Enjoy By 02.15.13 IPA – Stone Brewing Co

Sad to say it, but if you didn’t already get some Stone Enjoy By 02.15.13 IPA, you probably won’t be getting any (assuming you live in LA). The Stone Company Store in Pasadena got a limited amount on the 16th of January and, as of writing this, there was a few bottles still left for sale (which will surely sell quickly). The good news is that there will be more releases of this great beer in the future.

The idea behind Enjoy By IPA is to make a super fresh IPA with a specific period that it will retain its peak freshness. The other side of this beer is the social media aspect. Stone has created a special site to allow people to vote for which regions to get the next release of Enjoy By. So far Southern California has received two releases of this IPA. The exception being the Stone Company Stores, which we are lucky enough to have one of in Pasadena. The store has received every batch in limited quantities, so if you want to try to get the next one I’d highly recommend checking their Facebook page for future updates. But back to the beer.

The beer pours a clear golden color with a small amount of bubbly head. Aroma is a blend of strong citrus and sweet malts. Medium bodied with a good amount of carbonation. The flavor starts with a hint of sweet bready malt that quickly moves to a strong citrus hoppiness with notes of orange and grapefruit, finishing off on a grapefruit rind note. Aftertaste has a lingering grapefruit flavor with a bit of sweet bready malt and a slight burn on the back of the throat.

This is a really great double IPA and has a great citrus hop flavor, though the exact hop notes vary a bit from batch to batch but you can be sure to expect some great hops regardless. I’ve been told that the recipe is the same from batch to batch, so these flavor variations are most likely from variations in the hops themselves. All that being said, you’ll have to wait a month or two for the next one to come out and, if we’re lucky, Southern California will get a bigger allocation next time. If not, I’ll probably see you in line at the Stone Company Store.

Cheers
Beer Guy LA