 Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and this is the seventh installment of his beer column. He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd. Drink up. Certain beer styles just taste better at different times of the year. Give me a big Stout or Quadrupel in the dead of winter. I'll take a Saison or Hefeweizen on those 90+ degree summer days in Atlanta. And as college football begins and fall is on the horizon, all I want to drink are IPAs. Beer styles tend to have hot streaks and become the must haves of the moment. Currently, sour and barrel-aged beers are all the rage, but those will someday lose their popularity and a new flash-in-the-pan style will have its moment to shine. One style though, has remained tried and true since its inception and has become the unofficial staple American craft beer: the India Pale Ale. The style quickly caught on and breweries began producing IPAs all over England. American brewers later adopted the style and used our indigenous hops, which have a more pronounced bitterness and robust flavor than the English varieties. The Ballantine India Pale Ale became the first widely distributed IPA in America but it was the Sierra Nevada Brewery that popularized the style as we know it today, in 1980. The Brewer's Association recognizes 84 different beer styles but when you factor in the sub categories of those 84, you get a total of over 150 various styles. There's truly a beer style for everyone. If you're one of those "I don't like beer" people, keep trying different styles. There's bound to be one that you'll enjoy. I'm currently enjoying the heck out of IPAs. I'm always seeking out new ones and revisiting the classics that first turned me onto the style. But talk to me next month and my beer style of the moment could very well be a Bourbon Barrel Aged Pumpkin Ale. But for now, I'm all about the IPAs. I've listed the different varieties of IPAs below, along with my favorites of each and I'd love to know yours. Let me know in the comments below. Pale Ale Three Floyds – Zombie Dust IPA Firestone Walker – Union Jack DIPA Russian River – Pliny the Elder Fresh Hop Because of the high cost and work involved, many breweries largely ignore this style and instead opt for dried whole cone hops or hop pellets. Fresh Hop beers run the gamut in color, bitterness, and ABV, with the only true requirement being the use of, well, fresh hops. This year's Fresh Hop Ales should be hitting the market soon and if you can get your hands on one of these, do it, the aroma and clean taste of the hops is unlike any other style. Here are three breweries that do it exceptionally well: Great Divide – Fresh Hop Black IPA Victory – Yakima Glory Peace and happy drinking, and share your favorites in the comments below. Previously - You say you want a canvolution? |
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Imperial IPA from Epic Brewing has to be the best IPA I've ever tasted.
Chainbreaker from Deschutes Brewery is one that I've found to have a great, complex flavor. Its a white IPA with corriander. Great drinkability!
No mention of Stone, this guy has no credibility. Ruination is the absolute best IPA on the planet, period.
ah yes, Stone IPA is one of the great ones. I believe the brewmaster of the now defunct Oasis brewery is responsible for Stone.
Chill, beer dude, most of us beer geeks worthy of the name could name 5 to 10 very worthy examples in those category. The writer was just mentioning what he is drinking at the moment.
Don't know about the other two, but Odell??? Come on. Having spent much time in neighboring Boulder, I am well acquainted with Odell brewery (located right up the road). Although not a terrible IPA, it certainly does not rival Anderson Valley's IPA. Odell is a 90 pound weakling going up against this heavy hitter IPA.
Almost forget, absolutely the best IPA's out there are Surly Furious and Abbrasive.
Boulevard Single Wide IPA and Double Wide IPA are great.
If you're in the Twin Cities area, Steel Toe's Size 7 can't be beat. An assertive blast of citrus with some pine and resin right behind it, balancing some nice alcoholic warmth. The malt ties the whole thing together like The Dude's rug.
Another fave is Bell's Two-Hearted Ale.
You mentioned a great Founder's beer, but missed their triple IPA Devil Dancer. It's basically liquid hops, and an amazing beer. High ABV, great aroma, and it will knock your socks off!
Nice article– one really popular form of IPA also worth mentioning (sort of like the brief black IPA blurb at the end) would be the Rye IPA! There are so many awesome examples being brewed:
Founder's Red's RyePA
Shmaltz Bittersweet Lenny's RIPA
Three Floyds Rye Da Tiger/ Rye Da Lightning
Great Lakes Rye of the Tiger
Sierra Nevada Ruthless Rye
New Holland Rye Hatter
It's ALWAYS a good time for IPA:)
I'm not a huge fan of really hoppy beers but I do enjoy Three Floyd's Zombie Dust. I tend to gravitate more to the wheat beers of summer, Marzen styles in early fall, and in winter I enjoy stouts and porters.
1. Ranger IPA
2. Abita Jockamo IPA
3. Stone IPA
4. SN Pale Ale
5. Southern Tier IPA
6. My homebrew :)
All good brews!! The order could depend on the given month. If only we got them all in Canada :( My homebrew helps fill the gap!
Knee Deep Simtra is a really great Triple IPA that is a must try. As far as Stone goes, I recently had double dry hopped (I think they used columbus hops) Ruination at a local pub and it was absolutely delicious.
I love that Nathan mentioned black IPA's. This has got to be a favorite beer style of mine as I love stouts and I love hops and the union of bitterness and roasted malt produces a great flavor. Check out Coronado Brewing Company's Black Sails and Port Brewing's Tarantulas 2.1
Stone Ruination. Hops, hops, and more hops.
Stash IPA by Independence Brewery in Austin TX – best IPA I've had yet. Love them all.
From Maine – Shipyard's Monkey Fist IPA is very good – will have to try the Sierra – hope it's fresh.
Well someone's been listening to The Beerists Podcast...
Come on CNN, ya can at least reference them without stealing all their material.
Hi Norm. I've never listened to the Beerists Podcast before. The only podcasts I listen to are WTF, Comedy Bang Bang, and NPR. I think it's awesome there was apparently some overlap, though! Just curious, what were the similarities?
My hometown brewery makes the best IPA – Mad Anthony Brewing Company in Fort Wayne, IN. I've tasted quite a few. Not just being a homer. If you're traveling in northern IN it's well worth your money.
Patrick is right, southern tier2x is great. I work for a beer distributor in charlotte, nc. We carry that one as well as Abita jockamo. Both are great IPA's.
Great article, thanks, Nathan.
Dogfish Head's 90 Minute IPA is the #1 beer in the world, according to a survey I did earlier this year of myself.
But seriously, it's a really good IPA.
Hear, hear... The 60 minute, nothing special... the 120 minute, virtually undrinkable... but DFH 90 minute is my favorite beer of all time.
Get to Greensboro Vt for some of Hill Farmstead Brews. Amazing! Edward is a favorite!
Cheers!
Wow... a CNN article where the comments section isn't filled with hateful attacks. Maybe the beer crowd should be in charge of the world... it'd sure be a lot more fun.
Beer brings people together!
Sierra Nevada's Celebration Ale is what I wait for each year. Also Tall Grass Oasis is outstanding.
If you are ever in this neck of the woods (Central New York) , you have got to try the 2X IPA from the Southern Tier Brewing co. It is a real treat.
Patrick, We see Southern Tier in Atlanta! I love the iniquity and unearthly!
IPA is a beer style that is best when it's fresh, so don't concern yourself too much with seeking Pliny or Heady Topper if you can't get them FRESH. Find your local brewery, and I can almost guarantee they make a unique and awesome IPA that will taste great because it's fresh! When I lived in Redlands, CA, I couldn't get enough of Hangar 24's IPA and Double IPA. Drink local, my friends!
You can find some great IPA's and Oktober beers on sale at SaveOnBrew DOT com!
Cask strength IPA – Noble Ale Work's in Anaheim, CA. Their Knight Challenger Cask Strength IPA
Most IPA to my palate tastes like a lemon rind about to turn. But I just tried Abita's Jockamo. That was the juice. A beer that redefines for me what the style could be.
Oh, if only everyone could taste Heady Topper. Great mention of a deserving beer.
Heady Topper is one that I've been attempting to try. Being that The Alchemist are such a small time craft brewery in Vermont makes that really hard haha. It kind of reminds me of the way Alpine Brewing Co. does things here in San Diego. Their Bad Boy is one of the best DIPA I've ever tasted (it is definitely up there with Pliny) and they do not ship it, do not brew it on a regular basis, and do not bottle it. Basically you can only get it from their brewery in a growler or a pint from the tap.
Bell's Two Hearted Ale for me
I will second that motion, absolutely!
Agreed – lighter than most IPA's, but a perfectly balanced flavor. Near perfection. Bell's is the best brewery in the U.S.
I agree! Bell's Two Hearted or Ballast Point Sculpin are two of my favorite IPAs
THE standby for my hop fix, and one of the beers that converted me to craft! I'm grateful to live in MI, for the fact that fresh Two Heart is on tap everywhere.
Sorry, Fall = Oktoberfest
Classical Columbian cocaine used to be the main staple for those going out for a night on the town...but now many varieties have sprung up!
Many people dont like cocaine often because of the taste you get during the drip, well I have news for you! There are a multitude of different varieties available now and days.....so if you keep sniffing your are bound to find one you like!
Get a stuffy nose in the fall...?...You can always smoke and inject it too! Great for those with colds or allergies!
My personal favorite lately has been the Peruvian flake cocaine. It has a shiny appearence with an almost purple tint....the powder tends to clump together, but once it succesfully goes down your nose you are in for a real treat!
I encourage everyone to try these new varieties, and if you are a newcomer or switching over from beer you are in for a suprise. Cocaine is only mentally addicting, not physically addictive like alcohol. Also it has been shown to increase intelligence.
Make sure for the winter season you get a hold of the "Pablo powder" or "Mexican snowflake" variety so you too can indeed have the "White Christmas"!
Can you at least try and spell the country correctly if you are going to be an jerk? It's Colombia.
jeff bojangles: I hope for the sake of anyone around you that you are just a kid waiting to grow up.
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale is my standard, daily beer.
Also currently enjoying Abita Jockamo IPA.
OMG an article that didn't mention the election. It is going to take me about an hour to get over this. Thanks Nathan
First CNN article I can absolutely 100% agree with. IPA is the only beer.
Gotta love a nice ! IPA or Stout!
screw bud light and all that poop
So what does IPA stand for?
Indian Pale Ale
Sorry to nitpick, but i
Excuse the earlier post, I accidentally hit post! What I was trying to say was that IPA actually stands for "India" Pale Ale, as it was the East India Trading Company that originated the style. Now if only I could figure out how to use a computer...
Just got back from Bend, OR a few weeks ago and had the most amazing brown ale. 10 Barrel Brewery's Oregon Brown. I normally dislike browns but this was amazing. They loaded up the hops which is not the norm yet it still had the earthy taste of a brown. I'm still thinking about it.
you should try Stone's collaboration "TBA"–it's also a hoppy, brown ale. the type of thing I wish every Stone IPA (ie, every Stone beer) would taste like :D