8% ABV, 102 IBU’s
I’m a big fan of what Lagunitas has to offer. One of my top ten favorite beers is their Undercover Investigation Shutdown Ale (a mouthful, I know… literally and figuratively) and their Little Sumpin’ Sumpin Ale is the best of its kind. I was quite excited when I got my hands on this “Hop Stoopid” IPA as I had tried to find it several times and was rejected by the bitter beer gods with the sight of empty shelves. But as you’d better understand, when Henry Deltoid wants a beer, Henry Deltoid gets a beer. I am the Lee Van motherfucking Cleef of beer hunters.
The more effort I put into a quest to find a beer, the higher the bar is inherently set on my expectations of it. This is a natural and unavoidable process, and thus it is with regret that I must report I was not all that impressed with this IPA. It’s a good IPA, but it doesn’t stand out beyond Dogfish Head 90 Minute, Sierra Nevada Hoptimum, Terrapin Hopsecutioner, or even Lagunitas’s Maximus IPA (all of which are solid IPA’s but all seem to taste relatively the same to me). And it doesn’t even compare to Founders’s Devil Dancer, Double Trouble, or even their Centennial IPA. For an imperial, Hop Stoopid just does not do the trick.
Don’t let my opinion dissuade you from nabbing this one off the shelf if you see it. I am a hop-head just as much as I am a metal-head (\m/ \m/). So, I am picky and versed when it comes to my IPAs. If you like IPAs I definitely recommend this if you are looking to try one you never had. It is crispy, fresh, smooth and refreshing; offers the typical piney/citrus/tart melon flavor you’d expect from a decent IPA but a pure taste of bitterness overwhelms the hoppy taste that I like. Don’t ever forget that: “hoppy” and “bitter” are like squares and rectangles. Hoppy is always bitter, but bitter is not always hoppy. And at 102 IBU it doesn’t seem to be that bitter, either. It has no trace of heavy ABV and is very drinkable. It pours a transparent gold color with a lovely touch of an amber tint. An attractive foam white head forms and dies quickly. The aroma of fresh citrus hops is present and is as inviting as a nice pair of wet, glistening, puffy blowjob lips. But the excitement ended there for me. The blowjob had too many teeth. This beer is a hot Vegas hooker with a poor delivery.
To be clear, I like this beer but shan’t purchase it again unless someone can really convince me that it’s likely my taste buds weren’t in the mood when I drank it. If you are fortunate enough to meet me one day, buy me one and I may change my mind. But I doubt it. Buy me one, anyway. I’m a cheap bastard sometimes.
Style: 7.5/10
Overall: 7/10
