Dogfish Head Brewing Company is one of those companies in beer that people hear they absolutely have to try, and one of the biggest reasons for this is their 90 Minute IPA, an Imperial India Pale Ale that is often cited as the standard for Imperial IPAs. There’s a reason behind this, and from start to finish this beer is top-notch. It’s 9% abv, and 90 IBUs, making it a fairly strong and bitterly hopped beer. Perfect for an Imperial IPA.
It pours a wonderful amber-orange tint that’s slightly hazy. It’s one of those beers you have to raise up and look at every single time. There’s a thick head on top, and it’s sticky in the glass which leaves a ton of lacing. Without even tasting it you know this is a well-brewed beer. The scent is a little more malty than you might expect, but there it’s the hops that take the lead with orange citrus smells that take it over the top. It can smell a tad boozy as well, but it’s not overpowering.
The flavor in Dogfish Head’s 90 Minute IPA is hop heavy as you’d expect from an Imperial IPA but it’s balanced incredibly well with the malts. They use a “ridiculous amount of English Two-row barley” to make this balance, and it works very well. The hops squeeze your tongue like a hug and you really sense this beer. The citrus that comes through in the smell is present in the taste as well and makes this a truly great beer. It’s light and smooth mouth-feel makes it even better, and it has some creaminess to it that takes it over the top.
Dogfish Head is almost always up to something interesting and great, and they hit the jackpot with their 90 Minute Imperial IPA, and they’re letting us all have some. Isn’t that nice of them?
Brewery: Dogfish Head Brewing Co.
Location: Delaware
Style: American Imperial IPA
Rating: 89/100
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