Midnight Sun Brewing Company: Sockeye Red IPA and Cohoho Imperial IPA.

My Super Bowl beers. A couple of Alaska-brewed beers that have made their way out to Virginia, and survived the trip.

The Midnight Sun Sockeye Red IPA was wonderful. Deep mahogany red color, lots and lots of citrusy hop goodness, great balance between malt and hops - not always achieved with 70+ IBUs. It was so smooth and drinkable that I'd pour it from the bottle into my glass, and could drain the glass in one happy gulp. I'd happily have many more.

The Cohoho Imperial IPA was certainly drinkable, but had some flaws. The alcohol - higher, as you'd expect in an Imperial IPA - was the most noticeable taste, and made the beer seem hot, almost astringent. The malt and hops hadn't yet had a chance to duke it out and settle down into smoothness, so the hop bite was pronounced. As a result, the balance wasn't there yet, and you had to take it in sips - and there are a lot of sips in a 22 oz. bottle. I'd imagine that if you could take the bottle and hide it in a cool cellar for next winter, it'd go down a lot more smoothly.

Sockeye Red IPA: $4.50. Cohoho Imperial IPA: $6.95. Westpark Wine & Beer, Richmond.