Dogfish Head 90 Minute Imperial IPA for International IPA Day!

Hoppy International IPA Day! 

I’m not sure who exactly commissioned it, but who am I to reject a good ol’ fashioned grassroots holiday?  Yes, today is the first ever International IPA day, a day dedicated to what’s most likely the most popular style among craft beer drinks, the Indian pale ale.  In the spirit of the day (actually completely by coincidence) last night I enjoyed an IPA at Obannon’s, Dogfish Head’s 90 Minute Imperial IPA.

'Tis the season?

Dogfish Head Craft Brewery in Delaware is no stranger to the IPA.  If you count all of the American IPAs and Imperial IPAs that Dogfish has brewed, which I did, you get 10.  Of these 10, the 90 minute IPA is consistently a favorite.  The 90 Minute, is an Imperial IPA with an abv of 9.00, so this isn’t a beer you’d drink 6 of at a BBQ.  If you take advantage of this beer, it will take advantage of your motor skills.  For those of you that took that as a challenge, Dogfish Head also makes the 120 Minute IPA with an abv of 18.00.

It’s widely accepted that this beer is intended to be drank from a snifter, or an oversized wine glass, to fully release the aroma and flavor.  Unfortunately I didn’t get the pleasure of looking like a snob, and mine was served to me in a Guinness pint glass. The beer was slow drawn from the tap, so there wasn’t a lot of head, about a finger’s worth.  The beer’s color was somewhere between bronze and rust.  Even though it has “pale ale” in the name, Imperial IPAs are nowhere close to pale in color.  One other thing to note about the beer’s appearance is that it laced really well.  This beer left what I called a corona of lace, a thick band of lace that lasted until I finished.

Pictured: the inside of the glass

When you’re in a musty pub, all you can really smell is wet old wood and 50 different fresh beers.  However, from what I could detect in the aroma was light malt scent, and what I could only label as a “mineral” smell.

My first taste of this beer gave me more mineral note.  I’m not exactly sure what that was, but it tasted a bit like Flintstones vitamin.  Maybe the glass was a little dirty and it floated to the top because after my first few sips the real flavors became present.  I tasted predominantly malt, smooth and biscuity.  It sort of tasted like a breakfast biscuit I tried in Fiji.  There was a solid balance between the hops and the malt, which surprised me because there are so many hops added to this beer.  90 Minute IPA is continuously hopped during its 90min. brew time, and then again dry-hopped during fermenting.  In fact, Dogfish Head has a custom, inert-gas fired, dry-hopping machine called “Me So Hoppy.”

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One complaint I have with this beer, is the mouthfeel and aftertaste.  The beer in your mouth is very dry and astringent, almost like a weak wine, and this might be attributed to the large amount of alcohol present.  Once you’ve swallowed, your mouth feels sticky and dried out, leaving a pine flavor.

Overall, I’d give the Dogfish Head 90 Minute Imperial IPA 4 out of 5, definitely worth a try.  The 90 Minute IPA is a good example of an Imperial IPA and if you were interested in that type of brew I’d recommend it as a bold starter.  The 90 minute is consistently rated well, and Dogfish Head is one of the most popular craft brands available.