[blatz]

DFH90 isn't even in the same league as Pliny, Ruination, Maharaja, Exponential Hoppiness, Hercules (I could go on) - its not bad, but the continual hop gimmick doesn't lend itself well to Imperial IPA, IMO.

To me, most EC IPAs are too sweet, too dark and in some cases cloying.  A lot (not DFH60) are pretty low on hop flavor.  I do like DFH 60 and GL Commodore Perry, but that is about it - Hop Devil is a dissapointment.  However, I have never had the ones Wahoo mentioned.

However, I could rattle off 15-20 IPAs that I absolutely love that all come from Colorado west.

Excited to be going to the opening of Southern Tier distribution in Florida this evening ( a bar is opening their taps today!) - I hear their IPAs are top notch.

BTW, Torpedo is pretty tasty, but it didn't live up to all the buildup hype and excitement that I got carried away with - but I have no problem buying an occasional sixer  

[bluesman]

DFH90 isn't even in the same league as Pliny, Ruination, Maharaja, Exponential Hoppiness, Hercules (I could go on) - its not bad, but the continual hop gimmick doesn't lend itself well to Imperial IPA, IMO.

To me, most EC IPAs are too sweet, too dark and in some cases cloying. 

What have you tried ECwise for comparison?

[denny]

I love Victory beers, but when I tried Hop Devil and Hop Slam, my thought was "where's the hops?".  One of my favorite stories involves my wife and me visiting Victory.  We were sitting at the bar with one of the owners and he offered us samples.  My wife said she like really hoppy beers, so he offered her a Hop Devil.  Having had it before, she asked if he had anything hoppier!  I was afraid he might cry...

[mikeypedersen]

Excited to be going to the opening of Southern Tier distribution in Florida this evening ( a bar is opening their taps today!) - I hear their IPAs are top notch.

We don't get their beers here in CO, but I have had a lot of their imperials while traveling around the country.  Their Unearthly Imperial IPA is really good, although I might put it more in the category of a very hoppy American Barleywine.  It's 11%  and has a lot of malt to back up all those hops.  It's probably my favorite of the beers I have tried of theirs.

[blatz]

What have you tried EC whise for comparison?

I'm certain I've had more than this, but here's what I can rattle off that's non-brewpub, and that I can recall is East Coast

Assuming just regular strength IPAs (not imperial):

DFH 60min
Victory Hop Devil
GL Commodore Perry
Redhook Ballard Bitter (is it considered EC?)
Sweetwater IPA
Troegs Nugget Nectar
Sam Adams IPA
Harpoon IPA
Ipswich IPA
Weyerbacher Simcoe IPA (that may have been Imperial tho)
Smuttynose IPA
Bells’ Two Hearted (again, not sure of EC classification)
Shipyard IPA
Saranac IPA


Now that you made me list it out, I'd forgotten earlier that I do LOVE Smutty IPA and Bell's is pretty tasty as well (though from the samples I have had, its overrated - maybe its better closer to the source).  

[bluesman]

I love Victory beers, but when I tried Hop Devil and Hop Slam, my thought was "where's the hops?".  One of my favorite stories involves my wife and me visiting Victory.  We were sitting at the bar with one of the owners and he offered us samples.  My wife said she like really hoppy beers, so he offered her a Hop Devil.  Having had it before, she asked if he had anything hoppier!  I was afraid he might cry...

Yea...I'm about an hours drive from Victory and I really love their beers too. Hop Devil is good. I like their Hop Wallop better (DIPA). It comes in at about 8.5%ABV.

The guitar player in my band hosts an open jam at Victory every Monday night and he's been trying to get me to come out there for a while. I'LL eventually make it out to the jam.

[a10t2]

Bell's is pretty tasty as well (though from the samples I have had, its overrated - maybe its better closer to the source).

Can you get THA on draft? It's crack. Not "like crack" - I'm pretty sure they actually use crack rocks in the whirlpool.

[bluesman]

What have you tried EC whise for comparison?

Now that you made me list it out, I'd forgotten earlier that I do LOVE Smutty IPA and Bell's is pretty tasty as well (though from the samples I have had, its overrated - maybe its better closer to the source).  

Smuttynose is a fine EC example. One of my faves. 

[blatz]

Can you get THA on draft? It's crack. Not "like crack" - I'm pretty sure they actually use crack rocks in the whirlpool.

unfortunately, no.  the distributor that originally brought Bells to Florida got bought out by one of the bigs (they distribute Coors, Heiney, etc.) and they don't care about craft apparently, and don't push Bells too much anymore, so the chances of getting kegs are slim.  

[denny]

I love Victory beers, but when I tried Hop Devil and Hop Slam, my thought was "where's the hops?".  One of my favorite stories involves my wife and me visiting Victory.  We were sitting at the bar with one of the owners and he offered us samples.  My wife said she like really hoppy beers, so he offered her a Hop Devil.  Having had it before, she asked if he had anything hoppier!  I was afraid he might cry...

Yea...I'm about an hours drive from Victory and I really love their beers too. Hop Devil is good. I like their Hop Wallop better (DIPA). It comes in at about 8.5%ABV.

The guitar player in my band hosts an open jam at Victory every Monday night and he's been trying to get me to come out there for a while. I'LL eventually make it out to the jam.

Hop WALLOP!  That's what I meant instead of Hop Slam.

[blatz]

Smuttynose is a fine EC example. One of my faves. 

See, I'd actually say that Smutty's is more of a West Coast style IPA that's brewed East Coast.  It uses Simcoe, Santiam and one other (?) and is all 2 row and with a touch of light crystal giving it a lower scale color (6-7SRM) and finishes very dry .  IIRC, they recommend Chico yeast when cloning their beers.

I'd consider Victory, Dogfish and Harpoon's examples as more in the East Coast vein.

[redbeerman]

I think it has a lot to do with what you've been exposed to and how your tastes have developed.  Where hops are grown, the beers have an abundance (over-abundance perhaps) of bitterness and good flavor and aroma.  If this is all you drink, your palate will get used to it and anything less will pale in comparison.  It's kind of like eating spicy and/or hot food.  If you eat Indian food the way most of my Indian friends eat it all of the time, the stuff they serve in restaurants will taste like white bread.  What amazes me, is after drinking the super bitter IPAs and DIPAs we can still pick up on the subtleties of a Kolsch.  The IPAs I brew pretty much run the gamut as far as IBUs go, but I tend to go toward the upper limit, even for an east coast guy.   I do love my crystal malts though.

[bluesman]

Smuttynose is a fine EC example. One of my faves. 

See, I'd actually say that Smutty's is more of a West Coast style IPA that's brewed East Coast.  It uses Simcoe, Santiam and one other (?) and is all 2 row and with a touch of light crystal giving it a lower scale color (6-7SRM) and finishes very dry .  IIRC, they recommend Chico yeast when cloning their beers.

I'd consider Victory, Dogfish and Harpoon's examples as more in the East Coast vein.

Yes...but I think there's more to it than just that. There's the processes, raw materials (yeast, grain bill, etc...), but I see your point with Smutty.

[bluesman]

The IPAs I brew pretty much run the gamut as far as IBUs go, but I tend to go toward the upper limit, even for an east coast guy.   I do love my crystal malts though.

+1

I do to.

I like my IPA/DIPA's around 10-12SRM using medium crystal malts with varying hops within style usually on the high end 60-70AAU's. Denny got me on a rye kick too, but it's not necessary.

[pinnah]

What's your take on our American IPA's ?

Seems we have developed a couple different styles.
Not such a bitter divide until you try and say one is better than the other.

maybe its better closer to the source. 

+1,
With a style so dependent
on a characteristic that fades rapidly over time.
freshness should be a key idea in judgment.

BTW, almost all those good Colorado ipa's are east slopers,
and drain their water to the Atlantic