While we enjoy a classic West Coast IPA, love New England-style IPAs this time of year, and even find room for the occasional milkshake IPA, sometimes we just want something a little bigger and bolder. That’s where the double IPA (also known as the imperial IPA) comes in. Everything is amplified and cranked up to eleven. There’s more malt presence, more hop flavor, and a (sometimes much) higher alcohol content.
In our opinion, the late spring and early summer is the best time of year to get reacquainted with these hoppy bangers. It’s not a session beer so you won’t be drinking it throughout a lazy summer day. But it does pair well with grilled foods and dangling your feet off a dock into a crystal-clear mountain lake.
Since there are a ton of double IPAs on the market, we thought that it made sense to go to the source for some help in finding them. We asked some well-known craft beer experts, brewers, and beer professionals to tell us the best double IPAs to drink any time of the year.
Bell’s Double Two Hearted Ale
David Ringler, director of happiness at Cedar Springs Brewing Company in Cedar Springs, Michigan
ABV: 11%
Average Price: $19.50 for a six-pack
Why This Beer?
It’s really hard to beat– Bell’s Double Two Hearted Ale when you’re talking about double IPAs. Hearty, bold, with plenty of classic American aromatic hop bite. This bold hoppy, piney, floral, dank, malty IPA is loaded with a healthy dose of Centennial hops.
Anthem Beer Amen Break
Thomas Reese, brewer at Ghost Harbor Brewing Co. in Elizabeth City, North Carolina
ABV: 8%
Average Price: Limited Availability
Why This Beer?
The Amen Break from New Anthem Beer Project in Wilmington, North Carolina. What flavors make it great? It’s an all-around beautiful DIPA. A complex blend of hop layers in tons of flavors ranging from tangerine and peach to berries and fruit candy. So flavorful with barely a hint of the 8% ABV potency. The guys at New Anthem are making some great beer in North Carolina.
The Alchemist Heady Topper
Kevin Beachem, head brewer at Taproot Brewing Company in Newport, Rhode Island
ABV: 8%
Average Price: $17.50 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
Why This Beer?
I’m sure this beer will be mentioned here by someone else but the most monumental double IPA for me personally was Heady Topper by The Alchemist. John Kimmich has always been an inspiration of mine and the beer is masterfully made to just burst with hop flavor and aroma right out of the can! He really balances the resinous and dank flavors with the bold citrus and pine of the hops and marries it perfectly with the peach and stone fruit esters of the yeast for an awesome beer.
Super drinkable for its high ABV.
Dogfish Head 90 Minute
Eric Martens, founder and owner at Border Brewing Company in Kansas City, Missouri
ABV: 9%
Average Price: $12.99 for a six-pack
Why This Beer?
I’ll always have a soft spot for Dogfish Head’s 90 Minute IPA. To me, a great double IPA should perfect the balance between malt sweetness, flavor, and body and hop bitterness and character, and I can’t think of a beer that does it better than 90 Minute.
Austin Beerworks Heavy Machinery
Hector Cavazos, owner and head brewer at Rebel Toad Brewery in Corpus Christi, Texas
ABV: 9.8%
Average Price: $9.99 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
Why This Beer?
Heavy Machinery from Austin Beerworks is my pick. The hops are freshly picked from Oregon straight to their brewery. It’s an absolute citrus bomb, brewed with Amarillo, Simcoe, and Citra hops. If you can find it, definitely grab a four-pack of this underrated double IPA.
Half Acre Double Daisy Cutter
Daryl Hoedtke, senior brew master at Goose Island Beer Co. in Chicago
ABV: 8%
Average Price: Limited Availability
Why This Beer?
Double Daisy Cutter from Half Acre. They do a series of these DDC beers that are ‘fully saturated’ with hop flavor and often feature a single hop on top of it. They really showcase all elements of quality hop character with flavors of pine, fruit, and floral characters, then build on top of that with whatever single-hop they are showcasing.
Lawson’s Finest Sip of Sunshine
Dan Lipke, head brewer at Clown Shoes Beer in Boston
ABV: 8%
Average Price: $15.99 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
Why This Beer?
When I first tried Lawson’s Finest Sip of Sunshine, I was completely floored. It had a massive tropical citrus nose, a well-balanced malt body that gave a backbone for the hops to fill out, and an easy finish with minimal bitterness. It was an evolutionary step forward in IPAs for me and I was certainly inspired by it as I’m sure many brewers were. It’s still great and worth a revisit soon.
Bell’s Hopslam
Kevin Smolar, production and quality lab manager at Sun King Brewery in Indianapolis
ABV: 10%
Average Price: $20.99 for a six-pack
Why This Beer?
Bell’s Hopslam. This was the beer that turned me onto hops. I was a senior in college and went to a local sports bar that had a great craft beer selection. I asked the bartender for a recommendation (letting him know I was a fan of beers like Blue Moon) and he said, “Try this. It tastes like oranges.” I don’t know why he recommended a double IPA to someone that likes Belgian witbiers, but I’m sure glad he did. The orange and tangerine flavors pair so well with the sweet honey and malt profile, and it just blew me away.
Even after nearly fifteen years, this is still one of my favorite beers on the planet. Sadly, it’s only available in the middle of winter so you’ll have to wait until then to drink it.
Firestone Walker Double Jack
Kyle Park, director of marketing at Neshaminy Creek Brewing Co. in Croydon, Pennsylvania
ABV: 9.5%
Average Price: $12.99 for a six-pack
Why This Beer?
Firestone Walker Double Jack without a doubt. It’s a big and bold beer but always left me wanting another one. I think it’s the quintessential West Coast DIPA with huge pine characteristics and tangerine flavors. It was a dark day when they retired it, but I’m glad to see it back.
Trillium Max Headroom
Chris Elliott, chief brewing officer at Wild Leap Brew Co. in LaGrange, Georgia
ABV: 9.1%
Average Price: Limited Availability
Why This Beer?
My favorite double IPA was hands down, Max Headroom by Trillium. The Headroom series they brew is phenomenal, and this is the best of the series that I have tried. Unfortunately, Trillium isn’t regularly available in our area, so I only get to have their beers occasionally.
Russian River Pliny the Elder
Douglas Hasker, head brewer at Puesto Cerveceria in San Diego
ABV: 8%
Average Price: $6.99 for a 16.9-ounce bottle
Why This Beer?
Pliny the Elder, Russian River Brewing Co — The reason this classic DIPA is still making ‘best of” lists after so many years is not because it is the hyped-up original, it’s because of Russian River’s unwavering commitment to quality, the best hop lots and brewing practices, and a loyalty to a recipe that has stood the test of time. A big malt backbone is balanced by big bitterness with aromas of grapefruit zest, orange sherbet, and resinous pine.
Pour it into a big snifter and admire the golden hue and rocky head before diving deep into brewing history.
Half Acre Navaja
Kyle Jackson, production at Sun King Brewery in Indianapolis
ABV: 10%
Average Price: Limited Availability
Why This Beer?
Navaja DIPA from Half Acre. Brewed with golden promise malt and hopped with Citra, CTZ, Simcoe, and Mosaic hops, it has a great blend of both piney and grapefruit flavors. Definitely a bigger beer but not boozy. It has the right amount of malt balance.