Double Bastard Ale

Double Bastard Ale

2011 Release

American Strong Ale

Stone Brewing Co.

IBU's: "Classified" (100+?)

Alcohol: 10.5%

"Ye shall know the Bastard,

and the Bastard shall set you free."

It's crazy to think, but 101 reviews ago I reviewed the original Arrogant Bastard Ale, a perfectly balanced hoppy and malty, strong amber ale.  The original Arrogant Bastard maintains itself as one of my all-time favorite beers and I've probably gone through more bottles of it than any other single beer.  Stone Brewing make several variations on the Arrogant Bastard, with the oaked version being one of my favs, as well.  But, the big daddy of them all is this one, the Double Bastard.

Now, any reader of the beers reviews on this blog knows that I have a love for Stone Brewing Company out of California.  And even though I've only formally reviewed a handful of their beers, I've sampled over a dozen different brews and haven't had a bad tasting one from them yet.

So here we have the Double Bastard, a 10.5% ABV beast of a beer.  It pours a slightly darker amber than the standard Arrogant Bastard.  It has strong aromas of malty caramel, figs, and a massive amount of hops on par with a good India Pale Ale.  You take a sip and get thick, sweet toffee malts, dark raisins, pine, a touch of the high-proof alcohol, and a pleasantly long-lasting bitter hop finish that rivals just about any IPA out there.

This is everything I love about the original Arrogant Bastard Ale stepped up a couple notches.  It has pretty much the same flavor profile, but everything is stronger here.  Stronger malt, stronger hops, stronger alcohol.

This. beer. is. badass.

Drink This: if you want a malty, hoppy, beast of a sipping beer.  If you enjoy the standard Arrogant Bastard or like hoppy beers, give this is a try.  This is easily Stone's best beer and in my top 5 favorite beers, perhaps even top 3, of all-time...

Don't Drink This: if you are not worthy.