Stone Ruination Double IPA 2 0 | Beer Review | B |

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For the style, I was very underwhelmed by this beer. Compared to the original Ruination (Yellow Label), this does not hold a candle.
This is a West Coast IPA version of the original.

First off. This is a good beer.
But with that said, that's all it is. A GOOD beer. There is nothing special about it.
With the title of Double IPA I was expecting more. A lot more.

This has a very similar hop character as Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA. I'm not saying it tastes the same, but it has a similarly intense hop presence.

It's very malt forward. And not very hop forward (like you'd expect a Double IPA to be).

At 8.5% ABV, I wouldn't even consider that to be a 'DOUBLE' IPA.
Compared to the normal Runitation, this was is severely lacking.

It smells like it's going to be a crazy hoppy beer, but that's about where it ends.
For the style of beer (Double IPA) I gave this one a "B".
Was it good. Yes. It was fine.
But was it a good Double IPA? Nope!

I was pretty disappointed.

Note:
When I looked at Stone's website and I saw that there were 2 different beers with the name "Ruination", that's when I went, "Hmmm".

Apparently, this version; the 2.0, is a West Coast styled IPA. And my experience with West Coast style IPA's is that they seem to have a more subdued hop character in favor of a heftier malt character and bitterness.

So be aware of all of this when you are trying to decide.

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http://www.stonebrewing.com
http://www.stonebrewing.com/beer/year...

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/pro... Rating: 94
http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/stone-ru... Rating: 99


Stone Ruination Double IPA 2.0
RATING: 'B'

STYLE: Double IPA
ABV: 8.5%
BOTTLE CODE: Best By
COST: 
- $2.99 for Single
- $12.99 per 6 pack

HOPS: Magnum, Nugget, Centennial Simcoe, Citra, & Azacca

https://youtu.be/KCH8PWe6TV4

Foothills Brewing: Hoppyum IPA

Foothills Brewing: Hoppyum IPA

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http://www.foothillsbrewing.com
http://www.foothillsbrewing.com/brews/hoppyum-ipa/

http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/foothills-hoppyum-ipa/55040/   Rating = 94
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/11036/27571/   Rating = 86



Bottle Code:

Style: IPA
ABV: 6.25%
IBU: 78
Color: Medium Dark Yellow.
Malts: No Information
Hops: Simcoe
Bottle Code: I found a laser-etched code on the bottom of the bottle but I don't know what it means.  I've contacted the brewery to see if they can explain it to me.   (1623 A2 0616)

Cost: $4.49

Pour

A half pinky of a white creamy head formed.

Look

It wasn't very carbonated.
Very cloudy.
There was a lot of stuff floating around.

Aroma

Grapefruit, mango, other citrus.  Very pungent. Very delightful.

Taste

Very citrusy.  none of the normal funky Simcoe flavor.
Over time, my palette does get fatigued.  However with a few minutes between sips, my palette remains fresh.

Verdict

This is a very good, flavorful, IPA.  For $4.49 per 22oz bomber, I would definitely buy this on a regular basis.

Rating

Based on the style, I'd give this beer a "A"

IPA Experiment | Does Chloride to Sulfate Ratio impact perception of Bitterness

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http://beerandwinejournal.com

http://beerandwinejournal.com/ipa-experiment/ 

http://www.basicbrewing.com

Basic Brewing Results Page

Recently, BeerAndWineJournal.com and Basic Brewing made a call for all of their readers and listeners to participate in an experiment.

"Does the Chloride to Sulfate ration in your brewing liquor influence the perception of hop bitterness in the final beer."

Here are the basics:

We were to brew an IPA using the parameters outlined.  Then during bottling, add specific amounts of Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) after each gallon.  Then during the sampling, we needed to observe whether the different Gypsum additions had any impact on the bitterness of the finished beer.

http://beerandwinejournal.com/ipa-experiment/ 

Brew Day: 10/5/2013 
Dry-hopped: 10/17/2013
Bottled: 10/22/2013
Bottle conditioned till 10/31/2013

(The following is quoted from beerandwinejournal.com)

Brewing the Base Beer

The experiment is simple, brew 5.0 gallons (19 L) of IPA with a 1:1 chloride-to-sulfate ratio, then adjust the ratio as you bottle. To do this, on brewday, start with distilled water, RO water or tap water that has been diluted with distilled water to 25 ppm bicarbonate or less. Then, add calcium to your water by adding both calcium chloride and gypsum. For 10 gallons (38 L) of water, add 4.0 g (a little over 1 tsp) of calcium chloride and 4.0 g (about 1 tsp) of gypsum to get to 50 ppm calcium, with a 1:1 chloride-to-sulfate ratio. Make the wort, ferment it and get ready to bottle.

Bottling

When you bottle, you will bottle 1.0 gallon (3.8 L) of beer at the existing 1:1 chloride to sulfate ratio. For each subsequent gallon (3.8 L) you bottle, you will add gypsum to yield bottles at 1:2, 1:3, 1:4 and 1:5 ratios, respectively. Here’s how to do that. Bottle the first gallon (3.8 L) as you normally would, and label these bottles with a “1.” Then, add 1.5 g of calcium sulfate to the remaining 4.0 gallons (15 L) of beer. To prevent foaming, wet the gypsum before adding it (see below for more). Stir to dissolve the gypsum into the batch, but not so much that you splash and aerate the batch. Let the beer sit for 2 minutes (so the dissolved gypsum evens out), then bottle the second gallon. Label these bottles with a “2.”

For the third gallon (3.8 L), add 1.0 g of gypsum and label the bottles “3.” For the fourth and fifth gallons, add 0.75 g and 0.33 g of gypsum, respectively. Label the bottles “4” and “5,” as appropriate.

My IPA Recipe/Procedure

Grain:

13lb - 2 Row Pale Malt

1lb   - C-60

Hops:

1oz Magnum - 1st Wort

.5oz Magnum at each time - 55 min, 45 min, 35 min, 25 min

1oz Cascade - 5 Minutes

1oz Cascade - Flame Out

2oz Cascade - Dry Hopped for 6 days

Yeast:

Wyeast 1056 (1qt starter from smack pack)

Mash:

152 F for 7hrs (much longer than was necessary but I had family matters to attend to during this time)

Boil:

1 hour

Bottling

Priming Sugar:

4.2oz Dextrose

Each gallon consisted of two (2) 8oz Coke bottles and nine (9) 12oz amber bottles. This only equals 124oz.  Even though a full gallon is 128oz, I didn't feel this was a big deal.

After each gallon bottled, I would add Gypsum in the following amounts.

1st Gallon   - 1:1 Ratio - I did not add any addition Gypsum for the first gallon.

2nd Gallon - 1:2 Ratio - Added 1.5g Gypsum

3rd Gallon  - 1:3 Ratio - Added 1.0g Gypsum

4th Gallon  - 1:4 Ratio - Added .75g Gypsum

5th Gallon  - 1:5 Ratio - Added .33g Gypsum

I then let the beer bottle condition for nearly 9 days.

Results of the Experiment

To give a better indication of sensory observation, I decided to do a blind tasting of each sample.

I blindly covered all distinguishing marks on each bottle using masking tape.  I then label each bottle and 5 glasses with A-B-C-D-E

Any deviations from the process recommended in article:

1. Even though my bottling bucket read perfect measurements after each gallon bottled, the 1:5 ratio only had 100oz bottled instead of 128oz.
2. My digital scale only measures in whole grams. It does not do decimal points. I measured as closely as possible. Did some math and cut lines like a coke (cocaine) head. So hopefully I was close enough. 

Sensory observations:

Head & Retention

All samples had heads consisting of small (almost nitrogen-like) creamy bubbles.

A (1:3)-Small head and sticking around
B (1:5)-Small head and Falls fast.
C (1:1)-Nice thick head. Had 2nd best staying power.
D (1:4)-Nice Thick head. Had the best staying power.
E (1:2)-Nice head on the pour but it fell quickly. But not at bad as A & B.

At beginning of the Experiment (50F)
Order of head retention from least to greatest.
B (1:5) - A (1:3) - E (1:2) - D (1:4) - C (1:1) (at beginning of the experiment)

After Swirling At end of experiment (60F):
E (1:2) - Had absolutely no head retention after being swirled. It fell immediately. 
A (1:3) & B (1:5) – Not as bad as E but almost.
C (1:1) – Was closed to D, but not equal.
D (1:4) – Had the best head retention over time.

Aroma

They were all citrusy.
The bouquet was the same throughout all of them.

Mouthfeel

On all of the samples, the mouthfeel was very big. Not like James Spencer's All- Rye beer, but from the perfect carbonation. Very very creamy. 

Bitterness

Beginning of Tasting (50 degrees F)
They were all very similar. To pull out anything, I had to do about 15 minutes of sipping. I let them warm up and re-sampled. It's very difficult to tell a difference in any of the samples.
A & E are nearly identical in every way.
A (1:3), B (1:5), & E (1:2)- Have a mellow bitterness. It doesn't bite.
D (1:4) - Is a step above A B & E in the bitterness and flavor.
C (1:1) -Noticeably different. With the most distinctive bitterness. A little sharper than the rest. Not harsh, but more distinct.

End of Tasting (around 65 degrees F) Most bitter to least bitter:
C (1:1) – Most distinctive. Still stands out.
E (1:2) & A (1:3) – Are about the same. Much less than C (1:1) but not as minimal as D (1:4) & B (1:5).
D (1:4) & B (1:5) – Definitely the least perception of bitterness. 

What are your conclusions?

My results seemed to show that the More Calcium Sulfate that is added, the less sharp the bitterness becomes.

The perception of bitterness in the 1:2 thru 1:5 changed slightly a the beer warmed. However, 1:1 remained the most distinctive.

I think that if I'd brewed, specifically (from start to finish) a 1:2 and a 1:3, etc that the results might have been more pronounced.

I think that the chemicals didn't meld well with the alcohol in the finished beer so therefore did not result in a pronounced difference between the samples.

Note:
    The differences in the samples were so slight that if you weren't spending
the time to sip each individual sample, you would never know the difference. NEVER. 

Youtube Videos

For each date listed below, I will be posting a youtube video.  Just click on the link and you will be taken to the correct video.

(Brew Day: 10/5/2013 --- Dry-hopped: 10/17/2013)
Bottled: 10/22/2013Bottle conditioned till 10/31/2013

Hi Wire Brewing in Ashville, NC

This past Friday night, I visited Asheville's beer scene for the second time.  My wife (a licensed Zumba instructor) was going to a Zumba event on Grove St at a club called 'Scandals' so I decided to tag along walked around and try to stop in to few of the local brewery's tasting rooms.

But this did not quite go as planned.  I walked for about 2 minutes, then by chance, happened upon Hi Wire Brewing.  At first, I did not realize that it was a brewery. I walked past it. I had no map, other than my iPhone's map program open, so I was literally just wandering aimlessly.

As you can see from the screen shot (below) of my phone's map, I only walked for about 2 minutes from my starting point, before I stopped at the first brewery of the night.  And what, I'd soon realize, would be the only brewery of the night.

I had every intention of having a beer then continuing on my journey. After all, I had between 2, and 2.5 hours to kill before my wife was finished with her Zumba thing.  

When I had come to Asheville a few months earlier, I read up on this brewery and decided that it may not be worth my time; compared to some of the other breweries that I'd read about. .  However, during this trip, I decided to give it a chance.  And I'm glad that I did. 

Below is my review of not only the beer, but the brewery itself.

The Brewery

It had a nice, rustic atmosphere. It looks to be built in an old mechanic's garage or fire station. There are two large garage doors.  The tasting room bar was in the brewery.  On the bar was an old 13 inch boob-tube TV with an original NES connected with the original Super Mario on the screen.  It seemed to be a fairly popular place but there was always a place to sit. High-top tables were set up with stools all around the room. There was also a bar to sit at. During the 2 and half hours I was here, the crowd was constantly waxing (getting larger) and waning (tapering off).  There were periods where it was completely empty, then 10 minutes later, the brewery was packed.

The Beer

None of their beers are overly high in alcohol. The abv's range from 4.6 for the lager up to 6.7 for the IPA.  And the seasonal was 7.0%.

The price for a pint is $4.00, which is pretty standard for most of the breweries that I've been to in Asheville.  The sampler of 4oz glasses was $5.00.

There are 4 regular beers on tap and a seasonal. But there are also 5 guest taps from other craft brewers. Personally I don't get that.  My feeling is that if I'm making it a point to come to the brewery to get a beer, I want their beer.  However, I guess it's not a bad idea to have some selection, so that their beers don't run dry. Or if they do...

Today, the guest taps were from Terrapin, Lagunitias, Pisgah Brewing, and Rogue.

Today I tried their full available lineup.  I had a glass of the Seasonal (Red Rye), then I got four, 4oz samples of the regular line-up.

In the image below, from Right to Left:
1. Seasonal: Ringmaster Red Rye
2.  Hi Wire Lager
3. Bed of Nails Brown
4. Prime Time Pale Ale
5. Hi Pitch IPA

The Beer Reviews

Seasonal: Ringmaster Red Rye  

Look:

• Like a brown ale with lacing that sheets down the glass. 

Aroma:

• Very hoppy aroma. Spicy hop character and spicy rye to accent the hops.

Taste:

• Just like the aroma it's hop spiciness and rye stick out. 
• The malt is not the dominant presence in this beer. 
• From the first sip to the last it had staying power. My pallet didn't get fatigued even though the taste was pretty strong.  This is odd because of how strong the hop flavors are.  So when I say my palette did not get fatigued, don't mistake that for a weak tasting beer.

Verdict:

• Best beer currently at this brewery. 

Rating: 

A

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Hi Wire Lager  

Look:

• Pale yellow like pee. Creamy head.

Smell:

• Grainy and sweet. Very Unappealing.
• If I didn't know better I could mistake this for Budweiser. 

Aroma:

• Sweet and grainy. 
• Tastes just like Bud except with a tad more bitterness. A very small "Tad".

Verdict:

• If you are going to come to a craft brewery of this quality and order the most bland beer on the menu, you might as well just get some free water out of the igloo cooler in the corner of the room.
• Personally I think they put this beer on the menu to have something to serve to people who don't like anything other than Bud/Miller/Coors (BMC) beers.

Rating:

• This is difficult to rate because I hate this style. 
• Overall for my tastes I'd give this a D.
• But since this is par for the style of having no discernible flavors other than sweet grain,  it would get an A. 

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Bed of Nails Brown Ale

Look:

• Color is dark brown. It does justice to the title of being a "Brown Ale," at least in the color.
• After 10 mins of sitting the creamy foam is still on top. 

Aroma:

• Very weak aroma. Nothing draws me in to this beer.
• If I were to close my eyes and smell this and water I wouldn't be able to tell which was which.
• There is absolutely nothing here. 

Taste:

• Faint faint faint.  
• Almost nothing there. 
• No yeast fruitiness like I'd expect from a brown ale.  Surprising, especially since the description on their website says they model this after the English Brown Ale style.
• It's very bland. Theres no bitterness to add to the experience. It's smooth as water. The only thing I'm really getting is an ever-so-slight aftertaste of vanilla. But so faint I'm just trying to find something

Rating: 

D+

___________________

Prime Time Pale Ale

Look:

• Looks like a darker light lager. It's only slightly darker than the hi wire lager.  
• Medium to law carbonation but tight bubbles. 
• Creamy head sticks around on top even after 30 min. 

Aroma:

• Piney hops are the first thing you notice. 
• There's a bit of graininess coming through. But only in the background as an afterthought. 

Taste:

• Spicy hop character. Not as strong as a mild IPA but much more than a new Albion type beer. 
• Very similar to Sierra Nevada pale ale. 
• Hop flavor is up front. The medium bitterness tops it off. 
• I would guess about 50 ibu's. But the board says 37 ibu. 

Verdict:

• If you wanted to come here and get a good favorable session beer that won't kill your palette, this is the one to get at this brewery. 

Rating:

A

___________________

Hi Pitch IPA

Look: 

• The color was nearly identical to the brown ale. 
• But, even after nearly over an hour, the head is still prominent on top: As you can see in the picture below.

Aroma:

• Spicy hop. Pale ale had a more intense hop, and overall, aroma than this IPA.
• If I were to have a lone glass if this, by the aroma alone, I'd think this was a pale ale. 

Taste:

• Citrusy.
• It's not a strong IPA but it's definitely an IPA. 
• After the aromatic experience, I wasn't expecting the flavor that I got. 
• Don't get me wrong. It's not super strong. But the citrus is definitely on the forefront of the sensory experience and there's a nice malt backbone.

Verdict:

• It's pretty good.
• Definitely the best regular line-up beer at this brewery.

Rating:

B in the ipa category. 

The Myth of IPA's Losing Their Hoppy Mojo Over Time

I always hear that you have to drink IPA's fresh otherwise they'll lose their Hoppy Mojo.

Well I'm calling BULLSHIT on this.

Why?

I've had a few beers that have reputations of losing their hoppy mojo's within a few weeks. (i.e. Stone Enjoy By and Russian River's Pliney the Elder).

I've had these beers.  I've had Pliney fresh.  I've had Enjoy By fresh.  And here's a quick synopsis.

Pliney the Elder: Medium High alcohol.  Billed as an Imperial IPA but once again I call Bullshit on that.  There is no way that an 8% beer is an Imperial IPA.  Torpedo Extra IPA is 7.2%.  And that's just classed as a regular IPA

• Aroma:  Piny and citrusy.  
• Flavor: Medium to low Hoppy flavor.  Torpedo Extra is twice as strong (hop character) as this beer.  Personally I think it's pretty weak.  
• Verdict:  I don't understand the hype.  I tried the 6 month old version first.  Then I tried a fresh sample.  EXACTLY the same.

Stone: Enjoy By:  9.4% ABV.  This is an awesome beer.  Super hoppy.  I've saved a bit for laster tasting.  6 Months.  Still just as strong.  Just as good.  Awesome.  No difference.


Grand Teton Brewing Company - Lost Continent:  An 8% abv beer bottled on 2/24/2012.  I bought this beer on 9/26/2012.  I drank it on 7/2/2012.

• Aroma:  Super piny and medium citrus.
• Flavor:  A little boozy, even at 8%.  But very, very, VERY Hoppy.  So hoppy, I'm sitting her sipping this beer.  16 months after it's bottled-on date and it is so hoppy that I have to sip lightly.

My verdict on the myth of IPA's losing their hoppiness...  Once again.  I call BULL... SHIT!!!

So when I review an IPA with a crazy big reputation and say it is weak, I mean "It's weak."

It's not that the IPA is old.  It's that the IPA is weak.  I don't get hung up on Brand Reputation.  Except that if it has a reputation, then I'm going to judge it a bit more harshly.  i.e., Pliney is weak and way over rated.  If Lost Continent is still super hoppy and tastes fresh after 16 months, then the argument that Pliney is only good 'fresh' is a cop out for how weak and over-rated this IPA actually is.

So feel free to store those stronger IPA's.  They will last if they are taken care of.  Their profile may change but it won't go away.

Drink what you like.  And enjoy what you drink.

Calculating (Homebrew) Kegging PSI and Hose Length

"At what PSI should I carbonate my beer?"

"How long should the tubing be?"

These are important questions you need to ask when kegging your home-brew.  

"Why?" You ask.

"Can I not just hook up the tubing and crank up the PSI on my CO2 tank and just let it go?" You ask.

Well the honest answer is, "Yes. You can." Well... you can if you want a big glass of yummy foam, that is.

After home-brewing for nearly 7 years, I have finally transitioned to kegging my beer.  My first beer is currently being carbonated in my DIY kegerator.  But since I didn't have the answer to the two questions at the top of this article, I had to research on my own for the answers I needed.

I called my local homebrew store for recommendations on which type of hoses/tubing to use.  They recommended 5/16 ID for the CO2 lines and 3/16 ID for the Beer line.

Note:

The CO2 lines don't really make that much of a difference since the pressure in the tube a keg eventually regulate themselves at whatever you set the pressure at. For mine it took a couple days of constant attention, but it finally leveled off at the pressure I had set it.

When the home-brew store said what the length was, I got a little nervous because I'd been reading contradictory information on all of the beer forums.  One forum would say no less than 7 feet. While another forum would say 3 feet is fine.  But my local home-brew store said between 3-4 feet was fine.

Well, what I found out, later on, was that they were all, technically, correct. 

"Why?" you ask.

Simple.  The easy answer is that the PSI that you set your regulator at is directly proportional to the length of the lines.

Essentially you can make your tubing as long (or short) as you want as long as the pressure is set proportionally.

Basically, the longer the lines, the higher the PSI. (And vice versa).

I found a website (I put the link at the bottom of this article) that finally explained EXACTLY what my PSI needed to be.  And EXACTLY how long my lines needed to be.

Every child from 1^st to 12^th grade always asks when they are ever going to use that stupid math once they're out of school.

Well...

Get ready for that 9th grade algebra to come in handy.

  

L = (keg_pressure - 1psi (H/2) ) / Resistance 3

This equation does come in handy, but based on my experience, I would take the results with a grain of salt.

I followed this equation to a T and my beer ended up being over-carbonated and I was just getting a glass of foam and flat beer.

So what I would suggest is to visit the links I've posted below (especially the first link).
If you have problems, do a search on google or bing for "Keg Balance Calculator"

How did I fix my over-foamed problem?  After searching the internet for "homebrew keg is foamy+how to correct"  I found some forum posts that led me to my answer.

Essentially what I did was:

1. Turn off the co2.
2. Bleed the CO2 from the keg.
3. Let it sit for a few hours.
4. Then turn the keg back on to a low psi (5).  Try to dispense.  The beer came out very slowly (almost a trickle) but I was checking for mouthfeel.  Once I was confident that the mouthfeel was good, I proceeded to the next step.
5. I turned the psi up to 10, then tried to dispense once again.  This time the beer came out at a normal level.  The foam was good and the carbonation was good.  I think it's fixed.
6. I tried one more move up to 12 psi.  This time it was perfect.
7. I set the CO2 regulator at 12psi and left and it's been good ever since.

Online Calculator:
http://www.iancrockett.com/brewing/info/kegbalance.shtml

PSI Chart
http://www.homebrew.com/pdfs/CO2chart.pdf
http://www.ebrew.com/primarynews/ct_carbonation_chart.htm

Explanations of equations:
http://beersmith.com/blog/2011/07/14/keg-line-length-balancing-the-science-of-draft-beer/

Beer Review | Mission Street: Pale Ale

Mission Street: Pale Ale

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http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/mission-street-pale-ale/29082/  Rating = 70
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/562/15286  Rating = 82


This pale ale is from a six pack I bought at Trader Joes.  My first inkling was that it was going to suck just like most of the other beers that I buy there.

According to many sources on the internet, and while I don't have definitive proof, everyone seems to believe that Firestone Walker contract brews this beer.  I can't seem to find a website for Steinhaus Brewing Company.  They are the supposed brewer of this beer.


Style: Pale Ale
ABV: 4.7%
Color: Yellow

Pour

Head fell quickly.

Look

Yellow as a Budweiser.
Lots of carbonation.

Aroma

Very citrusy hop smelling.

Taste

It  had no bitterness.  But the hop flavor was identical to the hop aroma.  It was very unbalanced.  Without the hop bitterness, it made the beer seem very thin.  It was as if they were trying to cover up the fact that there was barely any malt body with more dry-hopped flavors.  It was just weird.
The aftertaste was kind of grainy.

Verdict

It wasn't too bad.  This would definitely be a good transition beer for a Bud drinker.

Rating

Based on the style, I'd give this beer a "B"