Commonwealth Brewing Big Papi
My introduction to Commonwealth Brewing was through their incredibly tasty Papi Chulo. That IPA was so damn good that when I spied another swirling nebulus adorning cans on shelves earlier this year, I quickly grabbed them all for myself. The 8% ABV Big Papi, as you may have guessed by the name, is the bigger brother to Papi Chulo.
This double IPA is packed with the characteristics of your modern day, hop-forward and low-bitterness IPA. I’ve complained about this type of beer not encompassing what I believe to be a true double IPA, but sometimes, even I have to suck it up and simply enjoy a damn good beer. Big Papi may not have that biting bitterness I love, but it’s more than packed with enough tropical fruit flavors, floral notes and a light bit of malt sweetness to make up for it.
This double IPA does have a light amount of hop bitterness at 61 IBU, but it takes a back seat to the mellower hop flavors. It doesn’t really taste like an amplified version of Papi Chulo, however. That smaller IPA is still my favorite of the two that I have enjoyed thus far, but I certainly wouldn’t turn down a can of Big Papi if it were offered.