Double Head Stock IPA
Nickel Brook Brewing Co. - Burlington

At my lady Pamela's house; canned and chilled, 473mL in a pint glass. From my favourite LCBO at Tecumseh Mall in nearby Windsor. Canned October 22/24. My 13th beer from the Burlington, Ontario brewery, and 6th for 2025. Adamantly adored by Sundae the cat...

 

473 mL can from the LCBO; no canning date and served slightly chilled. Listed at 9%.

Pours a hazy golden orange colour, its complexion rife with flecks of sediment; rising to the surface is more than an inch of bubbly, foamy white head that dissipates within a few minutes. Lots of messy lace is left in its wake, with a frothy cap and sudsy collar remaining atop - looks great so far. Smells like an amped up version of Head Stock: orange, grapefruit, pineapple and mango, with added notes of piney, resiny hops, bready malts and a touch of ethanol.

It's pretty faithful to the original: it's substantially boozier, out of necessity, but the flavour profile is otherwise familiar; it's just been beefed up. I'm getting orange, pineapple, grapefruit and mango, backed by a little bit of a syrup-like sweetness; bready malts, berries and wheat add further support. Pine resin and earthy hop bitterness dominate the latter half of the sip; mildly boozy aftertaste with resiny hops, grapefruit and pineapple lingering for a second or two. Full in body, with assertive carbonation and a smooth, satisfying mouthfeel. Like the original, it's more crushable than it probably should be.

Final Grade: 4.14, an A-. As much as I love DIPAs, they aren't a practical every day option for this middle aged beer geek - so there's no chance that this will supplant Head Stock as one of my top three go-to IPAs. That being said, Double Head Stock IPA is no less excellent than its lighter predecessor - not to mention amazing value at $4.25 per tallboy - and so I must encourage all Head Stock fans to give this a shot, especially if they come across a fresh flat of cans. I'll keep buying this here and there - I mean, after a particularly stressful shift, anything less than a double won't cut it, you know what I mean?

473ml can served cold into a pint glass. LCBO purchase. Canned December 2, 2024. Listed at 9.0% ABV.

Appearance - Rich orange/amber color with a huge two and a half finger head. Great staying power, plenty of haze and a sparse bit of loose sediment. Spotty lacing clings to the glass.

Smell - Tropical notes with some grapefruit, hints of mango and definitely some pine aroma. Solid malt backbone.

Taste - Grapefruit and orange combine here nicely with some pine flavor as well. Fairly bitter, but enough hints of sweetness to keep this balanced. Strong malt backbone.

Mouthfeel - Full bodied, crisp carbonation and well disguised booze quotient.

Overall - Solid DIPA, much like their signature Head stock IPA. Well worth a purchase.

On tap at brewery and then 16 ounce can (split two ways). Packaged Sept 26/24. Can says 9%, on tap 9.5%.
Pours a bright slightly hazy orange amber with a good finger and a half of tight foamy white head.
Big aromas of over ripe orange, citrus, pine, with underlying bready and slightly caramelly malt - tangerine notes.
Sweet citrus on the palate, tangerine, ripe orange, sweet red grapefruit but with a good hit of piney and resinous hops, pleasantly bitter on the background of caramel malt sweetness.
Full and bittersweet mouthfeel with moderate carbonation - an excellent sipper - the 9% is there but does not punch you in the face.