Goose Island Beer Co. - Imperial IPA

What: Goose Island Beer Co. - Imperial IPA
Style: Imperial IPA
Vessel: Pint Glass
Price: $5.29
Where: Home
When: May 4, 2008
Rating: 3
Comments: Just got back from a great Sunday dinner of Hollyhock Hill. Best damn fried chicken in the city, if you ask me. What better than a comfort food Sunday dinner with some family from out of town and getting to meet a new addition to the family? Anyway, decided to have a beer and cracked this one open. It's malty, but not overly sweet. It has a very nice hop finish to it. I'm a fan.
Ratebeer Link: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/goose-island-imperial-ipa/21329/

Great Divide Brewing Company - Hercules Double IPA

What: Great Divide Brewing Company - Hercules Double IPA
Style: Imperial IPA
Vessel: Pint Glass
Price: $7.99 (22 fl. oz.)
Where: Home
When: April 8, 2008
Rating: 4
Comments: After a disappointing DIPA, I thought it was time to try another new one. The Hercules DIPA hung in pretty well. It was much less sweet (which, in my book, is a good thing) than Hop Juice, but it still didn't have the strong hop profile I'm looking for. Maybe I'm misguided here, but I really haven't had a DIPA that knocked my socks off. I'd say it's worth trying, and that I enjoyed it. Just go in with proper expectations.
Ratebeer Link: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/great-divide-hercules-double-ipa/32751/

Founders Brewing Co. - Devil Dancer

What: Founders Brewing Co. - Devil Dancer
Style: Imperial IPA
Vessel: Sampler Glass
Price: $9.00 for a sampler of 5
Where: BadaBoomz (downtown)
When: April 7, 2008
Rating: 3
Comments: Wow - interesting. This is a pretty good beer - for the amount of hops, it's not too sweet. It's got a bit of a malty sweetness to it, but it's pretty enjoyable. I don't think I would run out and buy it, but if I saw it on tap again, I'd order it as part of a sampler. A full pint might be a bit much.
Ratebeer Link: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/founders-devil-dancer-triple-ipa/34518/

Two Brothers Brewing Co. - Hop Juice

What: Two Brothers Brewing Co. - Hop Juice
Style: Imperial IPA
Vessel: Pint Glass
Price: $7.99 (22 fl. oz.)
Where: Home
When: April 6, 2008
Rating: 5
Comments: Wow. I was surprised by this, but not necessarily in a good way. After a long week of mediocre lagers and other uninspired beers, I was thinking this might just be the one I needed to get me back on track with great craft beers. Well, the reality was that this DIPA just didn't stack up. It had a nice hop aroma, but when it came to tasting time it was just a little sweet for me. The malt kicked in a bit too early and I don't think I would make a huge effort to track this beer down again. It was a nice adventure to a new brewery and beer, but next time I'm looking for something with some kickin' hops, I know this won't be the one. You'd think with a great name like "Hop Juice" it'd be all about the hops, but it had just a bit too much malt for me. Now having said all that, I did enjoy the change of pace from lagers.
Ratebeer Link: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/two-brothers-hop-juice/44597/

Bell's Brewery - Hopslam

What: Bell's Brewery - Hopslam
Style: Imperial IPA
Vessel: Pint Glass
Price: $13.99 (6 pack)
Where: Home
When: Whenever possible
Rating: 1
Comments: Ho. Lee. Shit. This is good stuff. The holy grail of beer. I thought I knew good IPAs. I didn't until I tried this. Best beer ever.
Ratebeer Link: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/bells-hopslam/35488/