The Boston Beer Company is best known for its Samuel Adams brand. They've made limited edition small batch collections of bold and unconventional beers. While at Costco I stumbled upon this collection for $19.99, which is not bad for four quality large bottle brews.
Third Voyage Double IPA is meant to take the IPA style back to its origins. India Pale Ales were made by the British as beers that were strong and hoppy so the beer would last on long ship voyages to far away parts of the British Empire. In the 1700s malts were roasted pretty dark (i.e. brown ale, stouts, and porters), so making a beer that was copper color was considered pale. Third Voyage was inspired by "Captain James Cook whose 3rd voyage made him the first to navigate a treacherous route from England to New Zealand to the Pacific Northwest." In that spirit, Sam Adams has used Cascade hops from each of those areas.
This beer is rated at 8.0% ABV, 85 IBUs and is a nice copper color. It pours with quite a bit of head, but that eventually dissipates to a trace. It smells hoppy and floral, but with a deeper and richer characteristic that I find only in strong and hoppy beers. It is lightly carbonated and full of bitterness that leaves a long aftertaste which eventually turns a little chalky from the malts that try to balance this beer. The hops give it a touch of citrus and pine. It's almost like a combination of Stone's IPA and Arrogant Bastard -- it's big bodied and big on the hop profile. In my experience, Sam Adams beers usually don't stray very far from the Boston Lager mainstay, even when they're trying to brew something completely different. This is definitely an exception and is probably the boldest beer from Sam Adams I've ever had. It's so bold you can just enjoy it on its own. Hops will cut through with spicy food or pair nicely with red meat. I'm going to grill up some tri-tip to enjoy the last half of it. Cheers!
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