Double Bastard Ale (Stone Brewing Company - San Marcos, CA)

A limited-edition seasonal offering can often create quite the well-deserved buzz. This is one of those few brews that truly delivers.

The Stone Brewing Company’s outrageously titled Arrogant Bastard Ale has a rarely spotted big brother that unleashes havoc on unsuspecting taste buds and livers.

The ridiculous Double Bastard Ale has been described as an “angry beer” by reviewers across the world, with an absolutely unholy flavor profile. The brew is intense, furious and complex - filled with shock and awe and disastrously shackling metastability.

Make no mistake, this is an over-the-top mix of malt (and plenty of it), apricot, hops and that burning tinge of alcohol. It can be bought in 22 oz. bottles or in the “you gonna finish all that?” three-litre offering. When the taste hits your tongue its an assault that hits you like a firing squad of burning beer bullets and a tsunami of apricot/peach flavor. This is an Abbey Ale done up by speed, steroids and superlative craftsmanship.

There’s absolutely no way to fully describe the beer without venturing into full-fledged hyperbole, but that’s what this beer is. There’s a chance that it actually offers a bit too much, as we found it very difficult to finish our bottle and we most certainly wouldn’t order more than one on any given day.

For those of you who are looking to venture outside the ordinary and step into a parallel universe of taste, this is your beer.

If you like your brew to taste ... well ... like a real beer, you may be better suited looking elsewhere.

Rating: 4.5 pints