Ruination Tenth Anniversary IPA

Brewed for  the beer’s 10th Anniversary in 2012.  The usual Stone Ruination IPA is 7.7% ABV with about 2.5 pounds of hops per barrel. Those are pretty impressive  numbers. For this brew, though, they doubled the hops and pushed the malt bill by about a third.  It’s a monster of a brew: it will ruin your palate for hours. Don’t try to eat anything anything after this, except possibly a fried pickle.  You won’t taste a thing.

Pine resin, bong water, and grapefruit are the primary aromas, with some hay and floral notes. On the palate, it is rich and creamy, like a bitter pudding. Flavors of grapefruit oil, pizza dough, and  cascade hops take control. Notes of alcohol break up the flavors, and the sweetness of the malt sneak in. The fruity esters take over and this finishes with moderate carbonation and a slug fest of hops. This is a  big !#*#&#$ beer.