Hayes Bomberpalooza, Part 3

Still more beers to review from the (First Annual?) East Mesa Hayes Bomberpalooza...


Beer # 7:  Sculpin IPA (7% ABV) from Ballast Point Brewing Company in San Diego, California

Beer #7

According to Ballast Point's website, "The Sculpin fish has poisonous spikes on it’s fins that can give a strong sting. Ironically, the meat from a Sculpin is considered some of the tastiest. Something that has a sting but tastes great, sounds like a Ballast Point India Pale Ale."

This beer (and the label art) was well received by the group of tasters with responses ranging from a wild fist-bumping "YES" to "not over the top" to "yeah, it's pretty drinkable." 

It was not an over-the-top IPA where the hops are damn near crawling out of the glass or slapping you in the face, but the hops were definitely present.  It had a citrus smell and but I didn't really taste any citrus flavor.  It also came with a slightly odd (not bad but just strange) aftertaste though which I couldn't really describe.





Beer # 8:  Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale (8.7% ABV) by Stone Brewing Company in Escondido, California

This beer is Self-Righteous for a reason.  It kicks ass.

I didn't get much feedback on this beer other than resounding head nodding and one person exclaiming "THIS BEER IS F-ING FANTASTIC (there were kids present and I believe he bleeped himself)!" 

So, since I can't remember how to describe this beer and no one else gave me feedback, I am forced to borrow some language from Stone's website...

"We're brewers whose substantial mettle and idiomatic approach to brewing allows us to consistently create works of art such as this justifiably self-righteous ale. Its bitterness hits our sweet spot. Its blackness lightens our hearts. Its liquid dichotomy pulls it all together in this sublimely sacrosanct ale. Yes, we damn well know our stuff here at Stone, and it would be irresponsible of us not to acknowledge how remarkable this heavenly creation of ours is. Thus the name we are compelled to give it --- Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale --- serves as a reminder of just how good we are, in both liquid and verbal form.

We're certainly not perfect. Too often, we allow our modesty to get the best of us as we're simply not inclined towards senseless braggadocio. When you're good, you're good. And when you do something great, the least you can do is acknowledge it. Others benefit from knowing. In this case, we find that we are compelled to point out how amazing this ale is that we rightly call the Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale.

First brewed in 2007 as the Stone 11th Anniversary Ale, this ale was an instant hit. With us. Other folks with great taste loved it too, but we were focused on how much we liked it, and we felt it was truly sublime. That euphoria didn't last long though, as it was soon replaced with the grim reality that when we sold out of it there wouldn't be any more. For us. And that was simply unacceptable. So, we are now blessing ourselves, and you the enlightened, with this ale. Thusly, you may now revel in your own self-righteousness as you see fit with this glorious example of ours. You are genuinely welcome, as it is our pleasure."


 Beer #9:  Cali-Belgique IPA (6.9% ABV) from Stone Brewing Company in Escondido, California

The afternoon lightweight

What's this.....a beer under 7%?  No way.  Boooo.  What a lightweight.  In hindsight, perhaps we should have consumed them in order of alcohol content.


Apparently by this point, no one else was saying anything to me because I have absolutely nothing written down.Once again, I will borrow text from the brewer's website: "When reading the name "Stone Cali-Belgique IPA", "Cali" hints that it is a California-style IPA, and this brew has an undeniable Belgian influence, indicated by the word "Belgique" (which is how Belgium's French-speaking population says the word "Belgian"; the Dutch-speaking Belgians say "België"). We carefully selected a Belgian yeast strain that illuminates a fascinating new aspect of the beer that is otherwise quite simply Stone IPA. The result is both completely new and different, while still being recognizable as a Stone brew—and Stone IPA in particular. Think of it as an otherwise identical twin to Stone IPA that was raised in a Belgian culture. Literally."

Down to only five left to review... and somehow the remaining beers actually have taster feedback notes...