Ruination Double IPA 2.0

Stone Brewing Company is one of the leading lights of San Diego's ENORMOUS craft brewing scene.. Only recently (and occasionally) available in Canada, I had to settle for a trip to Southern Cal to lay my grubby paws on a bottle of their Ruination Double IPA 2.0, a beer that sells itself as "a liquid poem to the glory of the hop." Heady stuff.

I purchased a 12oz bottle of Ruination 2.0, and paired it with a Punch cigar at a Gaslamp Quarter cigar lounge. The brew contains a hefty 8.5% and a plethora of IBUs. It poured orange-gold and cloudy, with a little ring of off-white head--I'd have poured it a bit heavier, but my host was trying to be conscientious, so I could hardly fault his gentle tip.

The aroma was bold, with enormous citrus hops and a whole lot of booze. Through the waft of my dark cigar, the flavour stood up nicely, with a classy blend of grapefruit stank and resin, built around a quartet of lush hops. The beer was undeniably sweet and strong, but managed to be nicely balanced against a potent bitter backdrop.

Ruination 2.0 was a class act double India--strong but not fierce, sweet, but not saccharine, and thoroughly tasty. A great beer to end an evening on, though mine was still young. Critiques were hard to come by. Though I've had a few better doubles, there haven't been many. Added to that, my beer tasted fresh and fun. While I understand that Ruination 2.0 is fairly widely available across America, I wasn't about to leave SD without typing up one of that city's premier DIPAs, and I wasn't disappointed.

It would be unconscionable to leave this review without putting in a plug for the cigar lounge, too. While a smoky room won't be to everyone's taste, San Diego's Cuban Cigar Factory was my kind of place. Staff were friendly and knowledgeable, and I had a good enough time that I dropped by on consecutive nights.

Rating: 9.0 out of 10.