Back in ’03 I had the pleasure of attending the Great American Beer Festival in Denver. There are few things that can match that sort of event for a beer nerd…all the amazing beer, the wild people, the living legends of the beer world, all under 1 roof and all JUST as excited (and drunk) as you are. Suffice it to say it was a peak experience.
One of the many highlights of that trip was getting to taste one of the white whales of the brewing world: 120 Minute IPA from Dogfish Head Brewing. Not only did I get to taste this magnificent creation, but I tasted it after it was poured through a “Randall the Enamel Animal” hop infuser by the hand of Sam Calagione himself. This is not the place to explain the Randall, and I’m sure you’re sick of the bragging, so I’ll stop. Let’s talk about the beer!
If you’re lucky enough to be reading this in a place where you can actually buy 120 Minute off of the shelf, this won’t seem like as much of a big deal to you. But remember, until 2005 that you couldn’t legally sell beers with higher than 6%ABV in North Carolina. Even in ’05 when the “pop the cap” legislation finally was passed, we stopped at a limit of 15% (which we still have to this day). So this beer is still not allowed to be sold in NC as of 2021, nearly two decades after my first taste of it. 120 Minute IPA varies from batch to batch, but ranges from 16% to 20%-ish ABV. What I’m getting at is this beer was not something that was easily obtained in our fine state. But that wasn’t the only thing special about this beer.
For the uninitiated, normally when you make a beer you put a little hops in at the beginning of the 60 minute boil, then maybe you throw some in at the end. For IPAs, you put a fair amount of hops in at the beginning, maybe a little in the middle, then a little at the end. This beer was constantly hopped from the beginning of the boil to the end. But not only that, it’s boiled for TWICE as long as a normal beer. What that means is that you’re getting twice as much utilization of alpha acids in the beer, which makes for a much hoppier beer. This is not to mention the vast amounts of aromatic oils that will contribute to flavor and aroma. We’re talking hops on hops on hops.
But does this beer taste like a big bag of lawn clippings? No, siree! It pours a brilliant orange that glows in the (style appropriate!) glass. The nose is of ripe grapefruit and pine trees, with a touch of fusels from the copious amount of alcohol this brew carries. The mouthfeel is slightly viscous; there’s a reasonable amount of non-fermentable dextrins in there to sweeten up the beer to balance out that bitter hop blast. Flavor is of sweet biscuit and warm bread paired marmalade, grapefruity/resiny hop notes, with an unstoppable hop bitterness and a beat of alcohol heat at the end.
For a beer that is at least 16% ABV, it’s an amazing drinking experience. Sadly, once you go past the 15% mark, you start to border on the liqueur category, so what you often get is a beer like aperitif as opposed to an actual beer. But 120 Minute IPA tastes like an IPA under a magnifying glass, with all of the beauty and wonder of an IPA in far more detail for investigation by your longing palate.
Since that first experience with the 120, I’ve searched it out. On a trip to VA I was able to snag it in one of the Dogfish Head pubs, which was quite a treat. But since then, family life has kept me from being able to make a special trip to get 1 beer. I was able to snag a bottle recently (can’t reveal my secret – sorry!) and I’m over the moon with it again. If you can, I highly encourage you to get out and try this beer. It’s on the top 5 goals of many a beer nerd, so if you’re lucky enough to get to it, savor it. And tell me all about it.
Good luck!
Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees. You can support local journalism and our mission to serve the community. Contribute today – every single dollar matters.
