Vacation in a Glass | Stone R&R Coconut IPA Collaboration #IPAday

Posted on August 1, 2013 by Gregory Nagel

Looking like a Maui sunset, Stone Brewing’s R&R Coconut IPA is a mass of orange incandescent liquid. The carbonation flows like an upside-down tropical rainstorm, flooding the head like a freshly crashed wave. The froth begs to be inhaled and releases all tension upon doing so. This beer is a vacation in a glass. (click here for some relaxing ambient wave crashing noise)

bitohoney

The sun melts away the thick chill haze revealing a crystal clear golden beer. Duck-diving the top wave, I come up with big notes of bit-o-honey candy, some honey graham cracker, pink cotton candy and a touch of sweet herbal tea. Sadly, the coconut is lost on a deserted island. I climb every tree and come up empty, brah! Even as it warms, the hop aroma turns herbal masking any coconut.

The taste comes in waves; sets of sweet foamy crystal malt, then 90 IBU’s of juicy tropical hops, the next wave carries an ankle slapper of coconut, followed by a ten foot glassy bitter finish. Sip after sip, I go back out for another set looking for the perfect wave. As it warms, the coconut comes out, but by that time, the temp is washed out for the style of beer. The body is notably creamier than the standard “Stone mouthfeel”, making it deceivingly chuggable at 7.7%ABV.

Overall: This is a damn fine IPA. As a coconut fan, I was hoping to get socked in the nose and gut with coconut, yet walked away unscathed. If you hate coconut (aka you’re a total “Barney”), you’ll probably do just fine with this beer. Stone’s Brewmaster Mitch Steele quotes, “The primary flavor note is coconut, and its intensity was achieved by two additions, one in the whirlpool and the other post dry hop. The selected hop varieties add subtle tropical fruit and berry notes that blend well with the coconut.” I get the tropical thing, but I really have to dig for coconut…only getting a brief flash near the back end of the taste. I don’t necessarily want Malibu Rum in a beer either, just some nice toasted coconut to remind yourself to get outside and enjoy summer. Regardless, I’ll personally be on the lookout for it.

The chill haze burn off was one of the most intense I’ve ever seen with any beer. I actually prefer the chill haze look as it lends a more summery luau cocktail visual. As it clears, it gets boring like your grand-pappy’s IPA. Pictured left, before and after, ten minutes.

Stone R&R Coconut IPA is a homebrew competition winner re-brew collaboration (with Robert Masterson & Ryan Reschen/RIP Current at Stone Brewing Co.) and is well worth picking up. As with all IPA’s, drink it as fresh as possible. Share it with your mom. Shaka!

Food Pairings: Ahi Poke, SPAM musubi, aged gouda, pineapple cottage cheese, jalapeno/pineapple pizza, thai coconut curry, mango shrimp tacos.

UPDATE: I bought a few more bottles, and the later tastings have displayed more coconut aromatics, retronasal olfaction while swallowing, and coconut finish. Perhaps my initial bottle was served too cold.

Disclosure: Initial bottle courtesy Stone Brewing Co. Purchased three more for personal consumption and further review.

Stone Brewing Co. 16th Anniversary IPA

Posted on August 13, 2012 by Gregory Nagel

A blog post about a beer you will most likely purchase and consume is pointless. Instead of boring you with yet another beer review, I think an anniversary is great time to reflect on a brewery, its accomplishments and how they have grown.

WHOA, Hold on a second there mister…this beer has lemon verbena in it? I never thought I would see ingredients commonly found in my wife’s Bath & Body Works lotion in a beer. After a recent ball surgery, I used that lotion to assist with determining my ball swimmer count. The “Complete Aromatherapy Handbook,” likens the scent of Lemon Verbena to “morning, when everything seems fresh, new and promising.” Exactly what I want my genitals to smell like!

The sun sets as I crack my Stone 16th Anniversary IPA for a tasting. Another balmy 95 degree day comes to a close…not a minute too soon. The fountain outside gurgles and drips. The fire pit crackles and roars as I stare in a daze. While pouring this beer I feel the same nervous excitement when I cracked my first Arrogant Bastard Ale. Thoughts of “How buzzed will I be after drinking this?” and “what if I’m not worthy?” dance around my head. 10% beers drunk alone sometimes push my boundaries.

On the pour, a deep gold molten core is topped with a swiss-cheese cratered moon crust of head. I swirl it and sniff. My eyes pop…Stone has done it again! This time letting some herbs ride shotgun over my palate’s proverbial State Line. Mud flaps are flappin’, truckloads of malt and hops CB each other in a convoy down to my belly. 10-4 good buddy! Notes of clover honey, lemon verbena and salvia on the nose. My first sip is herbal sweet and spicy clover honey, citrus zest, followed by a low scoville hop heat. Salt and pepper even make a cameo appearance; perhaps Rye malt? Interesting. Balanced. Delicious.

Steve Wagner, parties like its 1999 IBU’s

I get the feeling the addition of Stone Farms will continue to play a part in the “Farm to Kettle” movement as seen with Saison du BUFF and GK and LU’s Mixtape beer seen around town. Bottom line, this is still a Stone beer with much of the same mouthfeel and bitterness characteristics fans should expect. At 10%, there’s some heat; somewhere around what the Stone Ruination 10 Year Anniversary beer has. As the temp rises, this beer does not fare well. Split a bottle with friends or keep in the fridge between pours.

Overall, I set out to do a reflection post on Stone Brewing Company but was derailed by a nice imperial herb IPA. Reflections are only good when someone’s dead right? Pick up a bottle, and if you don’t already have tickets to the huge Anniversary Bash on August 18th, I suggest you do so quickly, like NOW.

A Nation Ruined Ten Years Later – Stone Brewing RuinTen

Posted on June 6, 2012 by Gregory Nagel

Stone Brewing Co. Ruination 10th Anniversary IPA Review and Release Notes

Road-raging home after dodging a big-rig fender-bender with the venus-crossed sun in my eyes, finding a box on the front porch from Stone Brewing Company instantly snaps me back to a great mood. “I will not be stabbing a hobo today” I think to myself as I pull out a boning knife to open the box. I’m hoping there’s beer inside and not, say, a severed head ala the movie Se7en with Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman.

I put the bottle in the freezer, set the chicken timer at 30 minutes, then crack this hoppy hell demon.

On the crack, a moist “PSSSSST” sneaks out like a genie from a lamp. I quickly shove my nose in and whiff a hop farm in the tiny two inch headspace.

In the glass, this beer shows gorgeous crystal clear copper with a tinge of white foam that briefly clings to the perimeter. As the malt bill is Pale 2-Row and Crystal 15, I assumed it would be golden. Perhaps filtered lupulin oil gives a red tint? On the nose, a mushroom cloud of Centennial hops hit my sinus cavity like a backdraft from hell and puts me in a daze. This is getting serious.

From the Stone Blog:

“…an amped-up version of Stone Ruination IPA, with a bit more malt to bring the abv up from 7.7% to 10.8%, and a very heavy dose of hops. “Classic” Ruination uses 2.5 pounds of hops per barrel–which is more than double the amount we use in any other of our core beers–but for Stone Ruination Tenth Anniversary IPA, we went double again, using an impressive 5 pounds of hops per barrel, including about a pound each of Citra and Centennial in the dry hop. (Hell. Yes.)”

This beer showcases Centennial hops with wafts of over-ripe sweet juicy grapefruit. Imagine a box of grapefruit in a Turkish prison. No? How about a box of grapefruit in a college dorm? Nah. Box of grapefruit near the ocean after a rain? I’ll go with that. There’s a bit of dank earthyness that hides out among the fruityness. I would highly recommend putting a bag over your glass, then huffing this beer’s aroma until you pass out. Searching for Citra Hops on the nose I come up empty, thankfully, as Citra is one of those hops my nose categorizes as ‘cat urine’.

My first sip freaks me out. This Sub-tropical hop sipper starts out sweet and fruity, followed by a lingering pepper spiced hop bitterness. It’s like french kissing a hell demon after it ate a hop plant. (Those naughty, naughty hell demons!) The mouthfeel is very Stone-like but chased with a sweet-hot alcohol which keeps the bitter hanging out. As I continue to drink, I start to crave street tacos al pastor with onions, cilantro and a dash of lime topped the hottest salsa available. Fresh tortilla chips with a mango habanero pineapple salsa are also calling my name as a pairing.

Remembering my first sip of a Stone beer (IPA), there’s a certain ‘Stoney’ flavor profile that exudes and this beer is no different. As super-hopped beers are commonplace in this era, it’s refreshing to be reminded of what started it all just a decade ago. Stone Brewing Co. makes a strong statement and leapfrogs the vast landscape with this release. I tip my hat to Mitch, Greg, Steve and the entire Stone Brewing family for their efforts. If the twenty year release isn’t 20% ABV and ten pounds of hops per barrel, I’ll be pissed.

Cheers!

Additional Info:

Stats: 10.8% abv, 110 IBUs
Availability: Limited 22oz bottles & draft. One-time release, beginning June 11th
Distribution: AZ, CA, CO, CT, DE, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MT, NC, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT, WA
Malt bill: Crystal 15, Pale Malt
Hops bill: Columbus and Centennial. Dry hopped with Citra and Centennial.

San Diego Launch Event
Stone Ruination Tenth Anniversary IPA Party at Henry’s Pub
Sunday, June 10, 5-10pm | 618 5th Ave, San Diego
We return to the first SD bar to ever pour Stone Ruination IPA, throwing an awesome birthday celebration filled with brews, food, music, and a lot more! On deck are guest appearances by Stone CEO & Co-Founder Greg Koch and Brewmaster Mitch Steele, five taps with special versions of Stone IPA and Stone Ruination IPA, food pairings with dishes created just for this momentous occasion, plus limited-run Stone Ruination Tenth Anniversary IPA glasses and T-shirts on sale. Full details.

Media Sample provided by Stone Brewing Co.