Sierra Nevada garnered a ton of press after announcing the forthcoming release of the first year-round addition to their brewing line-up in over a decade. I myself got caught up in the hype, but have been playing it cool waiting to give the beer a try. Part of launching a major new addition to your product line is availability, so half the fun was waiting to see when and where I would first find Torpedo Extra IPA available.

Well, last Friday, I was pleasantly surprised when my local corner store had a couple six-packs stashed in their back cooler. With an official launch date of "late January 2009", it took less than a month for Sierra Nevada's latest offering to make its way onto my block. Not too shabby -- I don't particularly live in a craft beer haven -- and definitely a testament to Sierra Nevada's distribution. For taste, Sierra Nevada is all craft, but on the availability side, Sierra Nevada has become almost as ubiquitous as the big boys.

But how is this Torpedo Extra IPA? With Sierra Nevada, you can usually anticipate some major hoppiness. Well, Torpedo earns its "Extra" label, firmly planting itself in the West coast-style, nearly-a-double-IPA department, with a big floral nose and a mouthful of hop juiciness. The taste comes on with a tropical citrusy sweetness, immediately railroaded by a blast of piney freshness that slips into a balanced bitterness all the way to the finish. It's a slightly darker, caramel color with a thicker mouthfeel than a lot of IPAs. Since some might consider the Torpedo to be a "crossover beer" (since a Sierra Nevada IPA will probably get a bit more exposure than previous IPAs on the market), it's important to note that the beer boasts a big 7.2% ABV that's masked so well, a casual drinker might not notice. Discriminating drinkers, however, might notice some subtly differing flavors as Torpedo relies on Magnum, Crystal and Citra hops (the latter being a relatively new and rare hop varietal) as opposed to the Cascade hops that have helped define a number of previous Sierra Nevada brews.

My only complaint would be that maybe this IPA is a little too on the nose. One could expect that when Sierra Nevada finally introduced a permanent IPA to their arsenal, they'd want to do it proper. And the Torpedo Extra IPA is about as pure a modern American IPA specimen as one can drink. The only problem is that there are so many IPAs on the market now, and Sierra Nevada has jumped in the game so late, I don't entirely see how Torpedo IPA separates itself away from the pack except on brand reputation and recognition. Yes, the beer utilizes the company's new "hop torpedo" dry-hopping device (the beer's namesake), but outside of the "idea" of this new technology, I don't imagine many people tasting a direct translation from it into their glasses. Especially since Sierra Nevada has been bringing so many creative seasonal and limited selections to the table recently (see their Celebration, Bigfoot and Harvest Series), there's something mildly disappointing about the brand reinventing the wheel on this one, even if it is a damn good wheel.

THE FINAL SIP: I feel torn with Sierra Nevada. I would go so far as to say that, despite being the new kid on their block, Torpedo Extra IPA is probably my favorite of Sierra Nevada's year round selections. That said, I'd easily take any of their special releases and a number of their seasonal selections over this latest offering. Don't get me wrong: Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA is a great beer, and with excellent national availability, it might quickly become the best readily available beer in your supermarket or local tavern. Still, as probably the most attempted style of beer over the past few years, am I crazy to say the once mighty IPA is becoming passe? When Sierra Nevada first established their year-round line-up, they were craft beer trailblazers. As their more experimental beers show, Sierra Nevada is still at their best when they're trying to attack new ground.

[Photo credit: sierranevada.com]