3 ms·
Another thing thing I think I've found about the IPA crazy is that it has driven out the variety in IPAs themselves - once there was a spectrum in high-hop tast
by joe_the_user 7y ago
Another thing thing I think I've found about the IPA crazy is that it has driven out the variety in IPAs themselves - once there was a spectrum in high-hop tastes between citrus-y and cider-y tastes in high-hop beer but now citrus-y is the only taste that's considered acceptable.
The cider-y taste ("green-apple character" I believe) you can taste in the Belgian beer Orval is considered an off-flavor in IPAs and I'm pretty it was reasonably common high hop beers in the 90s and early 2000s.
Indeed, my suspicion is that homebrewing first create a wide variety of flavors and approaches through accidents but once the machinery for determining the correct flavors became established, small brewers followed with beers that has nothing strange or unusual at all and so could only distinguished by their hop-levels.
- anfractuosity 7y agoThe funky flavour from orval comes from bottling with brettanomyces, I'd not noticed an applely flavour though myself.
- joe_the_user 7y agoAnother example might the taste of Christmas or Anchor Liberty Ale from maybe thirty years ago.
- OJFord 7y ago> once there was a spectrum in high-hop tastes between citrus-y and cider-y tastes in high-hop beer but now citrus-y is the only taste that's considered acceptable. Worth noting that the citrusy highly carbonated brews are 'American IPA's, English or 'Imperial' IPAs are much less citrusy, if at all, and much much much less carbonated. That's changing a bit - much to my disappointment, I don't like the citrus either, much less the high carbonation - with the craftier 'craft' beers, but generally they will market themselves as American IPAs, or have a citrusy name or label, so you can make your choice accordingly.
- joe_the_user 7y agoI'll look for English/Imperial formats when I can. I'd guess Dogfishhead 90 minute IPA qualifies as imperial and I prefer it to most. I think the unspecified IPA you often find will be American. And jeesh, there far too many of them. Like the original cheap American lager form, it's OK 'till you've had far too much of it and then you never want it again.