IPA and pH

[Pehlman17]

Does anyone else feel like people have been pushing the pH of IPA’s down lately? I’m not sure how else to explain it, but I feel like a lot of modern takes on IPA have a tartness to them now that I don’t recall being there in years past. I understand many breweries are pushing the fruit-forward thing, but I’m starting to feel as if the acidity of some fruit juices is starting to also creep into the flavor profile of a lot of modern IPA. As far as I can tell it’s not a bug but a feature. I don’t know, maybe my palate is just too old school or something.

 

[VikeMan]

If you're talking about beers that have had fruit juices added, then yes, the pH would be lower than if fruit juices had not been added.

But if you mean IPAs in general, I haven't noticed any trend toward tartness.

 

[Pehlman17]

If you're talking about beers that have had fruit juices added, then yes, the pH would be lower than if fruit juices had not been added.

But if you mean IPAs in general, I haven't noticed any trend toward tartness.

I’m sure it’s just a subjective thing. Maybe tartness isn’t the right way to describe it. I’m sure I just associate heavy citrus flavors with acidity. But a quite few I’ve had lately seem to have this “pithy” quality to me that I don’t recall tasting in IPAs much until recently.

 

[Pehlman17]

https://byo.com/article/the-evolution-of-ipa/
In this article, toward the end in the section about kettle vs dry hopping, the author mentions something about a “polyphenolic bitterness” that he gets from beers with little to no hot-side additions. I’m guessing this might be what I’m experiencing.

 

[day_trippr]

I was just about to suggest hop "harshness". Some strains used in neipas are particularly high in phenols that seem designed to attack the throat (Galaxy, for one) if the beer hasn't dropped bright...

Cheers!

 

[RPh_Guy]

Sour-acidic is one of the major flavor characteristic of phenolic compounds, which are generally present in higher concentration with abundant dry hopping. This flavor isn't a result of pH change. FYI the acidic flavor tends to decrease as these become oxidized.

Harsh, bitter, and astringent are some of the other major flavors associated with phenolic compounds, and there are more.

Source: Polyphenols and Beer Flavor

Cheers