Both poured with very little and similar head and neither were very highly carbed. As you can see, the original is a bit darker.
In terms of aroma, I'd forgotten how much of an English style Pale Ale the original was - smelling of malts and English yeast. I was excited to take the new one in since it spoke of using new hops including the Madarin Bavaria but it didn't give off much of an aroma. There's a bit there, but not "Stone" aroma by any means at all.
In terms of taste, I really don't care for the original much at all. I think I had just forgotten than over the years. The 2.0 was a bit lighter in the mouth, provided some decent up front flavor, but there is a lingering, dry, bitter finish that I don't like. You get some of the Madarin Bavaria hops right at the end and then a super dryness that hangs on the tongue and doesn't dissipate. I drank the whole bottle but can't say that I really enjoyed it.
I was really looking forward to this beer because of all the hype and discussion around updating the hop techniques and hops strains used but this is a beer I wouldn't buy again. If any of you have tried Stone's GoTo Session IPA, it finishes a lot like that beer.
In the end, 2.0 was the winner between the two but far from a beer I would recommend.
Oh well, I guess they all can't be home runs - right?
