from across the room. They really do a nice combo of the classic Centennial hops blended with the relatively new Citra hop (almost 50/50 according to their website). The aromas are of concentrated citrus (lemon, orange, lime), resin mixed with tropical fruit, with a light spicy quality. It smells like a great IPA but it is very intense. The first sip is spiked with an aggressive tang of bitter hop and hot alcohol. After it does a number on your taste buds, it calms down a little bit. It does a good job of coating your taste buds with a sticky resin after coating. 

Overall, I did like this beer. It is a very extreme version of Ruination, but what else would you expect from Stone Brewery. This beer won't be here for very long but luckily it will be a yearly release from the brewery. If you like extreme beer and you want to give your taste buds a run for their money, then give this one a shot.  Hey, for $7.99 a 22oz bottle you can't go to wrong.

Personal Rating: 8 /10
Style Rating: 9 /10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=636251748004

Lagunitas Brewery, Lucky 13 Brunette

Its that time of year for Lagunitas Lucky 13 which is a seasonal brew for them. This is brewed in the style of, as they put it "An ultra-mega-mondo red ale first made in 2006 to celebrate 13 years of brewing ultra-hoppy-mega-malty-mondo ales. Now it’s 2013 and we’re 20 years in," Whoa! 

There are actually two different versions of this beer. They make a "blonde" version in which the girl on the label is blonde and it is a super hoppy double IPA with is labeled "alt". This one is the original "brunette" version which as you can see from the picture on the right is a rich amber ale that is aggressively hopped with  mostly Amarillo hops. Both versions are fantastic, but I usually prefer the "blonde" version myself. 

This one is amazingly aromatic when poured into the glass. A big resiny hop punch greets you on the first whif. Filled with sticky, piney west coast hops and a caramel malt base to back them up, this combo does a one two punch on your taste buds. At first you get a classic orange peel, grapefruit, pineapple flavor washed over by a resin filled pine/juniper hoppiness. The sweet caramel malts balance some of the aggressive hop flavor, but it still leaves a nice lingering bitter bite. Definitely right up our IPA loving alley! 

Lucky 13 taps in at 8.9% ABV so it pack a little punch to it. It fits in our sneaky beer category because although the malt is rich it is surprisingly easy to drink. The high ABV can easily sneak up on you if your not careful. Overall though, another great one from Lagunitas Brewery. I look forward seeing their "blonde" version next year!

Personal Rating: 9.8 /10
Style Rating: 9.8 /10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=723830000032

Great Lakes Alchemy Hour Double IPA

Here's a new brew from Great Lakes Brewing Company. This one is a seasonal that is taking the place of DoppleRock (a dopple bock beer that was good but didn't sell very well). This beer follows in the current up trend in IPAs, which we are all big fans of here. This particular seasonal is a big, rich malty double IPA. As Great Lakes says "Our Alchemy Hour Double India Pale Ale pays tribute to the North Coast's unlikely surf bums and the ancient quest for liquid gold, wherever it may live: in the ocean, in the lake, in a bottle.". This sounds like a good switch to me, Dopple Bock for Double IPA!

What exactly is the Alchemy Hour? On the West Coast, surfers have a term for that perfect time of day, when the waves are breaking just right and they feel like they can ride forever. They call it Alchemy Hour. I bet a few of these and you will be riding the couch for hours. This brew clocks in at 9.4% which is pretty normal for the style. Upon cracking this beer, I am immediately hit by a nice blend of west coast style hops. Good citrus, grapefruit, kiwi and pineapple aromas with just a hint of herbs. The beer is very amber in color which suggests a pretty rich malt blend. On the palate, this beer has a nice hoppy balance with the malt blend that they used. It comes off with a blend on bitter hops on the front of the palate with a sweetness that washes away the bitter notes. Personally, I'm a huge fan of that lingering bitter hop flavor so I was a little disappointed by the semi-sweet finish. Overall a great double IPA that is a solid buy for Hop Heads! Enjoy this one while its here.

Personal Rating: 8/10
Style Rating: 9.5/10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at:
www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=704361440245

Green Flash | Palate Wrecker

Green Flash Palate Wrecker (Hamilton's Ale).

Poured into my new Allagash Chalice : ) Palate Wrecker has a dark golden orange color with a dense inch of frothy beige head. While the head recedes a bit, there is considerable retention with lots of sticky lacing.

The aroma is loaded with hops all across the board; floral, citrus, pine, tropical fruit, lots of pineapple, very resinous and dank. Caramel malt is present just enough to keep my nostrils from burning.

The first sip attacks my tastebuds with lots of bitter resinous hop flavor. Bitter pine and grapefruit up front blends with a touch of sweet malt to soften things up a bit, but is far from balancing out this monster. The finish is filled with tropical fruit and orange zest; although the malt is present in the finish, there is a noticeable bitterness that lasts long after every sip.

Palate Wrecker has a medium-full body for an IPA, but the 9.5% ABV is hardly noticeable. This is one of my favorite aspects of this beer; most DIPAs that exceed the 8% mark generally become boozy, hot, and heavy. This booziness tends to overshadow much of the desirable malt and hop flavors. Palate Wrecker on the other hand, accomplishes a very high ABV while maintaining intense hop bitterness, with minimal booziness.

All in all, I don't think it has quite wrecked my palate, at least not to an avid IPA drinker, but it is one hell of a hoppy beer. A little pricey, but worth a try. Would love to see Palate Wrecker in a bomber for the right price.

Personal: 8.5/10
Style: 8.5/10

Firestone Walker Union Jack IPA

Firestone Walker is known for their great barrel aged beers, but they still know how to make an amazing hop bomb of an IPA! This IPA from Firestone Walker weights in at 7.5 ABV (which seems like a magic number for brewers these days considering how many great IPAs weight in at this ABV) and is crisp and light on the malt body. This style differs from many of the IPAs produced just a few years ago when most brewers agreed that if you added more hops you had to add more rich, sweet malts to keep It balanced. This new breed of IPAs is rich in hop flavor and bitterness but without the heavy malts of the past which make them nearly unsessionable. The hops are both very aromatic and perfectly balanced in the slightly bitter finish. The brewery utilizes over four pounds of pacific-northwest hops per barrel to produce this brew. A new hit that is a year round brew from Firestone Walker.
If you like Lagunitas Little Sumpin Sumpin, Troegs Perpetual IPA, Uintas Hop Notch IPA, or Port Brewings Wipeout IPA then you have got to try this one next! Cheers and bottoms up!

Personal Rating: 9.8/10
Style Rating: 9.5/10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at:
http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=602755006032