Beer of the Week (vol. I)

As I mentioned in my last post, Gavin is going to start guest posting pretty much every week. As most of you know, or maybe not, Gavin is a craft beer enthusiast and he drinks a new beer almost everyday. So, I thought it would be fun for Gavin to pick his favorite beer that he had every week and review it here. I might occasionally chime in with a beer or cider that I particularly enjoy, but for the most part Gavin will be sharing his favorites.

Now to get us started on the first installment of "Beer of the Week" we have Stone Brewery's Enjoy By 2.14.14 IPA! 

Name: Enjoy By 2.14.14

Brewery: Stone Brewing

Brewery Location: Escondido, CA

Style: Imperial IPA

Cost: $8.99

ABV: 9.4%

Number of Stars (out of 5): 5 Stars

Delicious in every way that an IPA should be (or at least in my opinion). This beer isn't going for the heavier malt and grassy hops that you'd find in a traditional English IPA. Instead, this IPA has grapefruit, peach, and passion fruit notes commonly found in West Coast IPA, likely using Centennial or Citra hops. This beer also follows the West Coast IPA style in that it is very light on the malt flavor allowing the hops to be the main focus. While it is hop-heavy, it does not overpower you with a nice balance from start to finish.

When Greg Koch (owner/founder of Stone) made this beer, he had one intention: drink it fresh! Hence why the name clearly states when to drink the beer by. He made the beer specifically not to last (not totally sure how) and to drink as soon as you get your hands on it (which I was happy to do). The good news is they put a batch of these out every couple months so keep on the lookout for the next round (or check out: http://www.stonebrewing.com/enjoyby/).

Gavin will be back to share some more beers soon!