Beer #176 - W/C 9 July 2018
BREWERY // It all started when founders Steve Wagner & Greg Koch discussed their mutual obsession for beer after meeting at a weekend college course named "A Sensory Evaluation of Beer". In 1996 they opened their brewery in San Marcos, California with their first customer being Pizza Port Solana Beach. The 20 years that followed saw huge growth with the brewery being the 9th largest in the USA and Stone being named "All Time Top Brewery on Planet Earth" twice by BeerAdvocate magazine. Stone now employs over 1100 people and has recently opened breweries in Berlin and Richmond, Virginia. You beer tourists should definitely be adding 'Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens' in California, Berlin and Virginia to your list.
BEER // As a rule, the favourite IPAs of dedicated hop-heads come with a relatively high abv. Alcohol adds quite a lot to the flavour and the perception of flavours in hoppy beers which is a reason why many 'session' IPAs can taste thin. It is a real challenge to create a hop-forward IPA under 5% which has the big flavour of an 8 percent-er. Stone brewmaster Mitch Steele took considerable time dialling in a cutting edge technique known as 'hop bursting' in which a huge amount of hops are added at the end of the boil and whirlpool stages so that the finished beer takes on a mellow bitterness and massive hop aromas. The resultant beer is all about the flavour, aroma and bitterness of a symphony of 10 different hops. Grapefruit dominates and is accompanied by other citrus flavours and solid, resinous pine notes. Will this become your Go To beer?
BREWERY // Stone
BEER // Go To IPA
STYLE // Session IPA
ORIGIN // Escondido, California
ABV // 4.8%
TEMPERATURE // Cool - 30mins out of the fridge
FOOD MATCH // Roast Beef & Horseradish Sandwich. Buffalo Fried Cauliflower. Salty Kumara Chips with Beer Mayo. Apple Pie
GLASS // IPA Glass