New Belgium/Alpine Lips of Faith - Super India Pale Ale

Brewed by New Belgium Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Fort Collins, Colorado USA

Serve in Shaker, Snifter

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Two of my favorite breweries really came up with something special. Probably the best collaboration I’ve ever tasted. Alpine’s specialty is hop flavor blending for perfectly balanced IPAs. New Belgium brings a mastery of texture, carbonation and clarity. The combination is spectacular. An extraordinarily balanced IPA.

UPDATED: AUG 12, 2012 Bottle at Home shared with friends, courtesy of Aaron. Big Thanks Man! Poured a golden orange with a frothy off-white and and great lacing. Smell is super dank! Weed, pine, resin, with hints of citrus and grapefruit in the aroma, really remarkable. Again very dank in the taste, grapefruit, light caramel, weed, spicy hops, and big resin, with a medium bitter finish. Sticky mouthfeel with soft carbonation. Super hoppy IPA, yet well-balanced and easy to drink with dangerously hidden alcohol. Totally blown away by this one and could easily drink a case of it. Well-done.

Pint on tap at FS. Small irregular head, slight lacing. Copper-y gold color, hazy. Smells like nectarines and pine. Taste is of grapefruit, cookies, and tallgrasses. Yeah, it’s got a full body, but not too overpowering. It invites you in, sits you down, and engages you in deep conversation. Tiniest sweetness in it, but it stays true to it’s double-IPA badge. More than a 1-trick pony (like most DIPAs), a truly great beer in my opinion. A modern classic, it’s super, all right.

Pours a hazy amber with a fairly small head. A lot of hops to the aroma without overpowering the nose. Good level of hops, though balanced well to cut the bitterness.

S: Great! - very sweet ripe mango, grapefruit, apricot? - caramel malt A: Pale gold, slightly hazy - 1.5 finger head that does not cling to the glass well, odd distribution of small and large bubbles; however, still purdy T: Real tastey up front - very fruity with some pine and a solid malt backbone P: Does not linger well, but feels good O: Excellent DIPA - it holds together really well regardless of the shortcomings. I dig it., it be ferrrrrreshhhh ya’ll

Bottle. Pours a bright orange with minimal, whispy head and good tracing. Smells is of orange, pine and other citrus with hops being noticeable instantly upon cracking it. Great taste of hops with a lot of pine and citrus. Overall a very good beer, glad I snagged this off the shelf.

UPDATED: NOV 30, 2012 Bomber from Vinters in Charlotte.Reminded me of Sculpin.Nice creamy head.Citrus and grapefruit aroma.Never been a big NB fan but I will get more of this wonderful DIPA!

Aroma is SERIOUSLY hoppy - woody and evergreen with a strong grapefruit underpinning. Super IPA indeed! Pours a clear amber with a nice white head. Typical, but still appealing. Flavor is - holy cow, VERY hoppy, both evergreen and woody, as if a madman added the hops! Nevertheless, bitterness is minimal. Malty and fruity tones manage to sneak through, the latter mainly grapefruit and Mandarin orange; there is also a whisper of honey sweetness. Firm-bodied texture has plenty of lively tingle, leaving a very hoppy and yet subtly sweet finish. Super IPA? Hell yes!

Draft @ The Saucer, Houston .. 12th Anniversary Party .. . pours a deep gold .. awesome foam .. . tons of citrus and pine sap .. . nice bitterness level .. . a very nice beer, jay liked it .. . . you have a demon in you? no, you’re just a asshole..

I gave this beer a huge score because it’s a huge beer, with bold flavors and 9% alcohol which manages to be extremely drinkable. It’s got an extremely citrusy hoppy aroma, rounded out with just a bit of floral note and butterscotch. Intense bitter citrus flavors like lemon and grapefruit are tamed with a touch of viscous, near-barley wine. It’s brassy and golden with off-white foam which rises to greet. It’s bright and lively but not overly acidic. Super, indeed. Very well done.