This is a hophead's dream, a collaboration between Dogfish Head and Sierra Nevada that should put to rest all East Coast-West Coast beef over IPA styles. This is the Tupac versus Biggie of IPAs, without all the violence and death and icky stuff. It uses Dogfish Head's red fife wheat and continual hopping, and Sierra Nevada's caramel malt and torpedo dry-hopping (see our prior post on Sierra Nevada's Torpedo IPA for more on their proprietary torpedo). It's also one of the highly anticipated beers to hit the shelves recently, and has been selling out fast.
This pours rather translucent, a medium golden color with a thin white head that doesn't last. It's only 8% ABV, so I was a bit surprised when the head dissipated as quickly as it did. The nose is surprisingly mild and understated. I was expecting a hop bomb in the olfactory nerve, but I barely pick up any hop aromas. It took three deep sniffs to detect some faint pine and citrus notes in the nose. Let's see how it tastes.
The first sip yields some really floral notes. Did I just drink perfume? The floral notes stick around throughout the sip, but give yield to some pineapple and earthy tones. I almost pick up some basement must. It's pretty carbonated, tickling the throat and adding a layer of fizz to the top of my stomach acids.
This is a very complex beer. I don't know that I love the floral notes throughout... it tastes exactly like I just glugged some Calvin Klein Eternity. I'm not much for overwhelming perfume or cologne; when I wear perfume, I usually opt for hops essential oil. And I don't mind some perfume notes to IPAs; Ithaca's Flower Power comes to mind as one I enjoy. I wish this were a little more in-your-face with the hops. It's not bad... but it's not as hop-forward as I was hoping, especially between two breweries noted for their hoppiness. Maybe I was expecting some of Dogfish Head's 120-Minute IPA blended with Sierra Nevada's Celebration or even their Hemisphere series. The hop flavors in this are surprisingly understated. It's a solidly structured beer, with a solid medium body and a sticky mouthfeel that's not offensive.
The CK Eternity is really throwing me off. Sorry, guys, I am pretty disappointed in this... I realize that Dogfish Head has a cult-like following, and Sierra Nevada puts out some great beer, too. I love Sam Calagione's vision and what he's done, and he has a great personality. But this... this leaves me wanting more.
2.9/5 caps
-Jennie
Rin @ Savor Market told me "Don't think of this as your typical IPA. It drinks more like a Pale Ale." I agree that it drinks more like a pale ale than an IPA, but at the same time, it lacks a lot for such huge names in the craft beer industry. It definitely has a perfume aura about it, both in the nose and the taste. Sadly, I has expected more. The perfume-ness overwhelms a lot after a few sips, but then again, is it just my twisted brain trying to fixate itself on the part that I'm disliking over this? There are some pineapple tones, but again they get overpowered. The earthy tones don't distinguish themselves once this starts warming up. Very disappointing for both great breweries. It might be the hop strains, as we've not had Bravo or 644 strains of hops. But don't let our review deter you from expanding your horizons. Each person has their own tastes. Our tastes do not prefer this.
Great beers from Dogfish: 60 Minute IPA, 90 Minute IPA, Sah'tea, Chicory Stout. Great beers from Sierra: IPA, Torpedo, Northern Hemisphere, Southern Hemisphere, Hoptimum.
2.8/5 caps
-Nathan
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