These last couple weeks I feel like I’ve exhausted my thumbs texting friends about beer. That isn’t to say I normally don’t have extensive beer conversations over text message, just not this many. You see, last week something very special happened in California: Pliny the Younger was released.

You may have heard of Pliny the Elder, a hugely popular Double IPA from Russian River Brewing, bottled and brewed year-round so that whenever you feel like a solid favorite, it is always around somewhere. However, the Elder’s younger nephew is quite a bit more elusive. Only released once a year, Pliny the Younger is eagerly awaited by those in the know, and swarmed upon like a liquefied Justin Bieber in a 12-year old girl’s birthday punchbowl. Really. Some bars get just one keg of Younger, which disappears in an hour or so.

In fact, Younger is so popular, most bars have a two beer limit, and only serve them in 10-ounce glasses. They do this partially because it is so popular, and partially because it quickly shoots down gullets at 11% ABV (of course, they also do it to rake in the dough).

So there I was, calling bars and texting friends for a week, trying to find what day what bar was getting the Younger, so I could show up, drink two, and move on to the next place for two more. Pliny the Younger is deceptively clear, crisp, and light for a beer at 11%. The nose is slightly floral, doesn’t carry much hop bomb to warn against such a wonderful, hoppy taste. The alcohol content is perfectly masked by the balanced bitterness, and you find yourself  in that warm buzz of complete contentedness. It truly is a standard-bearer for Triple IPAs.

During last week’s search and seizure of Pliny the Younger, I also came across some other excellent beers. At Pyramid Brewery in Berkeley, their seasonal is the Outburst IPA, which to tell you the truth, tastes a lot like the Younger. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but the nice medium color and freshness from such a hoppy beer was pleasing in all the same ways. Like the Younger, there is something to be said for multiple dry hopping in this Imperial IPA. I’ve also been drinking Brown Shugga, by Lagunitas Brewing, at home- and at 9.99%, it is something you need to grab before it disappears, which it will soon. Take a virtual taste here, and then maybe you can decide what style Shugga belongs to.

But amazingly, the best beer I’ve had in the last couple weeks wasn’t the Younger. At The Bistro, in my hometown of Hayward, California, and friend introduced me to an angel. There was one bottle of Lost Abbey’s Angel’s Share left Thursday after work, and my buddy Dan put it in front of me and told me it was a beer I needed to try.

Try I did.

The Angel’s Share doesn’t simply have chocolate notes, or cocoa. It has an all-out fudge flavor balanced so well with the rest of the beer, it is like drinking a bitter slice of heaven- if the clouds in heaven are 12.5% alcohol. Aged for a year in bourbon or brandy barrels, this Strong Ale drips with dark caramel malt that emphasizes flavors of vanilla and oak. I had tried Lost Abbey’s Avante Garde before, but did not know they were so versatile a label. In fact, Lost Abbey is Port Brewing’s Belgian-style Label, whereas the Pizza Port beers are reserved for their California recipes. As if I couldn’t be a bigger fan of Port Brewing, the Angel’s Share absolutely blew me away. Miraculously, we talked the bartender into looking one more time to see if there were any left, and sure enough, he found one more 750 ml bottle. We drank it greedily, not even noticing they were getting ready to tap a new keg of Pliny the Younger. It was as if we were touched by, well…really good beer.