Delicious IPA

Bit of a hiatus while I vacationed in San Diego, but now I'm back with a vengeance.

 

Delicious IPA is an interesting innovation from Southern California brewing giant Stone Brewing Co. on its face, delicious looks like many others--cloudy, orange brown grog, thin off-white head, 7.7% alcohol, 355mL bottle. However, according to the label, this brew was "crafted ... in a revolutionary way to make it gluten-reduced." That's pretty rad, especially since there are no unusual ingredients like sorghum. Just beer, somehow magically gluten-reduced. Witchcraft? Maybe.

The beer itself is possessed of a punishingly bitter citrus nose--lots of grapefruit notes here, as well as a bit of tangerine. The flavour, too, is aggressively bitter and decidedly inclined toward citrus elements. The mouthfeel is a bit curious, however--unusually thin and quite short. As well, the finish, which is mostly hoppy and grapefruit-focused, has a slightly odd chemical subtext to it.

Overall, Stone's Delicious IPA is certainly that. It's innovative and tasty, with, as might be expected, a few quirks. I'm all for making good beer available to more people, so this magical gluten-reducing process is to be commended. While it might result in a few questionable notes, these are truly minor, and easily masked by a beer that hits the three Bs: bold, bitter, and boozy. The finish is, it should be noted, a wee bit thin.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.