Here comes Stone Brewing Company with yet another new IPA: Stone Sanctimonious IPA. How many IPAs does nay brewery need? The answer is simple: as many as fickle beer geeks will buy. We like trying different beers and new recipes, and Stone (like other brewers) is more than happy to give them to us.

The latest one for me (until my next beer anyway) is Stone Sanctimonious IPA. This is a moderate strength San Diego-Style IPA light on the malt and heavy on the hops, brewed with Amarillo and Simcoe hops. Stone references notes of white grape and strawberry and I’ll confess I did not get any of that. I did enjoy this beer all the same.

Stone says:

Stone Sanctimonious IPA represents the elevated state of reverence that Stone extols for the venerable and almighty Hop. Amarillo & Simcoe hops have been anointed to bestow their divine qualities on this sacred brew. This limited release is part of Stone's Hop Worship Seasonal IPA Series... Glory be to those who imbibe it in its freshest form... and faithfully worship thy Hop in the beauty of blissful bitterness.

Well, glory to me I guess; I tried the beer in its freshest form, on tap at Taco Mac. The beer has an alcohol content of 7% by volume and I paid $8.23 for a 23-ounce mug at Taco Mac, a bit on the high side methinks. It sells for $12.99 a six-pack at Total Wine.

My mug of Stone Sanctimonious IPA arrived a bright orange jello color with a thick fluffy white head and citrus and light pineapple in the nose. Taking a sip, the beer is thin malt on malt with notes of lemon rind and grapefruit citrus, light resiny pine, and a long dry bitter finish.

While I found this a very tasty San Diego IPA and would drink it again for sure, I would do so less often because of the high price. Half star demerit for that, too.



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