Stoudt's Double IPA
84 / 100
Several months back, I was told by the very helpful and quite friendly owner of Hollingshead Delicatessen in Orange County said that this would likely be the last time I would be able to buy this fine beer in California. Apparently those thousands of miles in between this coast and the brewery in Pennsylvania put it Stoudt’s beers at a disadvantage in the expansive California market in regard to price. When recently searching my favorite local shop, Cap N Cork, I found he was wrong.
I had do the ole rub my eyes thing to be sure I was seeing what I was seeing. There it was: a whole row of Stoudts - something the Cork had never had in the past. Sure enough, the freshness dates on the bottles ensure that these were new and just arrived.
I opened it up and poured it into my snifter. It had a stark, cloudy orange color with a finger head. The hop clobbering aroma was less than I craved but sweeter than I imagined. There were hops there but also roasty malts and sweetness. The taste was slightly fueled with alcohol, at least initially. It let up and had some pine hops and the roasty malts. The sweetness in the background added a nice kick and it got better as it went along. I could have easily polished off another one, but at 10% ABV I decided to hold off.
If you're looking for a great Double IPA, this will do you right.
Several months back, I was told by the very helpful and quite friendly owner of Hollingshead Delicatessen in Orange County said that this would likely be the last time I would be able to buy this fine beer in California. Apparently those thousands of miles in between this coast and the brewery in Pennsylvania put it Stoudt’s beers at a disadvantage in the expansive California market in regard to price. When recently searching my favorite local shop, Cap N Cork, I found he was wrong.
I had do the ole rub my eyes thing to be sure I was seeing what I was seeing. There it was: a whole row of Stoudts - something the Cork had never had in the past. Sure enough, the freshness dates on the bottles ensure that these were new and just arrived.
I opened it up and poured it into my snifter. It had a stark, cloudy orange color with a finger head. The hop clobbering aroma was less than I craved but sweeter than I imagined. There were hops there but also roasty malts and sweetness. The taste was slightly fueled with alcohol, at least initially. It let up and had some pine hops and the roasty malts. The sweetness in the background added a nice kick and it got better as it went along. I could have easily polished off another one, but at 10% ABV I decided to hold off.
If you're looking for a great Double IPA, this will do you right.
