UPDATED: SEP 11, 2020 Had a very light beer week, just one 2 days ago, but I have my stag do tomorrow, so I need to do some training to avoid fainting after my first glass. And I want to do this training starting with the best beast in my fridge. A quite fresh (July 24) Pliny the Elder, arguably the best DIPA in the world. I believe it deserves its reputation as, it's basically perfect! Pours clear golden, visible CO2, a fluffy, eternal head with perfect lacing, handmade and imported from Bruges. Aroma, perfect fresh, delicate, pine, citrus and mango. Exactly what a classic Californian DIPA should smell like! Tastes sublimely bitter, with a good malty backbone of caramel. Then pine, grapefruit and mango. Long, eternal (as its head, which is still there as this point of the writing), bitter finish! On the palate super smooth and medium bodied, but also quite crisp, nicely carbonated and yeah that lovely bitter finish. What to add, everybody knows it already. It's just perfect!

UPDATED: AUG 8, 2020 Deserves its reputation. No one particular thing about it stands out as exceptional, it's simply top-notch across the board. If you were to build a no-nonsense, by-the-book DIPA that would distinguish itself more-or-less only by the excellence of its execution, this would be it (at least, I'm confident saying that until I'm lucky enough to have tried the Younger!). It won't win over anybody who doesn't care for IPAs, but hey; you're probably not drinking this without having an idea what you're getting into, right?

UPDATED: AUG 8, 2020 Found the legendary beer @ Bristol's Market San Diego CA....just stopped in my tracks seeing 4 bottles in the cooler....never thought I could get this, esp after seeing lines around the block @ Russian River! Never have had anything to compare this to. Moderate head, beautiful piney/citrusy aroma, staggering taste. The beer gods blessed us this day.

UPDATED: FEB 25, 2020 500ml bottle @ monthly tasting, Chez Sophie FEB 20 during the 2020 flooding of Shrewsbury. Many thanks to Jeremy for this! Big chewy piney resin hit going on here, big robust bitterness.. DIPA as it used to be back in the olden days, and brings back fond memories of getting wowed by Mikkeller 1000IBU, Brewdog Hardcore IPA and the likes.. Brilliant stuff.

Excellent brew. But, seriously, you have to mix it up to appreciate what you have. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

UPDATED: FEB 21, 2020 Keg at O’Briens, San Diego, CA on 23/04/2008. It’s a classic, for sure. I possibly didn’t know this at the time. Huge bitter and piney hop aroma with resinous flavour and some fruit peal. Just enough sweetness to offset.

UPDATED: MAR 23, 2020 Klasyk na niedziele i pierwsze piwo z jednego z najlepszych paneli na jakim byłem w @maverickgdansk , od którego już oczywiście trochę czasu minęło Aromat intensywny, grejpfrut, pomarańcze, trochę sosnowo, w tle bardziej zioła. W smaku dość wyraźnie słodowe, potem wchodzą cytrusy. W posmaku lekko ziołowe, goryczka średnia, alkohol niewyczuwalny. Jest to dobre piwo, na pewno klasyk, ale jest Imo dość przecenione. Na pewno nie powoduje efektu WOW jaki sugeruje jego ocena czy legenda.

UPDATED: FEB 7, 2020 Thanks to Max for the bottle! Very light haze, good head. Pineapple fruity pine nose. Serious bitterness from start to finish, but it's so smooth compared to any other beer with that level of IBUs. Great piney flavor. This is one fresh bottle, 1 month in the bottle! Wow.

Draft at SFO 23oz. Smells of fresh citrus, with some wet cheesecloth - muted and mild. Appearance is straight gold with moderate head, but excellent carbonation and lacing. Full Flavor of pale malt and moderately herbs, Rich and consistent . Palate is not acidic or leeching, but holds the weight of the malt and liveliness of the hops. World Class mouthfeel and better than the sum of its parts. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

UPDATED: JAN 22, 2020 Coppery color with a white head and solid lacing. Very hoppy with a pine aroma. Excellent.