Big A IPA (Smuttynose Brewing Company)

It's baaaaaaaaaaaaack! Lets all thank the humulus lupulus gods! I've been looking forward to Smutty's Big A everyday since it was all bought up last year. Its great to see that Smuttynose shrugged its shoulders at the hops shortage and didn't leave this one out of its increasingly more amazing line up of "Big Beers". I need to make sure to stock up on the Big A this week since its definitely not going to last long!

My hand almost trembles pouring this beer. Its like ripping off the wrapping paper of a gift you already know is going to be awesome. Fills the glass with a super clean, slightly dark gold liquid. Its actually pretty close to orange in color with a big two-finger foamy head. Ooh-la-la.

Holy f-ing hops batman. The smell of the Big A is like a whole hop bine crammed into a glass. Very strong, fresh hops scents dominate along with the spiciness that accompany them. There is also a faint alcohol scent that lingers in the back. What a great smell, I sure missed this stuff!

Taste is very much like a remember. Sweet, spicy and bitter with that tongue drying hoppiness I've grown to love. What a perfect combo for a beer of this magnitude. Finding balance with a beer this strong and hoppy can be tough, but Smuttynose does a great job and I really don't think its that much of a one sided hop bomb. The malty sweetness balances things out really well. 

Oh the hops! The Big A's IBUs are pretty damn high and the hop oils and resins are definitely going to have a big impact on your taste buds. This is hop heaven.

Based on the tasting notes on this year's release, quite a variety of hops went into this beer. I'm not sure how much of a difference there is between the '08 and '07 releases, but I can honestly say that I am not at all disappointed. This is an amazing beer with everything needed to satisfy even the hoppiest of hopheads!

Thanks goes out to Stash Wojciechowski, the "Killer Kielbasa", for bestowing Big A upon us all!

BEER FACTS

Name: Big A IPA

Style: Imperial/Double Pale Ale

Brewery: Smuttynose Brewing Company

Location: Portsmouth, New Hampshire, USA

Container: 22 oz. bottle

Malts: ?

Hops: Centennial, Chinook, Crystal, Cascade & Nugget

ABV: 9.2%

IBUs: A lot

The Smuttynose BIG BEER Series is:

Baltic Porter - mid-January 
Imperial Stout - mid-February
Maibock - early April
Big A IPA - early May 
Farmhouse Ale - early June
Wheat Wine mid-August
Barley Wine - early October
S'muttonator Double Bock - mid-November