I’ve already told you about my love affair with two brews made by Stone Brewery—Arrogant Bastard beer and Go to IPA beer (see https://www.facebook.com/carol.elkins.4/posts/10207305973225281). The ONLY problem with those beers (seriously, the only one) is that they’re danged expensive. Oh, and that they are very hard to find. Okay, that’s two problems. A 6-pack will set you back more than $10! While I am never reluctant to pay good money for quality stuff, I’m Scottish, and we are known for being c̶h̶e̶a̶p̶ frugal. I have great news—here are two more hoppy beers for the budget-conscious. Both beers will appeal to those of us who enjoy the delightful bitterness of over-hopped beer, but these two stand out for me because they have a lot of tasty body once you get past the hops.

Sierra Nevada steam distills wet hops into hop oil for its Hop Hunter brew and adds the oil to traditional whole-cone hops. I love that hopefully I’ll be able to get this beer without having to special order it. Sierra Nevada beers are much easier to find than Stone Brewery beers.

New Belgium’s Slow Ride is an India Pale Ale session beer. I had to look that up. Wikipedia defines a session beer as one “that has a relatively low alcohol content and is therefore suitable for drinking over an extended period.” That’s fine with me. I only drink one bottle of beer a day with dinner, so I’m not likely to binge-drink the grog.

Serra Nevada and New Belgium usually sell their 6-packs in the $8–$9 range. While not cheap, that is still less than Stone beers. I think that Hop Hunter has just become my new go-to beer.