I think it may have been old. The second beer we tried was Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing's IPA. Whoa! This is one different IPA. My friend and the Beer Rovette hated it. I was not thrilled with it, but did not think it too horrible, but it did not taste like an IPA to me. I thought it had the strong smell and taste of cooked vegetables. I picked up asparagus, but we could not come to a consensus, except we all agreed it smelled and tasted of vegetables, (and maybe some pine).After that beer, we needed a palate cleanser, and since my friend spent eight years living back east, he was eager to try the Unearthly Imperial IPA. I am thinking that it may been the 11% alcohol more than Western Pennsylvania nostalgia that sparked his enthusiasm for Unearthly. After the strange IPA from Santa Cruz Mountian Brewing, Unearthly was a welcome, almost familiar relief.
This is a big beer, and like Hoppe, it reminded me of Rouge's Northwest style beer. It had a large initial hop taste, but was balanced by the malts. This beer was sweet, maybe one of the sweetest double IPAs I've had, but nicely balanced. Even though it was 11% abv, the alcohol was not dominate. Like Hoppe, this is a drinkable, big beer. It's also a little scary because it is so drinkable with such a high level of alcohol.The final beer we tried was Lagunitas' Ruben and the Jets. My friend was told it was a dark IPA. No effing way. I got no IPA taste at all. It was all big, roasted malt and a sweetness that smacked of an imperial stout. This beer was a slow sipper, but it was rich and tasty. I checked BeerAdvocate this morning and confirmed that Ruben was an imperial stout, not a dark IPA. This beer would be better by itself where its subtleties could be appreciated, not popped after three IPAs.
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