Victory Hop Devil

Brewed by: Victory Brewing Company

Brewery Location: Downingtown, PA

Style: American IPA

ABV: 6.70%

As I have made painfully clear, I am an IPA drinkin’, bitterness-seeking hophead. When my local distributor started carrying Hop Devil by Victory Brewing Company, I immediately added it to my list of beer to purchase in the very near future. The day finally came; I purchased a six-pack and sat down to a brew that I had been waiting to drink for a few months. If I would have know what was waiting for me, let’s just say I would have reworked that “to purchase” list and moved Victory a bit up the alphabet.

I poured into a tulip glass and was greeted by a clear and dark amber appearance. There were a significant amount of carbonation bubbles, which excited me, because hell, this beer just looked crisp. There was a significantly larger than usual head which hung around for a while, only increasing an already pleasant appearance.

Like several other IPAs I have reviewed, the most dominant smells were citrus and hops. The citrus was predominantly grapefruit, with perhaps a hint of orange. The hoppy smell was almost spicy, which in combination with the appearance, only backed up my theory that this guy was going to be crisp.

Upon first sip, I could tell that my suspicions were going to be confirmed. I immediately noticed a very hoppy flavor, which had an incredibly piney forefront. What was most interesting about the taste is that while it was very hoppy, it wasn’t overly bitter in the slightest. The grapefruit was still able to shine through, which complemented the pine flavor rather nicely. Also interesting, the Hop Devil has some malt tones in there as well, which made for a very unique experience.

Don’t get me wrong, I am an absolute sucker for an IPA that is bitter from start to finish, but wow this was a very good beer. The fact that the malt, hops and citrus were able to punch through to my palate is sign of fantastic brew craftsmanship. I could drink this on a very regular basis and never look back. Great brew, Victory.