Top 3 Triple IPAs

Even though I think "Imperial IPA" moniker should cover it, I'll mention Columbus Creeper since they call it a "Triple IPA" and haven't seen anyone mention it.. it just won Gold at GABF, for what it's worth.. Creeper and Green Bullet are very reminiscent imo..

 

This would always have been a no-brainier for me- Pliny The Younger.

That is, until I tried Drake's Hopocalypse Black Label- absolutely stunningly well made and dangerously drinkable at 12.5% abv.
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/3835/78126/

My other choice would be Fall River's monumental 'Widowmaker', although at only (!) 10.2%, not sure if it qualifies for Triple status
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/31363/107112/

Their BA ratings speak for themselves...

 

The marketing term Double IPA first was used for Pliny the Elder IIRC and that is only, what, around 8%? IMHO American Pale Ale and Imperial Pale Ale. and English Pale Ale should cover all the crazy terms we have developed to work around tax laws and make brewing competitions more attractive to a lot of entrants. In fact we could get by with just Pale and Imperial Pale, or even just Pale. Instead we have Bitter, Mild, Strong Mild, Dark Mild, Strong bitter, Pale, India Pale, Double India Pale, Imperial India Pale, Amber, Cream, West Coast India Pale, American India Pale, and now even Triple India Pale, and I am sure I am forgetting some. Consumers have no idea what most of these terms mean, and even most geeks here don't know what half or more of them mean.

Ever seen an argument whether Dales is a Pale or IPA? Perfect example, because some folks are adamant it is a Pale, not IPA, because it says so on can, and they list the attributes that make it a Pale. Does anyone else remember the brewer from Oskar Blues chiming in right here on this forum with the info they chose Dale's Pale Ale as a name because it sounded better than Dale's IPA?

At a certain point the range of names doesn't help make things easier, but more difficult, to know what is in a bottle.

 

Is this really a post?

 

I'll chime in with a nod to Kuhnhenn TRIPPA. Wow, what a pineapple malt BOMB. I still have some in the fridge from their release.

Devil Dancer is a wow'zer but kinda harsh when fresh. A local place had a keg from last year that they put on and off the tappers for a while and it was wonderful.

Hum, 120 can be delish but, unlike me, it needs some age on it.
Laura

 

Yeah, that's really what most descriptions boil down to in asking about a beer:

Is it pale or dark?
Is it overly hoppy?
Is it low or high abv?

Answer those 3 questions and chances are you have a pretty good idea what to expect.

 

Man baby - Pizza Port OB
PTY
RuinTEN
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Green Bullet

 

Hoparillo is my #4...

 

Worldwide stout and Black Tuesday are Triple stouts. I can make up categories too.

 

what about Extra IPA?

 

I wonder if a double imperial ipa could be considered a quad IPA.....just making it up though.

PTY
GF-Palate Wrecker
Culture Brewing 3x IPA

 

In order, with the ABV cutoff being 10.5%+:

1. Stone RuinTen
2. Knee Deep Simtra
3. ET Molotov Cocktail

Honorable mention goes to Double Crooked Tree, Brash's The Bollocks and Terrapin Hopzilla. Also, Moylan's Hop Craic was awesome but doesn't quite make the cut under the 10.5%+ stipulation.

I'm surprised people have mentioned Hop'solutely in this thread as I found it to be too boozy and have muddled flavors. I also didn't enjoy Hi-Res.

 

1. RR PtY
2. GF Green Bullet
3. Knee Deep Simtra/Hoparillo

 

Just curious how you managed to age Pliny the Younger?!?

 

So, to humor this thread. Triple IPA is 10.5%+ and above?

 

Imperial IPAs. Here's how I look at it. And by no means do I think I'm "right" but this is how it works for me. Please chime in with your thoughts as well.

* 6% - 7.5-8% Include beers like Blind Pig, Sculpin, Union Jack, Flower Power, Furious, Just Outstanding etc.. etc..

* 8% - 10% Pliny the Elder, Hopslam, Heady Topper, Abner, Dreadnaught etc... etc...

* Anything above 10% - Hoptimum, Pliny the Younger, Simtra, Hoparillo, Devil Dancer, Exponential Hoppiness etc...etc...

In my experience with the above, they are not apples to apples. For example, comparing Pliny the Younger to Pliny the Elder is not apples to apples. It's odd to me when people pit a 11% DIPA to and 8% DIPA. Maybe it's just me? So I get the desire to label said beers "Triple IPAs" whether it makes sense or not.

Also, I find that when you get to the 12-13+% territory, they teeter the boudaries of a barleywine or almost become a barleywine. And most often way to sweet. I don't find that to be as much the case with your position on Imperial Stouts. Thoughts?

 

I don't think a 3% ABV swing from 8% to 11% is that much given how much range that you have in other styles. Most "normal" strength styles of beer can range anywhere from 4% to 7% ABV without getting far "out of style".

As for your comment about much higher ABV IPA's being "most often way to sweet", I'll reference my post from a thread a year ago about the same topic:

"In normal and imperial IPA's there can be huge difference between drier beers that probably use all pale malt versus those that balance with some level of caramel or kilned malt. To put in in the form of an analogy question for "single", "double" and "triple" IPAS:

Bell's Two Hearted : Victory Hop Devil ::
RR Pliny the Elder : Avery Majaraja ::
GF Green Bullet : ????

I'd say the fill-in answer would be something like Stone Old Guardian...a Barleywine."

 

SD bar "lost" a keg of it in their cellar for 6 months. Found it by accident one day in July or August and tapped it.

 

Is that a regular Barleywine, Double Barleywine, Imperial Barleywine, or Triple Barleywine?

 

I won't even try to get caught up in what actually constitutes a Triple IPA, but will comment on what I have had that is labeled that way.

Simtra
Hoparillo
Green Bullet
Hi-Res

I thought all were outstanding fresh, but changed into boozy malty monsters with only a short amount of age on them. This was not intentional. I have had them all from the same purchases a couple of weeks apart and thought they were completely different animals. The age seemed to tame down the hops and bring out the malt and made them overly sweet, which I did not enjoy as much. These were all from the bottle. I have had Green Bullet on tap once and it was outstanding. I believe the only other one I have had is Devil Dancer and it seemed to be the opposite for me. The fresh one was very boozy and too hot. A couple weeks later it had balanced out nicely and still had some nice hop bite left. Any way you go, these all seem to be very temperamental to me.