For a lot of beer geeks, Stone Ruination was the first palate ruiner and first mainstream American Double IPA or perhaps the first beer that really differentiated the West Coast and East coast Double IPA wars. Well, I was 15 when this beer came out and didn’t have my first Ruination until some time last year so, I’m merely going to review the 10th anniversary as its own beer and not as a comparison to the original or use this review to tell stories about the good times when Cantillon flowed like water.
3.9 AROMA 10/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 15/20 adamjackson (433) – Canaan, USA – JUL 9, 2012 Picked this up for $7.99 at Hunger Mountain Co-Op in Vermont. Kept it in the fridge overnight and poured into a Duvel glass by my river. A – Pours a nice 2 finger head that subsides fast to a quarter finger. Burnt orange appearance, slight haze. S – Gloriously dry hopped! Smells amazing. Slightly beefier than the nose of a Heady Topper, more malty than Pliny the Elder. Citra dominates with its grapefruit. Slight level of pineapple and lemons. T – Whoa! What a pallet wrecker. Green Flash has a Pallet Wrecker but there’s absolutely no balance to it. Ruination 10th is absurdly hopped but is not too boozy and tastes amazing. I get a heavy wood taste, big malts profile and nice citrus tastes at the finish M – High medium body, big bitter finish. O – This is exceptional. I’m going to buy a few more! Amazing taste. |
I still haven’t found this in Burlington. I fear by the time I do, the beer will be aged past a point that is worth the price. Ruination was definitely my gateway into great beer. I haven’t had a bottle in quite some time, but when I do, the aroma alone brings back so many memories… it really is a very unique IPA.
The price went up at City Market in burlington to $6.99.. used to be $5.79. Only a dollar, but it makes a difference in my head. Even at $7, it’s not much for something so great so I shouldn’t bitch, but it has definitely kept me from gravitating towards a bottle. Maybe I should just “bite the bullet” since it’s been close to a year since I’ve had me some ruination. I’ve probably just been too busy getting my hop fixes from Heady Topper. ;)
A lot of guys share that same story as their first Double IPA. I found this at Hunger Mountain in Montpelier. Not close to you but they had 3 cases sitting there ready to be had. Heady is better :)