Dang. I just finished the bottle I bought on my last trip to Colorado. Every bit as impressive as my beloved Stone Ruination only much maltier but not overly sweet. I rank it higher than the Rogue Double IPA.
I've got a botltle of their Yeti Oak Aged Impy Stout that I *just* may open on the 4th.
Bill, I know you better than to suspect you of damning with faint praise. :-) Saying it's maltier than Stone Ruination is like saying a sapling is less of a twig than whichever Olsen twin recently checked into a clinic for bulimia.
And hell, these days, I'm close to ranking PBR higher than Rogue. That's Rogue anything. And I won't go yet again on my Stone rant.
-Steve
No, the Hercules has a nice amoutn of malt to back up the hop. It's what I think an Imperial/Double IPA should be.
The comment wasn't so much geared toward the maltiness of Hercules - not available in my neck of the woods, but I've heard enough similar comments from people whose palates I trust to believe that to be the case - as it was that being maltier than Ruination isn't a tremendously high hurdle to clear. The dis was all on Stone.
-Steve
I've had it. It's good.
The Ruination, despite it's obvious lack of malt input, works very well for me but I never did get the hang nor appeal of the Arrogant Bastard.
I had very much the same reaction myself. I loved how this had a nice bready malt character. I even made note of buttered scones when I first tasted it. Its just the way a double IPA should be made, IMO.
I haven't had the chance to try this one yet, but generally I would expect hops to be the main character of an IPA. Guess it all depends on where you like the balance of hops and malt.
For Double/Imperial IPAs, I expect more malt in the balance compared to a "normal" IPA.
For me, I like to be able to tell that it's beer, which means a beverage that consists of water, malt, hops and yeast. Too many big IPAs seem to forget that second ingredient. I love bitter, hoppy beers as much as anyone, but there has to be something there to support a big charge of hops. Stone frequently misses out, in my opinion, resulting in one-dimensional beers. (Or great big muddy messes, in the case of some others. To their credit, though, when they do hit something right, they do so quite well.)
--Steve
I'm now trying Hercules Double IPA. The 9.1% ABV is very well hidden, and there's plenty of sweet malt to hold up all the hops. What an excellent beer!
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