Review: Avery duganA IPA

Avery Brewing Co. has a new India Pale Ale on the shelves. Named duganA, this hefty double IPA is meant to give hopheads something between the Boulder brewery's standard IPA (which is exceptional) and its huge Maharaja Imperial IPA.

It reminds me of Porsche, which decided sports car buyers needed something between the Boxster and 911. Thus the Cayman, a bastard child that doesn't even look cool.

But I digress. For the sake of context on Avery's IPA lineup, here are the stats:

Avery IPA: 6.3 percent ABV, 69 IBUs
duganA double IPA: 8.5 percent ABV, 93 IBUs
Maharaja Imperial IPA: 10.2 percent ABV, 102 IBUs

duganA looks and smells like one would expect from a double IPA. It pours a dark, yellow-tinted amber, with a bubbly two-finger white head that recedes quickly, revealing a pronounced hop aroma.

As one would expect from Avery, duganA is well-brewed. The hop bitterness is aggressive but nevertheless drinkable. It's stronger than a standard IPA but more approachable than, say, Steamworks' Conductor Imperial IPA.

duganA is nothing new. It's simply an above-average strong IPA, a style that is becoming achingly familiar. Yet a well-brewed IPA will always find a market. B+

Check out the Boulder Daily Camera's review here.