Stone Ruination IPA

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

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

For comparison’s sake, I enjoyed a bomber of Ruination directly after a bomber of Stone IPA. I adjusted my ratings slightly on the former from my prior rating in May ’05.

(Note: Here I am killing myself with big beers while I find my buddy RAYBOY01 bolstering his rating-count with some timid American Wheats. Sheesh. I’m going out to find some Schlitz...)


Poured the same, honey-amber color as <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/stone-india-pale IPA, with a longer lasting head... probably due to its cellar-temp as opposed to refrigeration. Similar, grand, PNW hop aromas with a background that seems less sharp & peppery but rather more dishwatery and acrid than its little brother. Flavor finds what seems to be a reduction of hop intensity that I can only attribute to my tastebuds gaining familiarity with the hop signature. Over the course of the beer, the hops regain their edge and I can once again appreciate hearty IBUs. Thick mouthfeel with a dry note to finish and noticable alcohol peeking through.

When it comes down to it, I’d drink either one in a heartbeat, but it would seem that I prefer the more peppery/less acrid, "standard" IPA.

<font size=-4>Purchased at <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp? Liquors, Chicago, IL 60638<font size=-1>

Bottle shared @ Ölrepubliken. Pours hazy reddish yellow with a fluffy with head that leaves some trace on the glass while dissipating. Smell is fresh and hoppy with grapefruit, lemon peal, peaches, caramel, apricots, plums, pine, wood and grass. Taste is malty sweet and bitter with caramel, pine, grapefruit, grass and plums. Mouthfeel is medium bodied (on the thin side). Finish is slightly sweet and quite bitter with lots of citrus.

Wow What a perfect IPA. Poured into a pint glass. Beautiful aroma of hops. Full refreshing taste. Not as bitter as I was expecting. A truly exceptional IPA.

golden amber color, aroma is sweet floral hops, flavor is sweet hops up front and with very balanced malty finish, great DIPA

Aroma is hoppy citrus with a bit of stickiness to it as well as some caramel malt notes. Taste is more of the hoppy citrus with quite a bit of grapefruity bitterness. Very refreshing. Contrary to what the description says, I feel that this beer did not "ruin" the palate at all. In fact, I felt that this was one of the most well-rounded IPAs I have ever tasted, with a nice caramel-like malt aftertaste. This was, however, at a cask tasting so the batch may have been slightly varied.

Bottle at Bishops Arms, Bellmansgatan, February 2012. Orange with a medium fluffy head. Aroma of pine and citrus, on the sweet side. The taste was hoppy with a good bitterness. Very drinkable and rather balanced. A nice DIPA.

Pours a hazy yellow, but the symphony of bold hops in the smell tell you to prepare for an assault. Starts out with a bit of orange marmalade before the hops attack. Tons of pine and grapefruit, but just enough lightly toasted malt to give it some backbone. So bitter you’ll pucker and might even get goosebumps. A punisher, this. But there is enough complexity here that it’s not just a one note hops bludgeoning. But it’s a 100+ IBU from Stone. What else would you expect?

Nästan orange öl med ett ljusgult skum. Doftar härligt av citrus, med tonvikt på grape. Den grapefruktliknande beskan drar härligt i munnen. En mycket god IPA.

Simply outstanding stuff, one of the best IPAs out there. Great hops, tons of bitterness, excellent malt balance, oily but not overpoweringly so. Body is medium with perfect carbonation and a great bitter finish. Well worth the price.