Stone Ruination IPA

wow... wow! wow!!! the bottle description does not lie.. this beer will truly ruin your taste buds!! I recommend this beer to everyone, yep everyone... for the sole purpose of comparison.. on a scale from 1-10 this baby delivers a 10 on bitterness... with over 100 ibu’s ruination is a great barometer for rating the bitterness of a beer. Only the true counisour will drink this beer and enjoy it. I hated it!!! I shared a $7.00 12oz bottle with a friend, 6 oz was all i could handle!!!!! Try it for sure...

I poured a bomber into my pint glass and it produced a two finger white head that settled to a thick lace. The body of the brew was a clear golden-orange in color. Huge aromas of hop’s floral and citrusy fill your head. The flavor is hugely piney and bitter citrus. This one is oily and slick feeling in the mouth. It really is hoppy but it is drinkable. I easily put away the bomber I don’t know if I could drink more than one at a time but I suppose it would be great with buffalo wings.

I don’t think my stomach likes this one very much. Take a white grapefruit, don’t peel it off and take a bite... That will give you an idea of the taste of that beer. I’m barely exagerating. There are some almost undistinguishable subtilities but the grapefruit shatters them. Nevertheless, I must admit that I am impressed by the simple fact that they bottled this audacious brew. This beer is probably one of the most bitter beers I had and it is also the most beautiful marketing design of any beer I saw. I’m happy that all you hop-head freaks like it so much... But to my tastebuds, it is a little too much. ADDED: I bought a 6-pack and the last one was the one I enjoyed the most; maybe my tastebuds are getting used to such high IBU beers. Excellent hop-trip, I’ll buy some more one day... But I live so far away!

Pours a pale, orange-golden with a thick creamy head that keeps on building. Hop bouquet is tremendous and exquisitely rounded. Piney spiciness upfront, followed by a wonderfully flowery fragrance, and held together with a twist of citrus. Flavor is immense and indeed ruinous. Very sweet and piney, candy-like, with a hint of orange. Perceived bitterness is actually quite mellow considering. A grassy, acrid character comes across which I’d attribute to dry-hopping. Malt profile is hard to detect. Relatively clean on the palate with an enveloping bitterness. A classic IPA and quite agreeable if you’re into the ridiculous. Myself, I prefer a more subtle, flowery hop dimension rather than something this robust.

This beer will end up being the ruination of me. Really. It even says so on the bottle. See?

My Stone Ruination IPA poured a golden orange with glints of amber and garnet arcing across her lascivious body. A small whitish head winks most seductively at me before settling into her blanket of bubbly puffs. A teasing swirl or two later produces a scattered network of delicate lace. I don’t even need to bring her nose to mine to partake of the deluge of sweet oranges, nectarines and melons while freshly cut grass and crushed pine needles tingle. Supporting the bouquet of hop delights are sweet grains and white bread. Unawares of my own actions, so beguiled am I by her nose that before I realize it her golden depths are touching my lips in a commanding kiss. Throughout her body, a pervading sweetness hints of oranges, melons, and even some kiwi fruit which finishes with a dry citric bitterness resembling their skins. A soft breath of spices mingles with the finish for a slowly pervading sense of warmth and comfort. While each quaff leaves my palate dry, Ruination’s body is pleasantly wet, sticky and full, practically dripping with fruit juices, pine sap, hop oils, and sweet spring grass wet with dew. Each quaff dances effervescently across my tastebuds, and much sooner than I would have liked, I find our time together nearing a close. Mouth watering, I savor the last couple quaffs with relished abandon. If this is ruination at its worst, I’m partial to say it is some of the best.

While I had rather lofty expectations of the Ruination IPA going into it due to previous experiences with other Stone beers, the proof is always in the beer itself. Staying impartial can seem an impossible feat at times, and I have had few major disappointments from otherwise outstanding breweries. Thankfully, Stone has decided to not buck the trend, and their Imperial IPA, Ruination, is one sweet, sticky, hoppy mess of a beer in all the best ways possible.

Poured from a 22oz bottle into a pint glass. The color is a slightly cloudy yellowish gold with a white foamy head. The smell has a strong hop flavor, some citrus and alot of piny hop flavor. The taste is a bit strong. A surprise a bit to the taste buds. The hops slide over the tongue and really kicks with spicy hope feel. Some citrus flavor in the background as well. The flavor comes right to the front. Like most Stone beers you can not ignore the taste of their beers. IMO the straight forward strong flavor of the beer looses a slight degree of drinkability. It ends up being worth the trade off. The pallete does take a second to get used to the hop explosion but once it’s up to speed, you enjoy it all the more. Serving type: bottle

Dark amber with a nice white head. Aroma is fruit,hops and bitter. Flavor is the same. Very nice beer.

22 oz. Bomber. Snifter. Purchased at Fred Meyer, per usual. This was my first favorite DIPA, and after having made the circuit of outstanding beers such as Pliny(s), Dreadknaught, Dogfish Head 90, Hopslam, and all the others...Ruination RULES!!! Can’t believe I strayed from this beer for 3 months. It is the best. The Aromas scream for attention. The Flavors as well. The palate is perfect. This will always be the gold standard for me.