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Ska Brewing's Modus Hoperandi - Beer of the Week

hops
Modus Hoperandi India Pale Ale. Photo: Jenene Chesbrough.

By now, news of another India pale ale -- an occurrence as common as an Alaskan snowstorm -- barely merits mention.

But every blue moon, an IPA arrives to jolt our jaded taste buds, causing us to thank a higher deity for the heavenly, hoppy elixir. So let's bow down and worship a little green can filled with Modus Hoperandi, a brew so skunky and stinky it reminds us of something else.

"We used to smoke a lot of weed," jokes Dave Thibodeau, cofounder of Durango, Colo.'s Ska Brewing Company. Since releasing the "old-man bitter" brew in late winter, it's rocketed to the top of Ska's bestseller list. "It completely caught us off-guard, which is a good problem to have," Thibodeau says.


The secret, he says, is a "hearty heap of hops." That's for certain: Modus' aroma is a swoon-worthy blend of pine trees and halved grapefruits, an odor muscular enough to double as smelling salts. The copper-orange IPA is thick and resinous, the white head sticking to the glass like a spider web. Each sip (and you will sip, not gulp, this 6.8 percent ABV flavor bomb) coats your tongue with creamy bitterness, with a gentle swipe of malt sweetness to curtail the citric overload.

It's nearly too much, but then we always crave another can. Is this how addictions begin?

Are you a hops addict? Confess in the comments.

Filed Under: Raves & Reviews, Drink Recipes, New Products
Tags: beer, beer of the week, BeerOfTheWeek, joshua m bernstein, JoshuaMBernstein, modus hoperandi, ModusHoperandi

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

Kyle

7-20-2009 @2:05PM Kyle said... Modus is my current favorite IPA. I honestly believe it's the best IPA in Colorado.
Reply

bcurran

7-20-2009 @1:45PM bcurran said... It would be nice if when reviewing an IPA that the IBU number also be given. It makes making a decision about an IPA that much easier.
Reply

Joshua M. Bernstein

7-20-2009 @2:07PM Joshua M. Bernstein said... Good point. I'll make sure to include that in the future. For your reference, the beer has 65 IBUs.
Reply

jaydischord

9-06-2009 @4:47PM jaydischord said... Just bought some of this and in all honesty its one of my favourite beers if come across in about three years.Very nice beer indeed....just wish you yanks would incoporate the ABV content on to the can/bottle...i like to know how strong(or week) my beer is.Great beer!!
Reply

4 Comments / 1 Pages

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