Beer Style: The IPA

[scntfc]

IPAs are definitely not crap. as a true northwesterner, i love heavily hopped beers. balance? whatever, it get to a point where it's not about subtlety. a really great hop flavor trumps balance for me, as that unique plant-like flavor can easily stand on its own.

georgetown brewery in seattle makes 'johnny utah', what they call a session IPA with heavy hop flavor yet light on alcohol content. brilliant idea.

[same]

While Two Hearted is most certainly a pale ale, I would not call it an IPA.

Qualify this statement please.

Basing it on taste (sweet, slightly spiced), aroma (flowery), and color (gold - will be cloudy from yeast sediment if not decanted). Seems much closer to a Belgian pale than an IPA to me.

We'll talk about this when I get home.

Haha. OK Dad.

I'd like to add, Two Hearted used to be a winter seasonal before Bell's started making it year round. What kind of IPA is a winter seasonal? IPA is a very summery beer style. I think people started calling Two Hearted an IPA long after it was introduced, simply because it's heavily hopped.

The problem with nitpicking over the what falls under the American IPA umbrella is people will call almost any heavily hopped beer an IPA in this country. So, sorry I started nitpicking.

[tbone]

Two Hearted is one of my favorite beers. The only downside is that it seems like 7% beers like Two Hearted, for me at least, get me even more wasted than a lot of beers with higher ABV. Because I can just drink and drink and drink the bastards, whereas higher ABV beers I can usually taste the alcohol and just naturally take it easy.

[jimmy two hands]

While Two Hearted is most certainly a pale ale, I would not call it an IPA.

Qualify this statement please.

Basing it on taste (sweet, slightly spiced), aroma (flowery), and color (gold - will be cloudy from yeast sediment if not decanted). Seems much closer to a Belgian pale than an IPA to me.

We'll talk about this when I get home.

Haha. OK Dad.

I'd like to add, Two Hearted used to be a winter seasonal before Bell's started making it year round. What kind of IPA is a winter seasonal? IPA is a very summery beer style.

High ABV beers, whatever style they may be, I tend to enjoy more in the winter than in the summer.

[brando562]

Sometimes overkilled with the amount of hops but mostly Not Crap. They're also one of the more common "craft" style beers, which means they're really working their way in to bars that typically just have your Coors/Budweiser/watery brews. One of my favorites right now is the Stone IPA, which is definitely hoppy but still has some nice citrus flavor going for it as well. I miss Middle Ages IPA badly too, guess that's what I get for moving coast to coast.

[a leg plaster]

I love IPA's and feel comfortable crediting them for getting me interested in seeking out new beers in all shapes and forms in the first place. Must've all started with Red Hook's Longhammer.

[tallchris]

georgetown brewery in seattle makes 'johnny utah', what they call a session IPA with heavy hop flavor yet light on alcohol content. brilliant idea.

Need to try that! Their Lucille IPA is one of my favs. Luckily I live just above it in mid-Beacon Hill, so I can fill up cheap growlers on the reg with virtually no hassle.

[Tommy]

georgetown brewery in seattle makes 'johnny utah', what they call a session IPA with heavy hop flavor yet light on alcohol content. brilliant idea.

Need to try that! Their Lucille IPA is one of my favs. Luckily I live just above it in mid-Beacon Hill, so I can fill up cheap growlers on the reg with virtually no hassle.

I got so shitfaced on the brewery tour at that one in 2001. Cost = $1.

[tallchris]

georgetown brewery in seattle makes 'johnny utah', what they call a session IPA with heavy hop flavor yet light on alcohol content. brilliant idea.

Need to try that! Their Lucille IPA is one of my favs. Luckily I live just above it in mid-Beacon Hill, so I can fill up cheap growlers on the reg with virtually no hassle.

I got so shitfaced on the brewery tour at that one in 2001. Cost = $1.

I haven't even gone on the tour yet, and I live less than two miles away. Gonna have to resolve that once we get a Saturday with some decent weather.

[scntfc]

georgetown brewery in seattle makes 'johnny utah', what they call a session IPA with heavy hop flavor yet light on alcohol content. brilliant idea.

Need to try that! Their Lucille IPA is one of my favs. Luckily I live just above it in mid-Beacon Hill, so I can fill up cheap growlers on the reg with virtually no hassle.

aww yeah. i'm a beacon hill'er too. last summer i was riding my bike down and back almost weekly with two growlers in my backpack. lucille + johnny utah (when it was around) or roger's. they didn't have johnny utah last time i was in, but it should be making a return soon.

[ERawk]

The backlash in the BBQ thread is kind of cute, because everyone was nuts for this shit a few BBQs ago.

Every time Col's done an IPA for these things, it's pretty much the first one to cash.

Signed,

Your Friendly PRFBBQ Homebrew-Serving Wench

[MWilke]

In my experience, the first ounce of an IPA is about 10 times more satisfying than the 15th ounce. They tend to max out the bitter sensing taste buds which is nice at the start but hard to finish. Afterwards, I'm craving something like a piece of hard candy to set my taste buds back in order. I don't understand how people can drink more than one in a given night.

[tallchris]

georgetown brewery in seattle makes 'johnny utah', what they call a session IPA with heavy hop flavor yet light on alcohol content. brilliant idea.

Need to try that! Their Lucille IPA is one of my favs. Luckily I live just above it in mid-Beacon Hill, so I can fill up cheap growlers on the reg with virtually no hassle.

aww yeah. i'm a beacon hill'er too. last summer i was riding my bike down and back almost weekly with two growlers in my backpack. lucille + johnny utah (when it was around) or roger's. they didn't have johnny utah last time i was in, but it should be making a return soon.

SOUTH SEATTLE WHATWHAT.

[Heath]

I swear I posted here, but I can't find it. Hope I didn't post somewhere else!

I like IPAs just fine! The ones from Stone, Founders, and Terrapin suit me just fine. Sweetwater makes an IPA that tastes pretty much like grapefruit juice. Not a huge fan.

I wholeheartedly agree that double/imperial IPAs don't feel like IPAs. Too rich.

[bogusaurus]

I love IPAs. Especially O'Hara's Irish Pale Ale, which one of the nicest I've had. Their Leann Folláin stout is incredible also.

[kokorodoko]

Absolutely Not crap, but waffles for overly hoppy ones, I mean sometimes they just go overboard. Brewdog Punk IPA is one example. I managed three or for sips then had to throw that shit away.

Also overly flowery ones tend to taste like soap.

The place I work at had a bunch of IPAs on tap during the winter months, including a great set from Raasted (Cascade, Nelson Sauvin, Rug and Fairbar). That shit was gold.

[MrFood]

Best beer in the world.

The pub near my old rehearsal space occasionally gets a few barrels of this - when it gets announced on their Twitter feed, they actually have a queue before opening time.

Replace the option for 'not crap' with 'the reason MrFood gets up in the afternoon'.

[The MayorofRockNRoll]

recently had:



which was pretty good. Also tried the Finch blonde ale, which wasn't really doing it for me.

[rchapman75]

Pale ales of all stripes are among my favorite beers. A lot of US IPAs are overhopped (fine, if that's what I want; but I don't drink beer that often anymore, I usually want something balanced and, well, correct). You can't get Dogfish Head in WI any more, I think that's a drag -- they were seemingly the only major US brewer who knew to balance extra hops with extra malt. Their 90 minute is probably the best IPA I've ever had.

I'm reading this thread over a bottle of 90 Minute.

NOT! CRAP!