IPA Lovers Flock to Lazy Boy Saloon; Dogfish 120 Minute on Tap

by Kelly

It's Friday, August 19th, 2011. Not a very significant day in history as far as notable world events are concerned. But the definition of "notable" depends, as always, on who you're talking to. Are you a member of the beer loving community, reside in either Rockland or Westchester County and have a burning passion for IPAs? If you answered a resounding "YES!" to all three of those questions, man oh MAN! Was last Friday night YOUR night!

Oh, what's that you say? You weren't aware of the one-night arrival of Dogfish's 120 Minute IPA at Lazy Boy Saloon last Friday?! Well, let me just be clear here: I don't pity you, fool. If you were truly passionate and truly dedicated to seeking out the rare and limited IPA releases in your surrounding area, you WOULD have been there. After all, I was. And I'm not really much of an IPA consumer myself. Yeah...take that!


Okay, so I didn't write this post to hurt your feelings. Instead, I wanted to share a discovery I had made while slowly sipping on my very own glass of DFH 120 IPA last weekend. (Just a reminder: the previous letter-number combination is not some bizarre form of an algebraic equation I just made up. It's an abbreviation of the beer mentioned in the title above. Pay attention!) So, what was this discovery of mine that was so enlightening, you ask?! Without further ado, I present to you: the stronger the IPA, the sweeter the taste!

As many of you know, the fundamental ingredient in all IPAs is hops. These female flower clusters, as hops are more commonly known, cause this particular style of beer to taste very bitter. The 120 indicates the time over which the hops were added during boiling.  Dogfish head also makes 60, 75 and 90 minute IPAs. The more hopping, the more bitter the taste.

The bitterness can make IPAs unpalatable for certain people. (Ahem.) But after three sips into my first glass of DFH 120 IPA, I actually found myself enjoying the drink. The hops, for once, were not staged front and center; what I was tasting most of all was the sweet maltiness. And this was not an accident. Apparently, the stronger the IPA means more hops, which means more malt. This was certainly an unexpected, but thoroughly enjoyed, surprise.

I'll be honest with you: I only drank one glass of the 120 that night. But it was a damn good glass. Sitting at around 18% ABV, you can't really expect to drink more than a couple of these bad boys and make wise, coherent decisions by night's end. I opted for a pint (or two) of Weyerbacher's Pumpkin Ale instead, which were both garnished with a generous sprinkling of cinnamon. Ahhh, fall is certainly descending upon us!