David Brockington's Tasting Notebook

Victory Hop Devil IPA

Initial Impressions:

In researching my recent article in Brewing Techniques, I called upon the advice of my friend Jim Busch. Jim immediately suggested that I try some of the new Hop Devil IPA before I write my article. We had both agreed that in the main the east coast is not as proficient in the big hoppy styles known in northern California and the Pacific Northwest. (We both agree that the midatlantic region is quickly distinguishing itself as having a regional proclivity for brewing great lagers, where my home region is less distinguished, but that is a different review). However, Jim assured me that the Hop Devil IPA has the hoppy west coast character I was after for an American IPA, and that it (along with a couple of other beers) is helping to establish authentic hoppy beers in the east coast.

It was important to me that I include a beer from the east coast in my IPA article, but the beer obviously had to match the profile of the other great IPAs profiled. Brooklyn's IPA was a thought, but its hop character tends more to the Kentish. Hop Pocket from Dominion was another, but it does not specifically market itself as an IPA (although the hopping levels put it nearer to that category than most self-claimed IPAs in the east coast that I have had the opportunity to try.) I strongly discourage provincialism in beer appreciation, and living in Seattle it is pretty easy to be perceived as having a west-coast bias towards things beer. I trust and greatly respect Jim's beer knowledge and tasting abilities, and when he claimed that I would be impressed by Hop Devil (he knows my tastes in IPA) I eagerly anticipated my first crack at the Devil.

The beer was copper, just short of pure amber, in the glass. A nice white head formed, and its head retention was noted in the concomitant lacework left behind by my progress through the pint.

Nose:

The nose, like all Victory beers, is sophisticated and nuanced. Malty notes tend to dominate, which include spicy aromas from the imported munich malts employed in the mash. Although the malt dominates the aroma, this beer has a big bouquet -- there is plenty to go around! American hop aromas are unabashedly evident, along with a rather distinct buttery aroma. (Jim mentioned that this was due to the Vienna malty that Victory uses, and I noted the same aroma in the Festbier, based on the same Vienna. However, buttery aromas are buttery aromas). When I had the Devil at the brewpub, the buttery aroma was less apparent than in the bottled version.

Flavor:

The first flavors encountered were malty: both a typical straightforward malt character and the spicy notes contributed by the munich malts. The middle was dominated by hop flavor, American but not as aggressively American nor as present as expected in these IPAs. The nuanced hop flavor was certainly a result of the use of domestic Tettnangers in the middle. The hop flavor shares the middle with a buttery flavor (which I have written down as diacetyl in my notes). The most dominant aspect of this beer's flavor profile was the huge hop bitter finish. It was rather resinous, marvelously sticky, and it lingered in a long finish. The end result was for the perception of dryness to remain on the palate.

Final Analysis:

Victory's IPA is something of a pioneer in American IPA for a couple of reasons. First, they use imported continental malts exclusively. I have argued in the past that great IPAs ought to use British malts, because these malts offer unique flavors that help to distinguish the great IPA's from the merely good. However, when I make that argument, it has always been in the context of deciding against domestic malts. Since Victory's primary mission is to brew excellent German lagers -- at which they succeed -- it makes logical logistic sense to utilize the expensive materials on hand in the brewing of their IPA. The base malt is Weyermann's Vienna, and the specialty malts are Weyermann products as well. This is, I believe, an original way to brew an American IPA, and makes for a unique beer.

While this beer is clearly inspired by West Coast IPAs, it adds its own interpretations (in addition to the grain bill). Its dryness and toned down "Wall of Hops" makes for an interesting essay on the style, and it lacks the overwhelming citruisy character of the bigger West Coast IPAs. However, what it does have are the fundamental prerequisites for a great American IPA: emphatic use of bittering hops, American hop profile dominant, big gravity (1.063) and nice malty base supporting the outrageous bittering component. This beer is one of the best IPAs in the country, competitive with Anderson Valley's IPA.

Rating: ****1/2

(5-star scale)
Copyright 1996 by David Brockington, all rights reserved.
Seattle, USA
Comments? Fire off some email: dbrock@u.washington.edu
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