The Alchemist - Heady Topper

On the back of the can, Alchemist writes: "Heady Topper is an American Double India Pale Ale. This beer is not intended to be the biggest or most bitter. It is meant to give you wave after wave of hoppy goodness on your palate. Tremendous amounts of American hops will creep up on you, and leave you with a dense hoppy finish in your mouth. 
So drinkable, it's scary.
Sometimes I wish I could crawl right into the can. Freshness and control have always been my main concern when it comes to our beer. We are committed to providing you with an unfiltered and unpasteurized hop experience."

Heady Topper is a 9% DIPA produced year-round in Vermont, and it's only really available in that state on a reliable basis. The Alchemist's "mission statement" is that they are currently committed to brewing this beer perfectly, so they don't make any other beer besides this one for the time being. If you're in Vermont state and/or can take trips to the brewery, this is a fairly easy get; for me in California, I rely on friends to try this brew. So again I say: thank you friends!

Appearance: You'll see I don't have a shot of the glass here. You may also notice that the can says "Drink from the can!" Brewer John Kimmich says on this point: “Why do I recommend that you drink it from the can? Quite simply, to ensure a delightful, hop experience. The act of pouring it in a glass smells nice, but it releases the essential hop aromas that we have worked so hard to retain. If you MUST pour it into a glass, you may find that some of the hop resins have settled to the bottom – leave them in the can when pouring.” So, I have left it in the can as requested.

Smell: Massive floral notes and tropical fruit aromas, including pineapple and mango. There is also great earthy pine and a hint of caramel malt sweetness.

Taste: So many different notes in this beer: pine, grass, pepper, citrus (grapefruit and lemon), mango. Hop bitterness is there, but it's balanced exceptionally well, so the hops contribute the aforementioned flavors rather than anything astringent. The alcohol is also masked very well.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with low-ish carbonation. The finish is a bit wet, but not sticky or oily. It reminds me of drinking juice, in a way.

Overall: This is an unquestionably stellar DIPA. The aroma is huge, which is such a nice thing -- a lot of times a beer will taste great, but the aroma will be simply average. Here, it contributes in a big way to the overall experience. I have zero complaints about this beer. It's wonderful, and I'm lucky to have people on the east coast to send it my way.

5/5

Stone, Ninkasi, and The Alchemist - More Brown than Black IPA

This was a one-time collaboration between these three breweries that was distributed through Stone's collaboration series (a new one ever few months.) It's simply labeled "India Pale Ale" on the bottle, but it's clearly meant to be a lighter version of a Black IPA/Cascadian Dark Ale/whatever you'd like to call it. Though it's lighter in color and not as robustly roasted as a true Black IPA, it's still not light in alcohol and checks in at 7.4% ABV.

Appearance: It looks exactly like Coca-Cola. Chestnut brown, with a thick brown-tinged head that's about 2-3 fingers in height. Lots of visible yeast suspended -- I didn't pour carefully enough, I suppose.

Smell: Floral and tropical fruit hop aroma, including mango. I can also smell sweetness and a very faint roasted character, and toasted biscuit.

Taste: Right off the bat I get roasted characteristics and a bit of sweetness, like sweetened coffee. This bottle is a little bit old, so the hops have faded, but there is still a note of bright fruit that comes through on the palate after the roasted flavor. It blends nicely, and though the hops still contribute bitterness, its more of a fresh bitterness rather than the lingering, often stale-tasting bitterness that coffee can leave behind.

Mouthfeel: Very creamy mouthfeel and a nice, dry finish. It's light to medium bodied. Very pleasant.

Overall: I had this fresh and it was very good; even now it's still not bad at all! The flavors are very nice and the mouthfeel is great. The nose is the only thing that's average -- it's certainly indicative of what the beer tastes like, but it doesn't leap out at you in a living, inviting way. Other than that complaint, this was a nice one to kick back with on a Friday.

3.5/5