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- Thread starter Nittany Ned2
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Count me in that group. When at a micro-brewery, I pick the beer with the lowest IBUs.
A few thoughts. I don't know if anyone likes them the first time they try them. Palates need to develop over time to get there. Most people who don't like IPAs haven't given them enough of a chance. Not all IPAs are bitter (some have very low IBUs), and what bitterness is there generally fades after the first sip or two... leaving you with only hop flavor. So while this article may shed some light on to why some don't like that one little sip of IPA they've tried... it doesn't mean some people will just never like IPAs. I've seen people go from drinking miller lite, to being hop heads... one day it just clicked, it can happen to anyone who gives them a chance. Twenty years ago, I used to avoid them like the plague. Then I went through a hop head phase, where it's all I wanted.
I like a lot of IPA's but the recent trend of upping the IBU's past 100 is where I lose interest in them. 40-60 is the range I prefer.
I think Dogfish head has one rated at above 600.
I really like their 60 Minute IPA and the 90 is as high as I will drink.
Seek out some good starter IPAs from some place like Treehouse Brewing. They pretty much only dry-hop their beer, giving it intense hop flavor with almost no bitterness. Also double or imperial IPAs typically are sweeter (takes more sugar to make more alcohol), and some people find them easier to get into.
Those are my favorites as well.
I do a lot of the labels for DuClaw brewing, here in MD. and "Sours" seem to be the new "Big" thing for them. That and aging them in bourbon or whiskey barrels.
Recent trend of upping IBU'S!?!?!? When you say, recent, do you mean 10 years ago? Because the current trend is to brew big hoppy beers with as few IBU's as possible.
60, 75, and 90 minute IPA are very similar beers of different strength. 120 minute is a completely different animal that was brewed just to see how extreme they could go, it's not just the next step up from 90 minute... it's pretty much twice as strong!
Those are my favorites as well.
I do a lot of the labels for DuClaw brewing, here in MD. and "Sours" seem to be the new "Big" thing for them. That and aging them in bourbon or whiskey barrels.
Sours are pretty much exactly like IPAs. When you drink one, its wrecks your palate for other beers. And they are hard to get into if you are just casually sampling them. They usually punch you in the face with the first sip or two, then the sourness pretty much fades away.
Yes, its been about that long. Sours are probably the newest and barrel aging.
As I brew my own beer I understand the 60 minute IPA's.
For the most part I'm not a fan. I've pretty much sampled every "sour" that DuClaw offers and the only one I could maybe drink an entire bottle of is their Blueberry sour.
As far as the Dogfish 120 Minute they add another sugar doing the boiling to up the ALC level. I think it might be Maple syrup but I'm not positive.
My go to Weiss and hefe's are Hoegarden and Sierra Nevada has a really good Hefe called Kellerweis, its very good.
But my all time favorite Belgian is Damnation Ale from Russian River.
Ok full disclosure I pretty much love everything I've tasted from Russian River.
I like a little hoppiness but not the over-the-top stuff that seems to be popular. Bring me in at 40-50 IBU
While some people are doing sour IPAs and barrel aged IPAs... I wouldn't' call it a trend. The big thing these days in IPAs are big hazy ones with low IBUs.
Those sound like something I would like but, as may be extremely obvious, I'm not up on "the big thing these days". Can you provide me an example? Are they still considered IPAs? I see other Pale Ales around but I thought that high IBUs were part and parcel of IPAs.
Yeah, that's one of my (many) complaints. For whatever reason, that info (along with other things like ABV) is typically not provided on the product. I'm not sure why. Instead, some companies want to tell me a story.
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anon_1eeb2b426hv3y
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I must have reprogrammed my genes. I didn’t like beer. After reprogramming, voila! I did.
Then I liked beer but didn’t like IPA. Then I reprogrammed again.
My kids only liked milk. Then they moved on to basic cereals, Mac and cheese, pizza, chicken fingers and fries... now broccoli.
Still reprogramming for things like salads, lima beans, etc. that genetic code has been a bit more stingy...
Most of the time if you go to the beer website or check beeradvocate it will tell you the IBU's.
I do graphic design, pre-press and photography for a label printing company,
so I'm pretty familiar with whats on the labels and I don't know why they don't include that. Seems to me it would be relevant, at least to the beer drinkers that know what they want or know what they are looking at.
Most will give the ALC. content and some will even tell you the type of Hops they used and some even give the adjuncts (barley, wheat rye...) but I can't think of any that actually put the IBU's on the label.
Too many new brewers seem to think that more is always better. Better is better.
+1 on the Dry Hopping although my experience has been more "Smell" than "taste" with Dry hopping.
Also agree about the sweetness thats why I mentioned the Dogfish 120. I'm pretty sure they add Maple Syrup to up the ALC. content and it does make it "sweeter" I don't like them but many people do. Personally I don't like drinking a beer once it gets above about a 7 or 8% anything after that and I might as well drink a brandy or port.
I liked IPA's a few years back and still have them at a new brewery. My favorite type of beer would be a hoppy lager. Light yet a bit hoppy. Many IPA's just are too 'thick' for me to enjoy more than a couple dozen
I couldn't disagree more. The heavier hoppier IPAs are perfect for fall and winter. In the summertime, I want something lighter... maybe a session IPA, but not the heavy stuff.
As for anyone who doesn't enjoy IPAs, that's not a bad thing. It's an acquired taste, and some folks just don't have the palate (aka balls) for them.
I didn't like IPAs at one point either, but then again, there was a time when I drank my coffee with cream and sugar and drank my iced tea sweetened. Then when I was in college, I thought "uhhh, why am I drinking my coffee like a girl?". So I started drinking it black as well as my iced tea unsweetened, and I never looked back. Cream and sugar are for girls, and so are straws, for that matter.
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I love IPAs. I really hate it when they try to flavor them like when I am out and order whatever IPA they have on tap and find out that it is Mango/Peach flavored IPA. I even once sent one back saying I don't know what the hell this is but it is not an IPA.
Stop calling that crap an IPA. I know they are trying to market IPA's for the ladies
Stop calling that crap an IPA. I know they are trying to market IPA's for the ladies
You already mentioned Duclaw... they are not exactly at the leading edge of today's craft beer culture. What other breweries?
Treehouse is the prime example. Trillium out of boston does it pretty well. In PA, dancing gnome in Pittsburgh does it.
I have no idea where they rate nor do I care that much. I mentioned them because I have first hand knowledge of all the beers they produce and the labels we make for them.
Other LOCAL breweries we do labels for are Monument City, Clipper City/Heavy Seas, Falling Branch, Independent Brewing Co, Brewers Art (but very limited most of their stuff seems to be in cans.) Pub Dog, Flying Dog, Chesapeake Brewing Co, OC Brewing..thats most of them and all are, for the most part local.
The beauty of beer is that there is a style for everyone.
Ned, have you tried a session IPA or an old school IPA like Sam Smiths? I like IPAs, but I do find that many of the modern IPA's are way too hoppy. IPAs of the past = today's Pale Ales.
How about Czech/German pilsners? They are well hopped for flavor, but Saaz and other noble hops are way more mild and less bitter.
While there are some decent places on that list, it's not what anyone would consider to be the leading edge breweries. I do love stopping at Brewers Art!
Saaz is classic, I also use Hallertau for a lot of the pilsners and Belgians I make.
Like I said I don't rate them I just make their labels. I don't care what it tastes like as long as it pays my mortgage.
Union is the best in town, but also do cans predominantly. They do a sour (Old Pro) named after a golf course in Ocean City (the MD one). Their new place just opening across 83 from the original spot, it's huge. Partnered up with Earth Treks for the gym and a bunch of other stuff.
I like your strong opinions. As for me, I loathe chopsticks. Ridiculous, outdated technology
