My 'Top 5' Craft Beers in LA

Over the last twelve months I spent a total of six weeks in and around Los Angeles, sampling contemporary American beer whenever I deemed it appropriate to do so. (Nearly always.)

A beer-loving statistician might argue that this is not possibly enough time to get a full perspective on the US craft beer scene and I'd usually be among the first to agree, but by the end of my most recent trip over there, I reckon I've been sufficiently exposed (and sufficiently well advised before any exposure) to feel confident enough to list the best five brews I have come across on American soil.

As a bottled beer themed website, I wanted to limited the list to those beers which can be bought in bottled form, but some of these are either too new or too 'niche' to have made it onto the bottling line, but assurances were given to me that most of these will be both 'on tap' and 'under cap' within the very near future.

And so, in no particular order...


Avery - 'Maharaja' (Imperial IPA)





The undisputed talk of the town in Hollywood and its near neighbours, I first tried this at the marvellous Stout Burgers & Beer on Cahuenga Boulevard shortly after seeing a burst of frenetic activity behind the bar which (it turned out) had been triggered by a fresh consignment of this beer finally being hooked up to a tap. Moments before this excitement began I'd ordered something else entirely, but the bartender brought me Maharaja instead because "This is something you just have to try..."

She was right. With this beer, Avery have probably elevated the IPA to a point beyond which it will simply have to be called something else. Technically an 'Imperial' IPA, which loosely means it's had a multi-stage ramping up of strength, flavour and general awesomeness, and weighing in at a fairly hospitalising 10.4 ABV, this is quite simply the mothership of all other beers wearing those three ubiquitous capital letters. Of all the double, triple, quadruple or bigger India Pale Ale's in the known universe, there is none better than this masterwork of creativity.


Angel City - 'Angelino IPA'





Just arriving in the bars of Los Angeles, this beer is about as enjoyable a drink as I've tasted in recent times. With shades of Thornbridge's sublime 'Kipling' and BrewDog's 'Punk IPA' this is an exquisitely crafted highly hopped beer which is impossibly easy drinking and comes imbued with a sense of freshness which is peerless in my experience. Without doubt, Angel City will be a dominant craft brewery in two years time. No question.


Dogfish '90 Minute IPA'





This brew is already a big fish having recently been voted Best Craft Beer In America (I forget who by, but whoever they are I can't really argue with them). It's another of those US IPA's that can only really be enjoyed in small amounts due to the crazy levels of alcohol they come armed with, but the bewildering array of flavours at work here make that small amount truly memorable. It's not a one-trick-(hop)-pony like some modern IPA's can justifiably be accused of being - there are dynamic spices, funky herbs and all kinds of malt-derived deeper flavours that add up to a mind-bending showcase of brewing ingenuity.


North Coast 'Old Rasputin' (Imperial Stout)





They might not win as many headlines, but it's worth pointing out that the 'dark' beers in the US craft movement are every bit as impressive as the hop bombs. Some of my most pleasant surprises on the Pacific Coast have been in reaction to stouts and porters, many of which could give anything I've ever tried in Dublin or London a decent run for its money. However, I won't try to pretend might that I paid as close attention to the darks on either recent trip - although this is a state of affairs I intend never to repeat! Of the relatively few 'roasty toasty' brews I sampled Old Rasputin was a stand out, and it had me nodding my head sagaciously right from the off. Everything you'd want from a stout with a whole load of elements you never dreamed you'd want. A very clever beer.


Bear Republic - 'Cafe Racer 15' (Double IPA)





Most often found at The Blue Palms Brewhouse on Hollywood Boulevard, this beer is every bit the challenger for Maharaja's reputation as the best Imperial/Double IPA around. What we have here is essentially the big sister to Racer 5 - the much lauded brew which careered around the globe winning the hearts of relentless hop-fiends everywhere. In short, if you enjoyed Racer 5, imagine a beer that's almost exactly three times as good. Nuff said.


Notable others -


Russian River 'Blind Pig' (IPA)

A lower ABV India Pale Ale which sacrifices little in terms of flavour impact but comes with the advantage of being drinkable in amounts greater than two smallish glasses per evening. (A concept still largely ignored by most US craft breweries, who continue to focus almost entirely on high-alcohol brews!)



Stone 'Ruination' (IPA)

A beer which emphasises my previous point rather beautifully!

Famously powerful, and supposedly every bit as rare. Nonsense! It's available in singles or in four packs in Los Angeles if you take a while to find the right supermarket.

Day 154, Beer 154 - Williams Brothers "Joker IPA"

Today's Beer

Name – Joker IPA

Brewer – Williams Brothers

Classification – 'Contemporary' India Pale Ale. (It's about time we all started officially separating the classic style IPA's from these ultra-modern versions, don't ya think? What with them being about as similar to each other as Laurel and Hardy.)

Strength – 5.0% ABV

Verdict - At A Glance

On the eye – Deep tangerine amber. Or, to state it in more technical terms - 'pretty damn lush.'

On the nose – No less lush. But surprisingly malty for a hop heavy beer, with the aromas of rich butterscotch and farmhouse loaves muscling out the far more placid scent of tropical fruits.

On the tongue – Well, well, well. What a clever beer this is. An entirely new, and distinctly 'Scottish' approach to this 'ultra-now' beer style.

On the subject – The Williams 'Brothers' are exactly that. In the final days of the last millennium, Scott and Bruce Williams decided to exploit the combative effects of sibling rivalry by turning their competitive energies outward into the wider world, and a formidable new brewery was the result. Their début beer, the astounding 'Fraoch' Heather Ale began turning heads worldwide in almost no time at all, and all manner of super-distinctive brews have since followed.

On the market – As far as the aforementioned 'Fraoch' is concerned there are no availability problems at all, but the rest of the range can take a little more finding. You could ask the boys themselves, or contact the benevolent provider of this wee bottle, The Real Ale Store.

On the whole – 8/10

Full Review

Well, aside for being manifestly gorgeous, this is actually a fascinating beer.

Being the bold, expeditionary, innovative types that they are, Williams Bros have grabbed the concept of a contemporary, highly-hopped beer and sprinted all the way to the hills with it.

Significantly, those (metaphorical) hills weren't the mounts of just any old nation. This beer has clearly been given the good old fashioned Scottish treatment.

In very broad terms, the classic ales of Scotland are infused with a hearty malt-driven robustness, they're enriched with dark berried fruity themes, underpinned with toffee and roasted nuts, spiced up with all kinds of heathland wildflowers, and brewed with a general richness of flavour, body and alcoholic potency which is both unique and utterly delicious.

By and large then, they are enormously different beasts to the modern hop-heavy, super-citrus golden beers which are appearing in ever increasing numbers these days.

But in many ways, that very issue of 'ever increasing numbers' is becoming a tricky one for producers of contemporary highly-hopped beer. After all, how can breweries continue to find ways of making their versions stand out among this ever swelling crowd of grapefruit greats?

Well, Scott and Bruce Williams have found a pretty darn clever way. And it's one of those ultra-simple but eye-rolling ideas which head brewers everywhere must be wishing they'd thought of first.

With Joker IPA, this brewery has taken the key elements of what is (all too often) referred to as a 'hop-bomb', and thrown it together with carefully selected aspects of classic Scottish ale.

The result is every bit as remarkable as you might expect.

Big, super-high-pitched grapefruit, blood orange and apricot smack right into and fully intertwine with rugged dark hedge fruits, damson, well ripened plum, sumptuous suggestions of bracken and tree bark - there are even impossible traces of toffee and black treacle in here. It's really is the most beautiful carnage, and no two mouthfuls are ever the same.

Midway through, I did spend a moment wondering what the occasion might be in which I'd plump for one of these in place of either a more conventional modern 'hop-bomb' or a regular Scottish classic, but by the end of the bottle I was so damn miserable about not having another one to open - I figured there'll probably be a whole bunch of such occasions in the not too distant future. This is far too enjoyable to drink just once and be happy. 

By the time I'd got over the trauma of only having a single sample in my possession, I realised I'd learnt one thing for sure from discovering this beer. 

The Williams Brothers are no Jokers.

Be in no doubt.

These boys are deadly serious.

Day 150, Beer 150 - Oakham's "Green Devil IPA"

Today's Beer

Name – Green Devil IPA

Brewer – Oakham Ales

Classification – Please don't make me write 'IPA'. (Dammit!)

Strength – 6.0% ABV

Verdict - At A Glance

On the eye – A hoax. A deception. A trick. Making you believe it's just an ordinary light golden beer. Do not believe the lie.

On the nose – Not just hops, but actual hop vines. Tropical fruits and jungle foliage. All the multifarious aromas of a well stocked greenhouse. Not to mention the crushed nettles, the wildflowers, the nuclear grade citrus and the abundant fresh tears from your own eyes brought about by unbridled joy. Getting the picture?

On the tongue – Summarise? This stuff? Do me a favour!

On the subject – Many will consider this beer to be Oakham's 'big' version of their much celebrated 'Citra' IPA. It may be a lot more complicated than that in terms of how differently these two brews are created, but it's otherwise not a bad way of looking at it. If your mere human imagination can stretch far enough, try to imagine a version of Citra that is not only 'bigger' but also markedly better. Impossible concept?... Apparently not.

On the market – Hardly. Specialist outlets and the brewery itself are your only real options. This one came courtesy of The Real Ale Store.

On the whole – 9.5/10

Full Review

Possibly the best contemporary, ultra-hopped beer currently on the market.

There was very little point opening this review in any other way.

Now, before any of you start slamming your pints down and protesting about how all 'contemporary ultra-hopped beers' are just one trick ponies with very little to offer beyond making peoples eyes widen in semi-acute shock – let me just say that I've slammed many a pint down in protest about that too. I 'get' that argument, and there was a time when I had more than my share of sympathy for it.

But my view has shifted considerably since then, prompted mostly by my drinking a fair old selection of these new beers, and as a result I'd say that anyone who could drink a full bottle of today's beer without coming away grinning uncontrollably – probably just hasn't wrestled with enough of these beasts yet. That's not meant in any kind of disparaging way, it's really just a recognition of the fact that many people need to acclimatise to this style of beer, one which is pretty darned extreme in a whole bunch of very deliberate ways. Ultra-hopped beers need no time whatsoever to make an impact, but they can require more time than many other brews to properly get to know.

Obviously, there will always be those drinkers who get their kicks by disliking stuff, and they'll never listen even if you get your frail old granny to ask them nicely. I reckon a fair portion of the people claiming to dislike this beer will be those who just enjoy the sensation of swimming against the popular tide.

But I fear there's also a whole bunch of people who sit much further in from the extremes who don't feel able to properly familiarise themselves with these kinds of beers due to the unfortunate fact that, over recent years, things have been getting increasingly tribal and territorial in the world of 'proper' beer. The community is even arguing these days about what to call the very stuff that they are drinking. Is it 'real ale', or is it 'craft beer', and can anyone even remember why it matters?

This 'them and us' dynamic might be a source of amusing (and, sadly, sometimes overly heated) debate on social media outlets, but it's my increasingly strong belief that it will be bad for beer in the longer term.

What I see happening is that beers like Green Devil have, in some quarters, found themselves the victims of an often intolerant campaign against the entire notion of change. It's not so much the contemporary beers themselves which invite hostility, it's the perception of difference which the beers represent. Such has been the hype surrounding the recent developments in beer experimentation, and so wide-ranging have the effects been on the type of beers now being brewed, that these new beers can be sometimes be seen as threats, whether to traditional ales themselves, or to the atmosphere which surrounds the appreciation of beer in general.

It can appear to some that the new world of faux-punk, self-reverential swagger and dubious designer-stubble has simply stormed in and usurped the old world of honest straight talk, fireside sing songs and dubious non-designer-stubble.

In reality, the two apparently opposing camps aren't actually all that different from each other, but they've both successfully convinced themselves they are – so opposing attitudes are upheld regardless. In amongst all of this pointless posturing, the saddest consequence is that both sides routinely 'pooh-pooh' and actively avoid each others preferred beer styles, when the truth of the matter is that without this perceived conflict of ideologies everyone would be sat together enjoying what is only ever just beautifully engineered beer in all manner of interesting and delicious varieties.

Anyway, in hope that it might make a difference, let me invite you to set aside any preconceptions for a few moments whilst I tell you exactly why I found Green Devil to be such a monumentally rewarding experience.

As with many of these stealth-weapon beers, the first thing you notice about it is that it looks utterly unremarkable. Once in the glass, you can't help but look back at the demonic face on the label and wonder what its connection could possibly be to this unassuming, almost placid looking light golden beverage.

The only real clues as to the hugely dynamic and potent complexity which lurks within come from the aromas. Putting an 's' on the end of the word 'aroma' has never made more sense, because there are precisely eleven billion separately identifiable themes present in the fragrance of this beer. And don't go doubting my accuracy because I counted them.

Most delicious and unique among the myriad whiffs is the smell of the vines from which the hops were plucked. That's a pretty darned incredible characteristic to find. The hops themselves also have a tremendous presence, as you might expect, but to get that additional sense of the very plants upon which the hops were grown sets a new benchmark in terms of aromatic freshness in beer. Not since maniacally sniffing the rims of 'just cracked' bottles from Liverpool Organic have I been so concious of the word 'fresh' when first discovering a new drink.

But such matters of appearance and fragrance pale into near insignificance when this stuff finally reaches your mouth.

Oh boy.

Instantaneously, the concepts of refreshment and invigoration begin scrambling for new and more emphatic ways of defining themselves, as a liquid rock-slide of zesty, sumptuous bitterness collides deliciously with every region of your tongue. It's not brutal, and I've been dismissive of the term 'hop bomb' only very recently – but the dynamism, intensity and all round clarity of the taste is wonderfully bewildering and cannot fail to raise the heart-rate of any human who is alive at the point of contact.

The usual citrus and 'high-note' fruit suspects are all present (passion-fruit, gooseberry, razor sharp pineapple among many more) but the dominant battle here is between grapefruit and blood orange, with each of these two performing ever more stylish moves on its rival only to be outclassed by an effective countermeasure every time. It's thrilling to just sit back and let them tear each other to delicious shreds.

I could try to focus on the malts, and the sense of overall balance between high notes and low, but there's obviously not a lot of that going on here – and this is what can upset many lovers of established classic ales.

But we should all just accept that these beers were never meant to do any of that. That's really the point of it all. It's a different kind of experience, for a different kind of mood, presented in a different kind of way.

Ultra-hopped beers are not here to replace our old favourites – they've simply arrived to widen our options. 

Standing right at the forefront of this fresh set of options is a hugely fearsome and devilish creature, whom every last one of us should be learning to love.

Day 146, Beer 146 - Windsor & Eton's "Kohinoor"

Today's Beer

Name – Kohinoor

Brewer – Windsor & Eton

Classification – Commonwealth IPA  (And, children, that stands for Commonwealth 'Indies' Pale Ale as opposed to Commonwealth 'India' Pale Ale, m'kay!)

Strength – 5.0% ABV

Verdict - At A Glance

On the eye – Deep, rich, almost aristocratic amber. One might even offer forth a daft nonsensical word like 'amberstocratic' if one were a spineless, bottom-feeding cretin. (Doh!)

On the nose – Citrus Kong, high on steroids, tearing up an Asian herb garden. A deadly fragrance, but a beautiful one.

On the tongue – Punchy bitterness, surprisingly full bodied, and with an array of delicate herbal and spiced notes which put the ‘India’ right back into ‘IPA’.

On the subject – One of three beers brewed to commemorate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee by one of the most exciting breweries in all of Britain, the Commonwealth, and the world.

On the market – All of the usual W&E stockists as listed on their website here. But wherever you find it, buy it quickly. This won’t be around forever.

On the whole – 8.5/10

Full Review

This is not my favourite Windsor & Eton beer.

I laughed to myself when I wrote that opening line, because it’s rather like some wealthy aristocratic lady declaring “sapphires aren’t my favourite blue jewels.”

The reality is that this brewery are responsible for some of my very favourite bottled beers, so when one of their creations isn’t quite as jaw dropping as one of their others – chances are it’s still probably far better than the vast majority of ales in the universe. So, on reflection, maybe that’s actually a more accurate way to begin this review...

‘This beer is far better than most other beers in the universe.’

Yes, that’s much better.

As I’ve already hinted above, one of the most instantly impressive characteristics of this beer (arguably its defining trait) is the playful way in which it introduces flavours and aromas from the Indian subcontinent. I say ‘playful’ because one can’t help but assume this is a nostalgic nod to the former British Empire and the “days of the Raj” – the very days that this beer variety was first created. But in all my years of enjoying IPA’s in all there multifarious forms, I’ve never before tasted one that evokes such a sense of India itself, and the results are both delicious and amusing.

But the fact is that these guys have such finely honed skills alongside their famously good instincts for recipe building, that they can literally chose to be playful as well as merely brilliant.

The levels of nuance are just bewildering. Some of the herbal and dried fruit 'twangs' (to name just two of many more) are almost there as flavours which you can ‘select’ to experience at your leisure, tuning your taste buds into them as and when you please, or switching certain tastes off in favour of others when the mood takes you. This, then, is rather like ‘interactive ale’, which the ‘user’ can engage with at any level that he/she desires. User defined beer is not simple to brew. These guys have the vast amounts of talent required.

The potency of the overall flavour theme and the perceived alcohol ‘thwack’ are both far bolder than the 5.0% ABV should really allow, which again shows us that these Berkshire magicians know how to maximise results from every ingredient in every part of the process.

It’s got a nicely robust salty bitterness, but there’s also a welcome sub-flavour of Jamaican Ginger Cake which brings with it enough of a subtle syrupy quality to counteract the saltiness and keep everything evenly balanced.

Overall, Kohinoor has enough ‘quirkiness’ to justify its classification as a ‘special edition’, and in many ways it is a very unique beer. But there’s also enough sheer class at play here to ensure that if this IPA decides to stick around long after the national party is over – I for one will not be complaining.

Day 134, Beer 134 - Rooster's "Baby-Faced Assassin"

Today's Beer

Name – Baby-Faced Assassin

Brewer – Rooster's

Classification – India Pale Ale

Strength – 6.1% ABV

Verdict - At A Glance

On the eye – Eerie fruit cocktail. The hazy dawn after a tropical apocalypse.

On the nose – Citrus of jaw dropping clarity, vividness, freshness, immediacy and intensity.

On the tongue – Not applicable. (This fluid interacts in an altogether new way with the human mouth. Read on...)

On the subject – Many of you will know that Knaresborough-based Rooster's Brewing Company has been evolving of late, and the new owners appear to have a determination not just to improve on the considerable success of their predecessors, but also to transport the concept of beer into an entirely new dimension. This sounds like the stuff of delusion and fantasy... until you crack the lid on one of these bottles... whereupon an entire alternate universe begins emerging from within.

On the market – Just 70 'prototypes' have been produced so far, and most of those were claimed well before going on sale. I've heard that 16 are available at Beer Ritz. (Or at least they were yesterday. Don't be too surprised if they laugh loudly for an hour or so when your try to buy a bottle today...)

On the whole – 9.5/10

Full Review

I'm not going to give this beer a perfect score.

In fact, this will come as no surprise to you at all, as you will have already seen the score I've awarded to it and noted that it is not '10/10.' 

However, in spite of your prior knowledge, I felt I just wanted to add a little extra emphasis to the point. I want it to be perfectly clear that this beer is not going to be the first beer to get the biggest possible rating.

Oh no, no, no.

It is absolutely not going to be that beer.

No way.

I mean, what beer ever could be 'that beer', speaking rationally?

To score 10/10 would imply that the beer in question was perfect, and nothing - not a single thing whether in the natural world or the contrived world - can be accurately described as 'perfect'. It seems not even God was audacious enough to give perfection a try.

'Perfect' doesn't even exist in any real sense. It's merely a concept, entirely of human design. A fantastic and impossible ideal for us all to waste our time searching, striving and dying for.

Perfection is more of a motivation tool. A metaphorical dangled carrot. It's not an actual state of being.

So to suggest that a mere alcoholic beverage could suddenly pop into existence and defy all logic and possibility would be plain silly, and I'm not prepared to look silly for any drink, not even an outstanding one.

But making the decision not to award this beer a perfect score has presented me with a significant problem, because as a direct consequence I'm now faced with the near impossible task of having to find fault with it.

I'm going to have to identify an element of this beer that is manifestly not perfect, and as much as it pains me to admit it, there is a very real danger that my search for such an imperfection is going to preoccupy all the remaining years of my life.

Talk about a 'raw deal'.

But, for now at least, let me set aside what is not wrong about this drink and focus instead on what is oh so abundantly right about it.

I'm referring to it as 'it' because as much as I love the name 'beer', it just feels clumsy and awkward when applied to this fluid. It's not that 'beer' feels inadequate, it just that it doesn't feel altogether 'up-to-speed' or 'on message' in terms of being a relevant identification. It's almost as though this drink has brought the evolution of beer to a point where it is in need of a new description for itself. A new name. This just isn't beer anymore, not in the sense that all other beers have been up until now. Of course, a great many beers have helped to lead us to this point, and I personally (like many others) give credit to our American friends for triggering this transformative phase in beer's life, but I think this could be the drink that finally draws the line in the sand and steps right over it.

Baby-Faced Assassin is the latest and best evidence that we are in entirely new territory now. It has made it finally feel official.

Upon opening, this beer (which, for the sake of clarity, I'll go back to calling a 'beer') offers forth rich vapours of vivid tropical citrus fruits with a sense of clarity and freshness which significantly outperforms every other beer on the market. It's almost as though an entirely new process has been used to generate this effect. The fact that these aromas also happen to be extraordinarily delicious is almost a side-issue - so overwhelming is the impact and immediacy of the experience. It's one of those smells you can't quite believe is happening.

The great news is that all of these aromas translate directly into the taste, and there's a gargantuan heap of bonus flavours backing up the fruits, thanks in no small measure to some supremely refined and delicate malts.

Bitter, sour, sweet, dry, crisp, rich, savoury, spicy, herbal, light, dark, up, down, left and right, backwards and forwards - it's such an endlessly complex flavour package overall. I'm quite sure you could gather ten people and have them list over a hundred flavours between them, or perhaps even a hundred each. For me, it's those fruits (with blood orange and grapefruit being the most dominant) and the softly spicy, softly herbal bitterness of various 'woody' 'grassy' and 'seed-like' themes which make the strongest impressions.

The body is very 'now' in feel, in as much as it gives you the impression that its in the very early stages of a journey toward becoming a solid. It's not heavy, but it there's a density, rather like you find in a freshly squeezed orange or grapefruit juice. (Which is a very apt analogy on many levels in this case.)

To say you have to try this one for yourself seems not only trite, but also unfair – as only this run of 70 bottles has ever been produced so far. The only silver lining there is that this beer is so ceaselessly exquisite that it will surely see itself in full production before very long.

My only concern about that is that some of the more finely-tuned aspects might be lost in mass production. A needless worry perhaps, but the sense of 'hands-on' craftsmanship here is more than palpable, and it would be a disastrous loss. You can literally taste the thought, the talent and the time that has been invested in this beer. It smacks of the same meticulous attention to detail that is found in a Fabergé Egg, or a Swiss pocket watch.

Elegant, dignified, outrageously classy and enormously enjoyable.

This really is beer of an entirely different kind.

It's a 750ml monument, built to mark a point in time wherein beer itself took an extremely positive forward step into an entirely different era.

This is Next Generation Beer.

It's still not getting that perfect score, but it's going to take many long years of painstaking fault-hunting before I can ever hope to explain why.

Day 133, Beer 133 - Windsor & Eton's "Conqueror 1075"

Today's Beer

Name – Conqueror 1075

Brewer – Windsor & Eton

Classification – Black IPA

Strength – 7.4% ABV

Verdict - At A Glance

On the eye – Dark browns and and dark reds doing their very best not to look like black. And mostly failing.

On the nose – Smoky citrus. A veritable hurricane of licorice and tree fruit. Sort of impossible. Sort of magical.

On the tongue – A brief, sound bite appraisal? Of flavours such as these? Do me a favour!

On the subject – At this point in time, few breweries in Britain are generating so much unbridled excitement within my beer loving soul as Windsor & Eton. Irritatingly, I am by no means alone. Other pesky humanoids have also spotted the specialness, so it won't be very long before the whole world is singing their praises and they're being taking over by BMW or Microsoft. Success can be so wounding!

On the market – Growing rapidly for the brewery as a whole but this newbie bottle might be harder to find, initially at least. But there's little need to exert yourself, just go online at Beer Merchants or Ales By Mail.

On the whole – 9.5/10

Full Review

However the hell it came about, and regardless of whether its very existence is even possible or not – there's one thing I can safely say about the recently arrived beer style known as Black IPA...

It's utterly marvellous.

It really is.

Today's beer – which is merely one of Windsor & Eton's two renditions of this classification – is nothing less than a mind blowing drink experience.

This is the beer that every lover of dark beer in the known universe should be consuming at their very earliest opportunity. But the truly remarkable thing about these Black IPA's is that this very same recommendation can be given to lovers of beers at the absolute opposite end of the colour/flavour spectrum. If you like light, golden, citrus rich, hop heavy ales – this is your essential beer, too.

Crudely put, this is a vividly hopped, citrus rampant, medium bodied and lavishly malted stout. There's so very much more to it, but that's a pretty decent starting point.

Grapefruit, lime, mango and gooseberry (to name but a few of the huge array of dynamic fruits at play here) swirl and collide with deep swathes of cocoa, licorice, smoked bacon and roasted nuts. It's an astonishing sequence of flavour events, and among the most invigorating taste experiences I've ever known from any source – let alone from a beer.

There are so many elements which make you instinctively disbelieve what your mouth is telling you, but at the same time, the whole thing makes so much sense that you can't understand how these kinds of beers weren't dreamed up sooner.

Quite simply, in terms of the open market, beers like this really didn't exist just a few short years ago, and yet these guys are brewing this one like they've been doing it for aeons.

That's a remarkable achievement.

But then, this is a remarkable brewery. And with all of their usual technical prowess, creative ingenuity and sheer class, they are brewing a remarkable example of a remarkable beer style.

Whatever kind of beer you think you prefer – Black IPA will rapidly replace it.

And be sure to drink a bottle of Conqueror 1075 before you shake your head in disagreement with that statement.

I can guarantee you won't be shaking it after.

Day 118, Beer 118 - Liverpool Organic's "Shipwreck IPA"

Today's Beer

Name – Shipwreck IPA

Brewer – Liverpool Organic

Classification – India Pale Ale

Strength – 6.5% ABV

Verdict - At A Glance

On the eye – Rich, orange gold.

On the nose – Sharp green-citrus. Intense, fresh and vivid.

On the tongue – Astounding citrus. Remarkable clarity of flavour. Refreshment levels are off the grid. A dazzling and rewarding beer.

On the subject – This is problematic. You'd better read the full review...

On the market – The relative scarcity of this beer is worthy of a national protest. People will learn, and soon. In the meantime, try online at the brewery's own online store.

On the whole – 9/10

Full Review

I'm starting to have trouble with Liverpool Organic Brewery.

Or rather, my High Score Chart is starting to have trouble with them.

After featuring just three of their beers, I still have another seven titles to review, but every new label I try leaps straight into the very top section of the rankings.

If this pattern continues, there is a very real danger that the entire top tier of my chart is going to consist of beers from just one company – and that really can't be ideal.

But what the heck can I do, when ales as exquisite as today's keep popping their lids off with such jaw-dropping panache?

In terms of bottled beer in the UK, there really is little doubt that this company have quietly stolen a march over all others at this point in time.

Now, it is true that a fair number UK breweries have yet to get their beers into the mix here on The Year. Fortunately though, with an ever-extending queue of bottles stretching out before me – the number of absentee breweries is falling all the time. But as things stand, Liverpool Organic are the one's setting the standard.

The freshness of these beers is quite simply unparalleled. The bottle-conditioning is exemplary. The branding is beautifully pitched and rendered. The range is extensive, it has broad appeal and is highly dynamic. All of this is first rate, and they even hold the moral and ecological high ground with their organic and vegan-friendly ingredients.

But none of this constitutes the best part.

Towering above all of these other things...are the recipes of the beers themselves, and the overwhelming sense of precision engineering, of compassion and of attention to detail which safeguards and informs every stage of their creation, from brain to bottle.

If I sound like I'm excited, then I've probably failed to properly convey my meaning.

I'm not excited.

I'm not even impressed.

Neither of these terms seem sufficient, somehow.

I think it's probably more accurate to say that I'm moved.

That's what can happen when something that you loved long before you ever encountered it turns up and exceeds every expectation.

I mean, I already loved beer.

And then these things arrived.

It's all a bit much for an everyday guy like me.

I need a moment...

(breathes deeply)…

(and again...)

That's better.

Shipwreck, then, is a stunning example of a contemporary IPA. This is exactly the sort of India Pale Ale people are going all giddy and hysterical about these days, and I challenge even the most determined sceptics to taste this brew and not instantly discover what all the fuss is about. It's no secret that it's taken me a while to catch on to this current hop craze, and although I still hope it really is only a 'craze' (one which passes reasonably soon) it's safe to say that beers like this one have assisted greatly with my eventually getting 'the point' of massively-hopped beers.

And it really is massively-hopped (oh boy is it!) resulting in a bedazzling citrus intensity, and a complexity to rival any other ale I've known. It's got that uncanny 'Liverpool Organic' freshness and vitality, and there's a tremendously immediacy to the drink – there's really no waiting around for the ride to begin. And it's doing all of this so deliciously that you don't stop for a moment to question the absence of things (as can be the case with many new hop-dominant beers, which can often feel like one-trick-ponies) you just sit back and marvel at what actually is in the glass, and wonder how the hell it could possibly have got their in such style.

This is an instant classic. An exemplary British IPA of our times. A strikingly complex highly-hopped drink experience, with a solidly crisp dry bitterness and a delicate but essential hazelnut base.

It's light but firm in body, and shimmers with a decidedly 'juicy' golden hue.

Everything is in place.

Every last thing.

Frankly, this brewery is in a league of it's own right now.

A few more high scores like this one, and 'a league of it's own' is exactly what it will need.