Three Floyds has been in operation since 1996 when it was founded by brothers Nick and Simon and their dad Mike Floyd (get it? There are three of them). After an expansion and serious upgrade from their previous brewing facility in Hammond, IN, the Floyds and company settled into their current 15 barrel capacity brewhouse in Munster, IN. 15 barrels is a tiny, and I mean tiny, brewing operation. 15 barrels is the equivalent of 30 kegs, which is 465 gallons. What that means is that the brewery can house, at any given time, a maximum of 465 gallons of beer. The consequences of this microscopic approach is that production is limited and distribution is spotty, even in Three Floyd's small distribution range. This has been beneficial to their business as the scarcity of their extremely well regarded lineup amplifies the hype and cache of the brewery. They typify what I call a boutique brewery, a brewery that caters almost exclusively to the hardcore beer geek crowd. Beyond a couple reasonably priced six packs, their beers are packaged in large format bottles at premium prices, prices high enough to deter the casual beer drinker. The hype train has gone off the rails for this brewery as they are widely known for producing one of the best Imperial Stouts on Earth, Dark Lord. The beer is available one day a year and can only be purchased at the brewery. Beer geeks from around the country reserve their golden tickets in advance that guarantee them a few bottles and then camp out outside the brewery the night before. This camping experience has become something of an impromptu beer festival, with everyone in attendance bringing beers from their respective corners of the country. The party still hasn't stopped when the beer goes on sale in the morning and everyone bellies up around $15 per bottle of this apparently magical elixir. Attending Dark Lord Day is still on my bucket list. Just need to save some money for the pilgrimage.
Dreadnaught falls into the category of an imperial or double IPA. The terms "imperial" and "double" are somewhat interchangeable, depending on who you ask. While I prefer "double", both terms refer to an amplified version of whatever style you're talking about, in this case an amplified IPA. When I say amplified, what I mean is that the brewers have added more hops and more malt. This results in a bigger, fuller bodied beer that (hopefully) retains the flavor components of the original, albeit on a larger scale. The bigger malt bill also means more alcohol. Whereas a typical IPA can range from 5.5% to 7.5% abv (roughly), an I/DIPA starts out around 8% and can trend upward into double digits of alcoholic strength. Dreadnaught is a more than adequate 9.5% abv. The style, while originating in England, has really become a darling of the American craft beer industry, where brewers can use stronger, more pungent American hop varieties to push the hop presence into the stratosphere. The key with the style is maintaining balance and keeping the hops from overwhelming the whole beer. Some choose to do this by crafting a beer with a more noticeable malt profile; that is, a big sweet beer that also happens to be incredibly hoppy. Other brewers choose to turn out a beer that is leaner in body by making sure that the malt is very well attenuated. Attenuation means the degree to which the yeast has consumed and converted available sugars into alcohol. If your beer is well attenuated, it will finish dry and not be cloyingly sweet on the tongue. Additionally, I/DIPAs will vary in character by the hop varieties used which impart an array of different flavors. Remember, these beers are all about the hops so the varieties used are of the utmost importance. Having had Dreadnaught on numerous occasions, I readily admit my bias toward how they make their beer, but I will give the beer my honest evaluation.
The beer is presented in a 22oz bottle (called a bomber) that is wrapped in a really funky label. The company mantra of "It's not normal" certainly seems fitting here for what can best be described as an acid trip on a label. The artwork is intriguing, however, and doesn't look like anything else on a beer store shelf, so they won that battle. An unrestrained pour into my Three Floyds pint glass shows off a beautiful hazy orange beer the color of a summer sunset. The beer is crested by a persistent inch and a half thick ivory head. Retention is solid and lacing is superb, leaving uniform rings around the entire glass. Appearance: 14/15
Putting my nose in the glass is something I can only liken to that moment right as the gates of Heaven are opening - you know something awesome is about to happen but you don't know what and the uncertainty makes you brim with anticipation. While it may be blasphemous to compare Heaven to beer, this is as close as I get to a religious experience so I see your blasphemy and raise you a heresy. A finely arranged bouquet of pineapple, grapefruit, mango, orange, peach, and lemon fill my nostrils. This is the type of beer that I could simply smell for a half hour or so and be perfectly happy. Lucky for me, I don't have to settle for perfectly happy. I get to taste it! Nose: 25/25
The taste is otherworldly. While the flavors of the nose are all still there, I am confronted by stampeding grapefruit and a certain prickly pear flavor. There is very little malt profile present, just some traces of sweetness here and there. The magic of this beer is that it has seemingly such a minute malt profile, yet the hops are not destroying the beer and the abv is still high - this is truly a feat of brewing. The hop profile is exactly my preference in IPAs. I taste lush, green, citrusy fruits at every turn. Piney and floral IPAs and I/DIPAs are good too, but this is where my heart belongs. Palate: 50/50
The mouthfeel is perfection. I couldn't dream of a better texture. Full bodied yet slick and easy to drink. There is prodigious carbonation here, enough that all those tiny little bubbles can scrub your tongue between tastes so that each time you raise the beer to your lips, it is like a new experience. Truly amazing. Mouthfeel: 10/10
OVERALL: 99/100
I really didn't set out to write a fluff piece about Dreadnaught but it deserves my greatest acclaim. This beer already had a place as one of my all-time favorite beers, but doing this type of in-depth review has confirmed its greatness for me. I've had over 1,000 beers and dozens, if not a hundred, of those have been IPAs or I/DIPAs so I consider myself relatively well versed in the style and this towers above the rest. There are a few truly great IPAs out there that I haven't had yet (I'm looking at you, Russian River and Alpine) but I can confidently say this is a world class beer. Three Floyds distributes to Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, and the Chicago area. If you find yourself here, do yourself a favor and grab a bottle (or ten). You won't be disappointed. Cheers!
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