Fat Head's Hop Juju Imperial Pale Ale

There are few things better than a nice glass of fresh craft beer.  And, right now, the beers of one of the best craft brewers out there -- Fat Head's -- is only available from the tap.  Fat Head's originated in Pittsburgh, and it is known for its "headwiches," which are huge sandwiches that would normally be reserved for Adam Richman to conquer on the Travel Network show Man v. Food.  However, Fat Head's North Olmsted, Ohio location is adding to the restaurant's fame for a completely different reason.  At the North Olmsted location, brewmaster Matt Cole produces some of the best beers that I have ever tasted.  He has produced a wide array of beers -- from Kolsches to Baltic Porters, from Imperial Pale Ales to Christmas Ales.  And, whenever I'm in Cleveland, I try to stop by Fat Head's to try whatever is the latest beer Matt has on tap.

This time, it was Matt's Hop Juju Imperial Pale Ale.  Imperial Pale Ales are one of my favorite beer styles and this beer lives up to what makes these beers truly great.  The Hop Ju Ju is all about the hops.  From the nose to the taste, one is inundated by hops.  The large amount of hops used in this beer creates a bitterness that is treasured by hop heads like myself.  The punch this beer provides is not just the hops, but it is also the alcohol.  The ABV of this beer is about 9.0%.  And, as the above picture shows, it is served in a small glass, rather than a pint glass.

This is truly a great beer and, for anyone who loves hops and happens to be in Cleveland area, I would recommend that you stop by and have a glass -- while it lasts.  The beer is available only on draft.  Fat Head's is working on bottling the beers, but, as of this post, the bottling has not taken place.  The picture below is the "label" of the beer, which I think is cool:

Still, I would prefer to stop by the restaurant because there are usually ten Fat Head beers on tap.  I would recommend that, after having one Hop Juju, you try another one of Matt's beers, like his award winning Headhunter IPA or his Up-in-Smoke Porter.

ENJOY!