Beer Name: 120 Minute IPA

Brewery: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
Beer style: Imperial IPA
ABV: Depending on batch, 15-20%
IBU: HAHAHAHA, it breaks the scale
Size: 12 oz ($9.99)
Beer Advocate Score: 87
Untappd Score: 4 caps

Craft can be used as an adjective or a noun. It can mean being built by hand, something that utilizes elbow macaroni and paste, the best on-ball defender in the nation, or beer that isn’t made by the big boys and redefines the definition of beer altogether. Craft beer to me means quality, eccentricity, and comradery. I have never seen an industry battle the successful model like craft beer does. The template for soulless success is out there, but just like some people want to do things differently, some people want to drink differently. You can make color-changing cans, vortex bottles, and punch-top cans, but those of us who have discovered the other side will never be won back by cheap parlor tricks.

Since we are talking craft beers, I think we should talk about one of the craftiest beers. 90 Minute IPA is often regaled as one of the best American-style IPAs ever created, but its big brother is even more impressing. 120 Minute IPA is impossible to find in Ohio (it is illegal due to ABV) and difficult to find in the Midwest. On my vacation to my uncles’ house in Lexington, I was lucky enough to stumble onto some 120. It smells like unicorn asshole: it is magical, hoppy, citrusy, and spicy. It smells like an IPA fan’s nirvana. When this beer hits your tongue, you will notice that the light carbonation deals out a bitter that is hard to find anywhere else. Hops and pine notes get so bitter that it actually burns your nose. There are not a ton of different flavors here, but the flavors you do get are as hardcore as you can imagine. Hops, pines, and alcohol burn dominate this beer. It has a decent lace and super light mouthfeel considering its ABV. I wish I could get more into detail about how this beer actually tastes, but it legitimately is only the things I listed above. Do not mistake this lack of description for lack of taste. This is a world class Imperial IPA that is unimaginably good.

Ratings:

Sessionability: 2-pack. This beer is over 15% and 10 bucks a bottle; if you drink more than two in a sitting you are wasting your money.
Overall: It is a 6-pack. I try not to let is availability get lumped into the rating, but it is as hard to find as it is good.
Would be best consumed: By no sane person, ever.