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

Sixpoint, Autumnation (2013)

A great shift in focus for this Autumn beer from Sixpoint Brewery out of New York. The 2011 and 2012 versions of this beer were billed as pumpkin beers. They were brewed with fresh pumpkin from NY state. The old beers were delicious because they were copper colored hop bombs. Needless to say they didn't sell very well in the store because hop heads avoided the pumpkin on the label and pumpkin beer fans were disappointed due to the lack of pumpkin flavor. Finally the brewery bit the bullet and changed their Autumnation from a pumpkin beer to a hoppy fall beer (same basic beer but with a new label).
While this is the same basic recipe for this beer, each year Sixpoint Brewery lets the hops be decided by its loyal fans. This year, they have choosen the new hop Mosaic. This newly culitvated hop is (HBC 369) is an aroma hop variety developed by Hop Breeding Company that was released in 2012. It offers a unique and complex blend of floral, tropical, fruity, and earthy characteristics that translate very favorably into
several styles of beer. Mosaic is the daughter of Simcoe and a Nugget derived male.
This brew is definitely more aromatic then its past counterparts. It has a warm bready, carmel malty aroma upfront with a piney, resiny citrus aroma that wafts up from behind. The aromas falsely set up this beer because they trick you into thinking this is more of a Fall brown ale. The rich copper color and bready/nuttyness of the aroma definately say Fall beer with a little hop background. However, the first sip shows you what this beer really is, a secret hop bomb. Its no DIPA, but for a Fall beer it is quite hoppy. This reminders me of the new beer that Sierra Nevada just launched for Fall called Flipside. It too is a red/brown ale with a big hop wallop. Both are solid beers with enough hops to please the hopheads but a richness that goes perfectly with the cool Fall weather that just hit here. Plus, with the 6.7% abv, this is just enough to keep you toasty in front of a roaring fire at night!
Overall, I would highly recommend this beer. It is local, tasty and the best part, it comes in 16oz cans! This is a highly seasonal beer, so grab it before we drink it all.

Personal Rating: 9.5 /10
Style Rating: 5/10 (not sure what style this really fits)

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=859093002169