The top image is just showing off a new mug. Well the mug isn't new but it's new to me. It was my father's. The other side has the crest of his alma mater, Hobart College in Geneva, New York, along with the year he graduated, 1951.
As you can see the other side bears his name. It also happens to be officially my first name as well. I just have never gone by that name. To avoid confusion growing up, I was always called by my middle name (or one of them), Ken.
Anyway my Dad passed early last year and we are currently in the process of selling the house. So this is one of the items I am proud to have inherited. The brew I christened the mug with for my use is Sierra Nevada's Snow Wit IPA. You can check out the blog of 6/20/2014 for a review of that ale.
The bottom photo shows the Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA. Both this brew and the Snow Wit are part of Sierra Nevada's 4-Way IPA variety 12 pack.
The Torpedo is one of the favorite beers I've come across lately. It has a pleasing golden brown color. The aroma is rather subdued compared to many IPA's. Then again my allergies have been acting up lately and I may have just been a bit stuffed up. What aroma I did detect was the fruity, citrus-like aroma you would expect from an IPA.
With many IPA's, especially those from Western brewers, the first taste sensation is usually that of fruit, especially grapefruit or some other citrus flavor. However with Torpedo I found the first taste to be overwhelmingly that of pine and a strong herbal component. The fruity taste, and yes I'd say it was closest to grapefruit in flavor, came in the finish as you swallowed. There was just a hint of bitterness.
The taste of this beer certainly fills your mouth and stays with you. It is not a shy beer whose flavor disappears quickly. I'd say it's a little too intense to be your choice for drinking all night, but Torpedo Extra Ale is a complex and tasty brew.
According to the Sierra Nevada web site, Torpedo Extra IPA gets the intense hop flavor from their "hop torpedo". This involves dry-hopping the beer by adding full-cone hops directly to the fermenting brew. The theory is that it increases the hop character without introducing bitterness. As far as my taste is concerned, theory confirmed!
I give Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA 7 mugs out of 10. A little heavy for drinking more than a couple at one session, but a very good and pleasing beer.