So I got word that Greg Koch, the founder of Stone Brewing, was in town to do a talk at Google and he brought with him a special keg of Mixtape Vol. 1. Mixtape is a special blend of 7 different Stone beers, yes 7. It consists of a mix of Levitation, LeVariation (a small batch of Stone Levitation Ale that was fermented with a Belgian yeast strain), Sublimely Self-Righteous, Smoked Porter, Cali-Belgique, 2011 Imperial Russian Stout, and 2011 Belgo-Anise Imperial Russian Stout with a dash of sage, hot peppers, lemon thyme and, because it wouldn’t be a Stone beer otherwise, Citra hops. Oh yes, this will be epic.
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Pour is black with a nice rocky head and major lace. Aroma is very complex. Definitely a strong citrus hop with a spicy pepper note and just a hint of butterscotch.
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The mouthful is very crisp for the amount of heavy hitters in this blend. You get a slightly bitter hop with a hint of citrus that moves to a sage flavor mixed with smokey malts and finishes with dry lemon hop with a hint of thyme. There is a ton of flavors going on in this beer.
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Overall I would say this was a very enjoyable beer. I had a lot of characteristics similar to a black IPA, with the strong hoppiness and the nice malt flavors, but the additional spices really make it much more than just a black IPA. If you ever happen to see this one on tap, be sure to give it a try.
Name | Mixtape Vol. 1 |
Brewery | Stone Brewing Co. |
Style | Black IPA (Only if I had to try to categorize it) |
ABV | 6.6% |
Availability | One time limited draft release |
Rating | 5 out of 5 |
Cheers
Beer Guy LA
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