San Diego’s AleSmith Brewing Co. today announced that its Hall of Fame Imperial San Diego Pale Ale .394 will be available in markets across the U.S.
The product rollout begins this month in tap rooms and on- and off-premise accounts throughout the country.
San Diego-style IPAs are known for their bright bitter hop flavors. They are aggressively piney and tropical, with similarly strong aromatics, like West Coast IPAs in general.
In 2014, AleSmith released the original San Diego Pale Ale .394, named for the batting average at which the late Tony Gwynn, San Diego Padres legend and MLB Hall of Famer, finished the 1994 season. AleSmith and Gwynn collaborated in the development of the beer, which Gwynn described as “light with a kick,” the company says.
The next year, a higher-octane interpretation, dubbed Hall of Fame Imperial San Diego Pale Ale .394, weighed in at 9% ABV packed into 22 oz. bottles adorned with Gwynn’s Hall of Fame signature, was made available in California only.
Like its predecessor, the imperial .394 is contains numerous American hops, the company says, with a balanced palate of citrus, tropical fruit and pine notes.