LIP RIPA

Triple Rye IPA

Fall River Brewing Co.

This beer from Fall River Brewing Co. (Fall River Mills, east of Redding) has danger written all over it. If you pronounce its name, LIP RIPA, correctly—“lip rippa”—you’ll understand that the image of the fish on the bottle with the hook in its mouth is the “before” picture. Also written on the side of the 22-ounce bottle is the whopping 13 percent alcohol by volume. It’s what this reviewer (or rather his wife) would call a “daddy-go-ni-night” beer. Adding to the danger is that, unlike most big beers, this triple rye IPA goes down deceptively easy. It’s pretty unbelievable that it could be so huge and so balanced—no booziness, perfect hop mix (citrus, slightly piney) and a sweetness that’s balanced by the peppery notes from the rye. It’s another excellent entry in Fall River’s stellar IPA portfolio that includes the Widowmaker double IPA and the nonpareil Hexagenia IPA, except this one comes around only once a year. Find it (Spike’s Bottle Shop, Chico Natural Foods) before it’s gone.