What I’m drinking this week: Hop Opera from Mikkeller San Diego

Name: Hop Opera

Brewery: Mikkeller San Diego

Style: New England Double India Pale Ale

ABV: 8%

This week, we’re taking it back to the beginning with a beer from the first brewery I ever featured in this column: Mikkeller San Diego.

READ MORE: What I’m drinking this week: Super Helles from Mikkeller Brewing San Diego

This brewery has a special place in my heart ... specifically, in the form of its sour ales. But today, I’m mixing past with present and opting for a New England Double India Pale Ale to continue my 22 IPAs in 2022 challenge. (For those counting at home, this is IPA No. 7.)

My review for this beer boils down to one word: wow. This is the IPA for the non-IPA drinkers — and a double, no less. Though hop heavy, the bitterness is nowhere to be found. It is incredibly refreshing ... dare I say, more refreshing than its Rasberry Blush? Guava Gang? Passion Pool? (I told you: I’m obsessed with Mikkeller’s sours.)

READ MORE: What I’m drinking this week: Henry’s Holiday Cheer from Mikkeller Brewing San Diego

This beer might not be bitter, but it is bittersweet, as it serves as my farewell drink. Just shy of Hop Talk’s one-year anniversary, I’ll be departing from The San Diego Union-Tribune. Don’t worry — they’ll still be plenty of local beer coverage coming your way, just poured from someone else’s glass.

And while this is my last official column, keep a look out for my final beer story next week, which will discuss the San Diego Brewers Guild’s 25th anniversary and dive into the history, and current state, of the local craft beer scene.

Thanks for a wonderful run of Hop Talk. Cheers to you, San Diego beer drinkers!