Way back before Hive was Hive, on the chain-which-shall-not-be-named, I wrote an early Amateurish Beer review entry on Ninkasi Total Domination IPA almost 6 years ago in late May of 2017. The questions for today are whether my tastes have changed, and whether the beer is any good.
From the brewery website: Well, time for a link update! Try this.
Old blurb:
This decidedly balanced Northwest IPA celebrates our love of hops. A delightful blend of citrus and floral hop notes dominate the senses while a trio of malt adds a clean finish. Totally hoppy, totally drinkable; the name says it all.
New blurb:
In 2006, we set out to create a beer as unique as the Pacific Northwest, packed full of grapefruit and pine notes. This one goes out to all the trailblazers, pioneers, and first ascenders out there.
2023 website image source
Link and marketeering aside, it's still 6.7% alcohol by volume and 81 international bitterness units. Back then, I wasn't particularly impressed. I hadn't resigned myself to the total domination (see what I did there?) of IPA-style beers. I also preferred the Union Jack IPA from Firestone Brewing.
It's been a while since I last had Union Jack, but it was good. I still don't much care for Total Domination, but I think my palate has developed to where I can better appreciate what it is trying to do. It is quite piney-grapefruity in the hops, and not especially malty, but much more enjoyable than I seemed to perceive it then. The absence of promised "floral hop notes" present in the old blurb now means a better description.
It's still not quite to my liking, but you may enjoy it. If you're ever within the range of their distributors, try it! If nothing else, it's something different from cheap mass-market adjunct lagers. It's still not a favorite, but it ain't bad!
I have a couple more old reviews I'd like to revisit and re-evaluate. What do you think?
