Ruination IPA - Stone Brewing Co.

jcalabre

California

4.63/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Originally tasted 19 June 2002. The beer gods smiled down and said, "Let there be HOPS". WOW. This is a hop lover's delight. This beer, in my humble opinion, defines the "Imperial India Pale Ale" style, the new & fashionable, super hopped IPA style we've been seeing a lot more of. I prefer to call it, "Über IPA"

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2003 09:20:30 | More by jcalabre

Jon

Illinois

4.83/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

What do you know? Stone captures my taste buds once again. This big IPA pours a deep copper color with a sizeable off-white head that lasts and lasts. Nose is big on citrusy hops. Notes of grapefruit, citrus rind, and pine proliferate. Taste, as expected, is big on the hops, although I would not say this IPA had a "ruinous" effect on my palate. At over 100 IBUs, this was just right for my tastes! Mouthfeel was appropriately carbonated, and for an IPA of its size, it drinks very easily. An excellent IPA worth all the acclaim.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2003 17:31:35 | More by Jon

ecoboy

Rhode Island

4.58/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

My girlfriend's father, who is a brewer, took one sip and expressed in wonderment, "how do they get all those flavors in there?" Exactly.

The hops may hit you with the strength of chinese mustard or wasabi, but it's the fruit, caramel and malt notes beyond the brilliant grassy and flowery bitterness that make this beer worth staring at. Off-white head with great lacing above a remarkably cloudy apricot color that is unique in my experience with IPA's.

Substantial alcohol warmth; really surprising how the malt characteristics do not ever give up the fight. Enjoyed with some Manchego and some Scottish whiskey cheddar. Really top notch: not sold in Northern New England, this is the "good stuff" to be cellared and only brought out for special occassions for me.

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2003 06:38:02 | More by ecoboy

cretemixer

Indiana

4.25/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Reddish amber in color with a voluminous frothy off-white head. It slowly fades, leaving a thick clingy lace.
Pine forest hoppy aroma with a ever so slight bready undertone.
Sharp hop taste. Pleasantly bitter ( but I love da hops, what can I say ) An alcohol warmth and a slight maltiness meld with the floral hoppiness to hint that there may be some sense of balance here, but it just isn't going to happen. Finishes with a saltly note. A definite hop monster.
Resinous mouthfeel, full body, and light carbonation.
I like this beer, but it's not love. Just too one sided for me, but of course it claims to be just that. "A liquid poem to the glory of the hop" is what it says on the bottle. That it is.

Serving type: bottle

05-10-2003 19:07:36 | More by cretemixer

dwarbi

New York

4.55/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Pours with almost no head, but had excellent lacing. The color is just about orange. There's a reddish tint, too. Smells and tastes stongly of hops (of course). Superb taste. Almost perfect. Very close to being exactly what I think an IPA should be. It's very crisp and had a clean finish. One of the most pleasant on the palate and drinkable beers that I have reviewed.

Serving type: on-tap

05-10-2003 15:31:01 | More by dwarbi

BierReise

Florida

4/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Nice clear amber body with a big foamy head. Nice thick retention all the way down the glass. Aroma is big and citrusy with a biscuity yeast and malt quality. Medium bodied and a bit chewy. has a stinging numbing bitterness from huge amount of hops. Slightly sweet but oh so bitter. Really nice big IPA.

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2003 19:21:27 | More by BierReise

irishmoss

Ohio

4.85/5  rDev +11.8%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

The first thing that struck me when I poured this amber-bronze, IPA was the remarkable clarity, not a trace of cloudiness. A nice full head left scattered rings of lace as I enjoyed the brew. I must say that this was very well carbonated, constant tiny bubbles throughout entire glass of beer. Enough about the appearance, because I quickly forgot about it as soon as I caught a whiff of the aroma. It was a combination of citrus and clove, and it was wonderful. I found myself sniffing all the way down to the last drop and then took a couple more from an empty glass. Bitter is a word that I would never use to describe the taste. It was well hopped, but by no means over hopped. Along the burst of hops, it also tasted like it smelled, citrus & clove was an undertone to the flavor. A couple of swallows had a slight alcohol flavor, but that had no effect on my overall enjoyment. Besides, who the hell doesn't enjoy the flavor of alcohol.

Serving type: bottle

04-10-2003 10:18:18 | More by irishmoss

RBorsato

Virginia

3.8/5  rDev -12.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Hazy golden bronze with a full light beige/tan head. More balanced aroma than the standard Stone IPA but mostly plain old bitterness. Big malty flavor with a huge hop bitterness to balance; Sierra Nevada Bigfoot-ish (an American Barleywine). Full bodied and creamy but quite possibly too big ... if that's possible.

Much prefer Stone's Standard IPA over this one for an IPA - I'd buy this one only when I'm in the mood for a Barleywine.

Label states "100+ IBU's"

(22 oz. bottle / $5.49)

Serving type: bottle

04-07-2003 12:37:32 | More by RBorsato

Dmann

California

4.88/5  rDev +12.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Can Stone do no wrong?! If you are a hop-head then this beer will knock your socks off! If you are not used to hops, you better get used to them before trying this great brew. It poured a nice copper color with a good sized frothy head that left a nice spider web like lace all around the glass. Right off the bat the smell is of hops, with a hint of pine and citrus. The taste is a rush of hops right off the bat, followed by some citrus flavors, then some alchohol flavors sneak into the nice crisp finish. Personally, I do not find these types of beers "bitter" in the traditonal sense of the word, I find them very flavorfull. And this brew is no exception. It kind of reminds me of the Old Guardian Barleywine more than it reminds me of the regular IPA, since the regular IPA seems more harsh than this one. All in all, this is a perfect tribute to the all powerful hop!

Serving type: bottle

04-03-2003 02:03:12 | More by Dmann

IrishRedRock

Pennsylvania

4.08/5  rDev -6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I was happy to finally get my hands on a 22 oz'er of this one. The bottle is really cool and the rather long essay on the back is another quality piece of work from Stone.

The hops are glorified in every way in this beer. The aroma is dominated by a pungent hop oil, with a bit of pine as well. The taste, as expected, is quite hoppy as well, but not as over the top as I expected it to be. It certainly is not overpowering. Mouthfeel is somewhat oily...it starts off with bubbly citrus flavors, followed by the dominating presence of hops. I for some reason don't think this is the best IPA I have had, but it's damn good, and a great one for hopheads.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2003 11:47:38 | More by IrishRedRock

TXHops

Texas

4.13/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Talk about a tempting concept! An IPA so hoppy it ruins your palate! This one ranked higher on the intrigue meter than Brutal Bitter…

Ruination is a pale, slightly hazy orangey yellow color in the glass, with a just-creamier-than-white head of thick foam. The head lasts long and laces well. A big, juicy aroma of sticky, resiny hops assaults my nostrils, setting the stage for more to come. Unlike Levitation, or most of the highly-hopped Rogue products, or SNCA and Bigfoot, the hoppiness in Ruination isn’t harsh and confrontational. Instead, it’s juicy, sticky and it actually manifests itself in the flavor, more than in the aftertaste. The sweetness of the pale malt mixes sublimely with resiny hop oils creating a sticky sweet hop bath for the mouth. Ruination also has that much-coveted (by me) hop jelly character that I found and loved in DFH 90 Minute IPA, though the 90 Minute captured the essence of hops slightly more than Ruination does. After the addictive, gummy, citric character of the hops recedes and the sweetness of the malt has moved into “linger” phase, there is a shot of pretty intense bitterness in the tail. It’s interesting really—the beer opens up with a very quick volley of bitterness before it settles into the extraordinary, almost chewy hoppiness that makes the beer so desirous. Then the same bitterness re-emerges briefly at the end, reminding me of the glorious complexity of the hop cone. Like some of the super-strong beers, Ruination actually works better as a sipping beer. Drinking it too quickly really masked the subtlety of the hops and resulted in a more one-dimensional bitterness. However, when taken in smaller, less frequent drinks, the excellence of this beer really shows through.

At the and of the glass, a bit of alcoholic warmth was starting to exert itself somewhat, mixing with the leafiness to create a bit of barleywine character. Interestingly, this beer wasn’t too terribly bitter, just hoppy. I found Levitation to be more bitter in the end, though Ruination to be WAY more hoppy.

Great beer and one that’s quickly addicted me. Too bad I’d have to go back to Tucson for more…

Serving type: bottle

03-26-2003 18:09:30 | More by TXHops

jeffboo

Minnesota

4.38/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bam Pow Bash!!! That was my introduction to this outstanding brew. Am I a Batman punching bag in this episode? Anyhow, when you have a need for hops, this one certainly takes care of the fix. A brilliant, slightly cloudy orange color with a puffy white head. AROMA, yes, just like it should be- huge citrus, flowers, grapefruit rind, oranges, probably lemons and limes if I wasn't diving in so fast. This beer has a nice solid body holding in a creamy,milky nectar thats very smooth. The finish is bitter but smooth, maybe a little woody from all the hops. It only lacks a little malt complexity in the flavor, the malt seems a bit basic but does hold up well to the hop explosion. A great hop directed brew.

Serving type: bottle

03-25-2003 15:26:22 | More by jeffboo

Dantes

New Jersey

3.93/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Presentation: ~10oz. from draught in a tulip glass at The Blind Tiger’s Stone 12 event. Served a bit cold. Cost: $5.

Appearance: A beer that shows very nicely in the glass, and probably even lovelier in a Shaker glass. An orange-gold body, capped with a medium-thick ½” of foam, which resolved gradually to an opaque film. Not appreciably different than the Pale Ale or IPA.

Smell: A strong scent of herb-and-grapefruit, with a stronger touch of the grassiness that made itself known in the cask IPA tasted before this.

Taste: Grabbed a foothold on my tongue like a Marine Force Recon team and percolated up through my sinuses. I could detect some malty-grain flavor elements and some peppery spice, but mostly this delivered hops, hops, and more hops. As it warmed, the beer assumed a somewhat medicinal characteristic, largely composed of a mentholated pine flavor I often begin to feel in these super-hoppy beers. Even a glass of club soda to cool my palate didn’t help much. The resinous, citrusy hops flavor provides a long-lasting but rather simplistic finish.

Mouthfeel: Nicely carbonated, providing a soothing counterbalance to the over-the-top flavors. Fuller-bodied than the pale ale and IPA, perhaps due to the increased ABV.

Drinkability: Not something I’m going to opt for frequently when I should now be able to get the IPA on a regular basis. Too strong for a session beer, but not complex or interesting enough to linger over.

This sample followed the somewhat weak Pale Ale and the stupendous casked IPA, which perhaps prejudiced my opinions of this. In the pantheon of deservedly praised Stone offerings, this one lacks the elegance and complexity of most of the others. Possibly because it crossed the threshold of my hops tolerance, I have been overly critical. In any event, I’ll lean toward the IPA in the future.

Bottom Line: For those of you looking for a Tactical Hop Weapon, this one’s for you. As Goldilocks said, “This one is toooo ‘hard’.”

Serving type: on-tap

03-24-2003 10:15:19 | More by Dantes

avylover

Virginia

4.85/5  rDev +11.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

tried other Stone IPAs (or any Stone ale for that matter) so this beer is held to a high standard...and delivers once again. Looks very inviting, hazy golden with a frothy white head and rising bubbles in the bottom of my glass. Smell is sweet & malty, with citrous hops singing my nose hairs. The taste EXPLODES with citrousy hops, all the while hanging on to a strong malt backbone and an inviting alcohol warmth. Lemon jumps out at me, then the sweetness of the malt comes in to fill things out. Nice lingering taste of citrous. I could drink a ton of this..the consequences are worth it! Can these guys make anything other than great beer? Cheers Stone!!

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2003 18:29:20 | More by avylover

Darkale

Virginia

4.5/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Another fabulous beer from our benefactors from Stone.

Color is a hazy light orange, with an off-white, thick, small-bubbled head. The head is long-lived, and the lacing is amazing; that lace just does not want to let go.

Aroma is very strongly floral.

The first taste is of malt beneath the stupendous hops. It's a lot of bright, buzzy, cheery sweetness beneath the spicy hops, like a line of cellos with jazzy clarinets on top.

OK, that last image was a bit strained, but I love this beer and you know how guys are when they are in love.

Chewy and creamy, smooth and inviting.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2003 18:21:22 | More by Darkale

PhantomVodoo

Ohio

4.4/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Clear golden in color with an off-white head.
Aroma of citrusy hops.

Awesome flavor. Huge hop profile that is very citrusy and a little spicy. Flavor is like an orange, except not nearly that sweet. Smooth malt backbone does it's best to let you know it's there despite the onslaught of hops. With my initial bottle of Ruination I knew I really liked the flavor, but I felt the hop bitterness was a bit much. However, on this sampling the beer went down cleanly and with such ease as I did not notice the beer being overly bitter at all. Future samplings are most certainly called for to solidify my position on this beer.

Good mouthfeel that has a touch of creaminess to it.
Drinkability: I'm currently torn on this as noted above. Had to work my way through my first bottle, but a later sampling was gone in a flash with no bitter beer face at all.
Overall, a very good IPA with an awesome flavor.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2003 14:33:51 | More by PhantomVodoo

Shiredave

New York

4.72/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

My everlasting gratitude to Bill for this gifted bottle. As the label faithfully and accurately states: " A liquid poem to the Glory of the Hop." From collectable, screened bottle to tasty, tongue strangling bitter aftertaste hours after drinking, this IPA is a hop lovers Tour de Force - the coup de gras - the Holy Grail - the lead in the pencil - the Wind in the friggin Willows - I go overboard you say? I dont think so. I have almost finished this 22oz. bottle and I am still exploring new flavors exploding in my mouth. The medium + malty body makes its self known at @ 60 deg. F. - dont drink this one too cold please , you will miss so much! Oh yea,... crystal clear, gold amber color, slow trickles of carbonation, dripping strands of lace, inviting yet surprisingly subtle, floral and grassy hop aroma, smooth and oily mouth feel, flavors of warm biscuits, citrus and peppery hop, yadda, yadda, yadda....bottom line is find this beer and drink it! Buy alot of it because you will want more than you will ever have. This stuff is simply awsome. Somehow mantains balance despite outrageous hop rate and flavor. These guys are awfully cocky (and comical) about thier beer ( read a label) but now I know why! They have every reason to be proud.
Postscript: After tasting this on draft at the Stone Launch (12, 12@12) at The Blind Tiger, I can honestly say it DOES get better than this! Amazing.

Serving type: bottle

03-09-2003 18:55:41 | More by Shiredave

Elemental

Oregon

4.68/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Man oh man! The hops on this beer are great. The hop smell is wonderful and powerful but it won't prepare you for the taste. You know that its going to be really hop (shoot someone warned me about the hoppiness) but man on man its like a party in my mouth and the hops are invited. I did one of those bitter, pucker up faces that I haven't done since the first time I tried beer. But this time it was good. It took a little getting used to but once your palate has become used to the taste its great. The maltiness is typical for an IPA, very light and crisp, but the hops are what really makes this beer.

If you love hops, and you can handle 100+ IBU's this is your beer.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2003 20:07:20 | More by Elemental

scottum

Vermont

4.95/5  rDev +14.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Wow! I love me a hoppy IPA. Not sure if this is better than Victory HopDevil or Dogfish Head 90 Minute, but certainly in the same league. Stone makes some mean hoppy brews and this is no exception. Pours out a beautiful amber with a very nice white head. Tastes of hops. True to form this brew will kill your palate. But as long as you have this taste is your mouth who cares. The balance is wonderful. This is a top notch brew. Thank you again Stone!

Serving type: bottle

02-21-2003 09:24:19 | More by scottum

WanderingFool

Massachusetts

4.75/5  rDev +9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

A hop lovers delight. I sampled this beer warm (about 60F) and it poured a clear golden amber color with a thick foamy white head that dissolved after a few minutes. Lots and lots of bubbles kept flowing upwards in the beer as the glass was emptied. The aroma is that of hops; flowery and sweet. Each sip begins sweet and malty. Hops soon take over and an a fruity (buttery?) flavor finishes off the sip. A sticky residue and alcoholic taste is left behind. Watch out for the alcohol. At 7% abv it sneaks up on you pretty quick!

This is a well balanced beer. The first few sips are all hops, but once your pallett adjusts all the other flavors come out. I was a little disappointed in how quickly the head disappeard and the lack of lace, but the aroma and flavor make up for any visual short comings.

As a hop and IPA lover I will be stocking my fridge with more Ruination!

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2003 13:40:42 | More by WanderingFool

purplehops

Maine

4.33/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Ruination pours a crystal clear orange-amber color with a big white head that clings to the sides of the glass. The aroma is a combination of sweet floral hops and citrus hops with a hint of candy like smells. Not unpleasant at all. The taste starts with strong malt sweetness that is quickly overcome by the bitterness of the hops. The finish is full of earthy hop flavors balanced with a combination of malt and fruity yeast flavors. The aftertaste is pure yummy cascades with subtle hints of citrus and spice notes and alcohol. The mouthfeel is creamy and smooth with no real carbonation tingle in your mouth.
Overall a great west-coast IPA. Dry-hopped to the max but still some hints of malt and a nice fruity yeast to balance it all out. That is balanced for a hop lover.

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2003 12:35:57 | More by purplehops

brakspear

Wisconsin

4.2/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

One should know what they are getting into if they try this beer. If you are not a hophead, you probably will not be awestruck like some of the reviewers. "A liquid poem to the glory of the hop" just about says it all.

The beer pours a nice amber with a soft white head that disappeared rather quickly, probably because of all the hop oils present in this beer.

The aroma and taste both highlight the same thing: the pounds of hops that lace this most pungent IPA. Stone Brewing must keep the local hopyards in business just by brewing Ruination.

The citrus blast on the nose is quite impressive, along with the alcohol that is hidden just below the surface.

The taste, even with the 100 IBUs, is still balanced "well" (a relative term) by a sweet chewy malt body. Still your taste buds will certainly be scoured by the bitterness from the hops. Not a subtle beer, but subtlety was not what Stone has in mind.

This is not a session beer, but on an infrequent basis would add a jolt to your beer drinking sessions.

Thanks to EnTil for the sample!

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2003 10:53:55 | More by brakspear

kunzbrew

Massachusetts

4.6/5  rDev +6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

This is one I have been looking forward to. The big 22 oz. bomber bottle has my name written all over it. Pours a stunning semi-hazy light copper to straw color with a very thick 3 fingered head. The nicest sexiext lace I have ever seen on an IPA is left behind on the sides of the glass. I can smell the hops from about 2 feet away from the glass, this is an amazing smelling glass of beer. A strong smell of hops is pouring out of the glass at such a rapid rate, I can not wait to taste this momma. The hop flavor is outstanding and this is the best IPA I have every had. The hops are so strong the after taste is so nice WOW. This has to be one of my favorite brews from Stone they are simply amazing.

Cheers

Serving type: bottle

02-14-2003 16:53:39 | More by kunzbrew

kbub6f

New York

4.38/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bought online, ground shipping (unrefrigerated), 2-3 weeks in my fridge, served 45F, reviewed 45F-65F.

Big, creamy white, dense, foamy head reluctantly dissipates, clinging thickly to the glass. The color is deep gold with not even a hint of opacity.

The nose is hops (surprised?), slightly metallic (alcohol maybe?). It smells a little yeasty. Somewhat less aromatic than I was expecting.

Holy Mother of Hops! The front lets about a half a second of malt through before the hops absolutely kick your ass! Baby! The middle is sweet... the malt reasserts itself (especially as the beer warms up). And there's the alcohol. The finish is hugely bitter, as expected, and lasts forever. My tongue is curling up at the sides near the back.

Overall, this is one delicious beer. I expected the hops to overpower everything else. But at slightly warmer temperatures the malt is strong enough to poke through and the alcohol warms and makes the beer big enough to accommodate all those IBUs. This is an aggressive, deep, "arrogant" monstrosity of a California IPA.

Serving type: bottle

02-08-2003 19:11:24 | More by kbub6f

OldFrothingSlosh

Pennsylvania

4.72/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

"A liquid poem to the glory of the hop!"

9 words that truly describe the elixir of life contained within this gargoyle-guarded amber bottle.

Appearance: 22oz. amber bottle with the beer brewer equivalent to the surgeon general's warning on cigarettes plainly telling you of the impending doom about to be unleashed upon your taste buds should ye be foolish enough to open it. But...deep in the darkest corners of your soul you wonder..."100+ IBU"...what does that taste like? And thus, with the ease of flicking a bottle cap, you have become addicted. Addicted to the insanity that is Stone's Ruination IPA.

Smell: You can almost see the vapor escape. It weaves a tantalizing dance of citrus, pine cone, and delicate sweetness that leaves you mesmerized.

Taste: Understandably, one might think that with an IBU of 100+ that this beer would allow you to collect the life insurance policy on your taste buds. Such is not the case. Indeed, following the first sip freshly poured from the cold bottle, I was concerned over the future functioning of my palate, given the stranglehold placed upon it by this wicked concoction. But, upon warming a bit, we see that this is one devilishly smooth gargoyle. The hops, while present in quanities to rival our national budget, are tempered by the malt character. Lke a knight battling a fierce dragon, the malt stands firm, refusing to yield to the evil serpentine abomination that is the hop. And this...this is such a wonderful thing to behold. The hops are so flavorful, not bitter as expected and that made this experience so much more enjoyable.

Mouthfeel: A prostitute for the palate. An incredible creamy smoothness that fondles your taste buds for what seems like an eternity.

Drinkability: Thank the makers that this is a 22oz. bottle. The alcohol is superbly woven into the fibers of this beer. I could drink this forever. Truly an incredible experience. "God bless the yeast, the malt, and the HOPS!"

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2003 19:04:51 | More by OldFrothingSlosh