Stone Ruination IPA

Brewed by Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Escondido, California USA

22oz bottle. average fizzy/creamy white fizzy head into hazy orange body with some lacing present. aromas of moderate to strong hops (citrus and pine) and moderate caramel (well balanced aroma). Flavor is moderately bitter throughout with some light sweetness balancing everything out. sticky mouthfeel and moderate to long finish duration. Average carbonation. Okay this is a damn fine well-balanced imperial ipa.

[1662-20080905] 22floz bottle. Pine resin and bitter tree sap aroma with a little woody malt. Hazy, medium orange amber body with a medium-lasting creamy off-white head. Bitter resin flavour has bitter woodsy malt. Medium-full body. Pretty rough but pretty wonderful.
(@ Diamond Princess cruise ship; near AK)

A palate wrecking ball. Hints of grapefruit and pine. Ultra dry, bitter finish that sits on your palate for quite a while (basically until the next sip). A hop bomb, but a multidimensional one for sure. Anything less would not be worthy of a name like RUINATION. He who is without an IPA cast the first STONE.

Super smooth when ice cold, when the temp rises becomes a serious problem w/this one. Pine, hops, cirtrus, and tangy. Amazing.

sampled back to back with the ipa after a quick palate cleansing. a darker more amber appearance than the regular ipa under a small white head. great big citrus hop aroma. body actually seems lighter than the ipa’s palate. citrus-piney hops dominate here. malts struggle in the distance but manage to balance enough in this monster to make it drinkable. hides the alcohol well. medium bodied.

Aroma of hops, citrus, and sweet honey. Pours a bright orange with a small off white head. Lots of hops at the front and even more at the back. Has a sort of thickness to it. No lingering bitterness but a sweet citrus finish.

Bottle from Bev Mo, San Francisco, sampled July 2008. Pours golden orange in the glass with a very small head which holds in some incredible aromas: lots of grass, a bit of pine in the hops, apricot; floral. The flavour is very well balanced; fairly sweet with much complexity, especially given the hopped up 100 or more IBUs; I pick up some apricot, pineapple, grass, alcohol. A bitter finish.

Bottle, May 2009. This is a pale golden colour with a very long lasting foamy white head. Carbonation is fairly mild. The aroma is really terrific: densely layered and complex. The hop aromas are fresh and very inviting: there’s a fair amount of pine and a whole array of citrus fruits, some floral elements, grass, a hint of caramel. The mouthfeel is oily, medium in body. There’s a fair amount of wood in the flavour and a whole lot of fresh apricot, some avocado, pine, grass, the works. The finish is where the bitterness kicks in, though it is far more subtle than would be expected: there’s some orange and pine along with the hop bitter kick. A standout.

I am in Atlanta and finally this week STONE has arrived.The first beer i sample is the Ruination IPA.I can’t lie I was a bit disappointed.Don’t get me wrong this brew is great but not one of the best as advertised.Very hoppy which I love but needs more balance to be considered one of my bests.Still a great beer though.