Anyone else overwelmed by the amount of hops in IPAs and NEIPAs?

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I think there is a pointed marketing thing which can catch people unawares. Is a Hazy a NEIPA or simply an unfiltered IPA?

Case in point...and this is all my own opinion...but I just quaffed a bottle of Stone’s Enjoy By April...something or other date.

It is the 1st” Hazy” they’ve ever done in this lineup. Somebody who was expecting an NEIPA would be sorely disappointed. It is a visually hazy, typical Stone WC bitter IPA that is crushable. I think they did a good job, as I was gulping a 9%’r, but it wasn’t a juicy fruit bomb and most definitely bitter.

Lesson learned..at least for me on the WC. Hazy NOT EQUAL TO NEIPA

And most routinely means I’m not pouring the last bits into a glass cuzz that’s where the really nasty bitter unfiltered crap lies which means I’m being cheated!! 🤬
 
kiwipen said:
Whenever I buy an IPA or NEIPA, especially NEIPA, all I can taste and smell is the absurd amounts of hops. the bitterness is just too much. Maybe I can smell something fruity, but the taste is just a bitter attack on my tongue. i know these beers are supposed to be heavily hopped, but to me they are hopped far beyond what I can appreciate.

The good thing about being a home brewer is that I can brew beer I think I'll enjoy.

Does anyone else find NEIPAs and some IPAs unpleasant? Maybe I've been drinking some bad examples, because I can't understand how someone can find these beers drinkable. If you like them, good for you, I'm not saying you are wrong and I am right.
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I also am not a fan of the hopped 2row beer. I like balance hopped up barley water does not appease to me. Give the original bells two hearted ale.
 
I like the IPAs and hoppy beers there are in the market these days. But I choose not to brew then because where I live, hops are expensive! Just the hops for an IPA can be more than 50% of the total price of ingredients.
 
I just cannot aquire a taste for IPA's. I've tried many but it just isn't happening. I've been a home brewer for 12+ years and love beer, all types-but IPA's. I haven't given up though and will keep trying.
 
At least in FL brew pubs, the slightly bitter hazys and the nepa juice bombs have pushed abv to 7% and some close to 8%. I’ve gotten a little tired of the over juiced, no bitter balance, and high abv beer. Unfortunately the 4-5% drinkable styles with subtle flavors and aroma seem to be fading from many breweries. Making them at home though. Check out the “make ipa clear again” thread for old school ipa inspiration.
 
Bluekat said:
I just cannot aquire a taste for IPA's. I've tried many but it just isn't happening. I've been a home brewer for 12+ years and love beer, all types-but IPA's. I haven't given up though and will keep trying.
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I love well made IPAs. As a style example, the DFH 90' is superb, and is near the upper end of the "hoppy" level as I care to to drink, but I do love it. I do appreciate the difference in bitterness/hoppiness and how a NEIPA is completely different than a DIPA, but need to explore the high dry hop/low bitter NEIPAs further. We just do not have a wide selection of those in these parts. Time for a road trip...
 
I agree with the poster. I used to like IPAs 15 years ago, but brewers have gone completely overboard. I hate when I go to a brewery tasting room and 9 out of 10 beers are hopped to the hilt; and all share a similar flavor profile. A brewery should have a wide selection.

Personally, I wish nitro bitters and nitro stouts would replace IPAs in popularity.
 
OleBrewing said:
Actually I am surprised the hop thing has lasted this long.
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I started home brewing around ‘95 and did it for a few years and came back 3 years ago. IPAs were certainly gaining in popularity in home brewing when I started and that accelerated, as we all know. The interest in hoppier beers has sky rocketed with new strains and of course many new beers. Though I’m not an IPA fan, I recognize the interest in hop varieties and methods of hopping are good for the home brewing industry as well as making the hobby more interesting. Also, one can’t understate the increased interest in hops on the home brewing level have created a significant revenue stream that was not there when I started the hobby.
 
I've read it takes human taste buds up to 20 "tastes" of something different before they go"hey, this isn't so bad". Mother Nature's way to try and keep us from eating many poisonous things, which frequently have nasty (sometimes bitter) tastes. I still don't care for most IPAs, although I keep trying them every once in a while. Maybe 20 in a week would give my taste buds a better chance to adjust. I agree that NEIPAs are a different style and taste, more hop flavor than hop bitterness. and I have enjoyed a number of them. However, as someone pointed out, the cost of hops make it (to me) a better choice to purchase from a store, and use my brewing time and money to make other styles.
 
I do enjoy a good West Coast IPA such as Lagunitas IPA, I buy Hop Stoopid occasionally, Voodoo Ranger IPA, Victory Hop Devil, Victory Dirt Wolf. But this is not my go to beer that I drink all the time. Never been a fan of the murk.

I just brewed one of these clear IPA’s, 1.070 and about 66 IBUs. Bottled it about a week ago, crystal clear and tasted great at bottling. I am itching to open one and taste it cold and carbonated.
 
rushpapers said:
I agree with the poster. I used to like IPAs 15 years ago, but brewers have gone completely overboard. I hate when I go to a brewery tasting room and 9 out of 10 beers are hopped to the hilt; and all share a similar flavor profile. A brewery should have a wide selection.

Personally, I wish nitro bitters and nitro stouts would replace IPAs in popularity.
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I hate when I go to a brewery and 9 out of 10 beers are something hazy, cloudy, dank, or sour. That’s every brewery anymore.
 
bwible said:
I hate when I go to a brewery and 9 out of 10 beers are something hazy, cloudy, dank, or sour. That’s every brewery anymore.
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With current trends, that’s how they keep the lights on unfortunately
 
Sometimes people pay for trendy. Whether it's really good in my opinion or even in their opinion doesn't really matter. It's whatever currently is what your customers want. If that is simply satisfying a fad, then that's what matters if those are your customers.

Luckily the next brew can be something else when customer desires change.

For those of us that brew for ourselves, we only have our own tastes to be concerned with. I'm sure I'll make great beer for my tastes. I doubt I'll ever get a ribbon.
 
Erik the Anglophile said:
I agree, I think most american ales and many american iterations of european styles are way over hopped.
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You do realize the United States biggest contribution to brewing is its hops. So yes, most US Styles showcasing that and American hops are what US Brewers use as their twist on traditional European styles. Every area has their own ingredient or take on beer that they are known for....In Belgian it’s their yeast, Germany it’s purity process and Munich malt. I totally understand if it’s not people’s thing and that’s fine but it’s the equivalent of saying there is too much phenol/yeast profile in a Belgian beer
 
As its already been said, NEIPA's typically aren't bitter at all. Thats why more people like them over real IPA. I personally despise most NEIPA; more for their turbidity but also for the lack of bitterness.

I personally love lots of hop character across the spectrum; aroma, flavor and bitterness. This "Lupulin Shift" theory seems to make sense as it takes more to wow me now than it use too. And to date, not a single NEIPA has wow'ed me. Quite the opposite actually!

What is overwhelming to me is the shear number of NEIPA's on tap lists and on the shelves. Its harder to find examples of IPA that I actually like these days. Not impossible but certainly harder.

I'm guessing some of you on this thread probably expected comments from me along this line. :)
 
i don't really see a point in using hops more then it's enough to act as a preservative.....at least i think that's why i add them? :mug:
 
Nagorg said:
As its already been said, NEIPA's typically aren't bitter at all. Thats why more people like them over real IPA. I personally despise most NEIPA; more for their turbidity but also for the lack of bitterness.

I personally love lots of hop character across the spectrum; aroma, flavor and bitterness. This "Lupulin Shift" theory seems to make sense as it takes more to wow me now than it use too. And to date, not a single NEIPA has wow'ed me. Quite the opposite actually!

What is overwhelming to me is the shear number of NEIPA's on tap lists and on the shelves. Its harder to find examples of IPA that I actually like these days. Not impossible but certainly harder.

I'm guessing some of you on this thread probably expected comments from me along this line. :)
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Preach it, Brother! I had to double check to make sure I didn't write your post.
 
bracconiere said:
i don't really see a point in using hops more then it's enough to act as a preservative.....at least i think that's why i add them? :mug:
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Anti-inflammatory, IIRC. Medicinal properties, tastes better than Advil. For those of us who abused our bodies in our youth, but now will settle for abusing our livers. At least that what I tell my wife. Holistic healing. Yeah, that's the ticket!
 
Dgallo said:
Getting an ipa or NEIPA and saying all you can taste is hops, is pretty much like eating a Hershey’s Bar and saying all you taste is chocolate...
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That's a good exemple. Hershey's are all milk and sugar, and a tiny bit, as little as they can fit, of cocoa butter.
 
skidmark said:
Might I suggest Bell's Two Hearted Ale as a calibration beer for this discussion?
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Excellent beer, and equally excellent suggestion of having a "calibration beer." My only concern would be that 2H is a single Centennial hop, and while I love me some Centennial, something (or some things) less prominent and specific in taste/aroma might provide a better palate to measure Lupulin Shift. The 'original' Ranger or the 'original' Stone IPA, both of which utilized several different bittering and aroma hops, would IMHO provide a better back drop.
 
Karn said:
I'm new in this game and appreciated this informative thread. Only liked one (NE)IPA out of the 10, or so, that I've tried. Went to a local brewery (after making my first brew, and embracing this new hobby, and loving this forum) and had a Flight which was fun. However, I got one 'grassy', 'rough' taste in my mouth after the very first sip and it remained for days! The order in which they presented the brews, in terms of IBU, was 24, 39, 22, and 28. It should've been 22, 24, 28, and 39?
Didn't matter, like I said the first taste overwhelmed everything.
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These are surely all calculated IBUs. The issue with calculated IBUs is they are wrong. They calculated IBUs were just an estimate back when the calculators were developed and hopping rates were modest, alpha acid (and other acid) content was lower, hops were used in the boil, and most hopping was whole leaf. None of that really applies to today's IPA styles. Dry hops and whirlpool hops contribute lots of bitterness, much from hop acids other than alpha or iso alpha acids.

I think measured IBU may also be wrong depending on the test method used. Reading Scott Janish's blog it seems most testing again focuses on alpha acids. Better testing may be viable but not a lot of demand for it. I doubt your local brewery or mine cares that much about the true measurement, Tinseth calculation from Beersmith is about as far as they will go. Hopefully the actual testing is what the beer tastes like to the brewers. But the consumers want to know the IBU so they go ahead and put the calculated number on the menu wall. Better than rely on the posted IBU would be to talk to the tasting room staff or brewers if they are available and let them know what you like.
 
I tend to drink pale ale versus an IPA often at breweries due to the high hop rates of many IPAs. I like to taste the malts and the yeast character of a beer. Might be why I choose stouts, kolsch and pilsners too.

Does anyone feel like it is an 80s band where the worse they were the louder they played? If grain selection and yeast is meh then just dump in more hops and call it good?
 
YeastFeast said:
If your Hazy/NEIPA is bitter, it wasn't done right. You should detect almost no bitterness. That's the whole point of a Hazy/NEIPA and what I love about them. 85 out of 100 beers I drink are Hazy/NEIPA's, the other 15 are beers aged in bourbon barrels (usually stouts)! Mmmmm...! OK, maybe I drink other styles too...I love Barleywine, an occasional sour, stouts and porters are good, belgian's.......
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This is why I don’t like the use of IPA in west coast, NE and other newer styles of IPA. And the confusion (as we saw in the post that prompted your reply) as to what is an IPA in the market is abundant.

hop bombs , west coast ales and hazy juicy beers, IMO, are completely different beers than British IPAs (more malt, more hops and some oak in balance).
 
I don't get bitterness from NEIPA, but what I got tired of is buying a local 4 pack of NEIPA, spending $18-$24 and it's OK or I didn't care for it - especially when I like what I brew better. I buy bulk hops and have recently bought 10 packs of the Lallemande East coast yeast. I can make something I like better and cheaper.
 
Brian66 said:
I don't get bitterness from NEIPA, but what I got tired of is buying a local 4 pack of NEIPA, spending $18-$24 and it's OK or I didn't care for it - especially when I like what I brew better. I buy bulk hops and have recently bought 10 packs of the Lallemande East coast yeast. I can make something I like better and cheaper.
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That happens to me quite a bit. There is maybe 3 breweries that I feel make better NEIPAS than my self and I can brew it for about $50 a case lol
 
Had a double brew day yesterday.

A heavily hopped pale ale (cascade!) and a porter.

While I like porters, the pale ale will last longer since my wife and mother in law don't like hops.

So thats a distinct advantage to hoppy beers. They "last longer" 😆
 
Saunassa said:
Does anyone feel like it is an 80s band where the worse they were the louder they played? If grain selection and yeast is meh then just dump in more hops and call it good?
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^^^^Nailed it!^^^^^

And then if it turns out to be as cloudy and murky as a jar full of trub, then you've transcended from the realm of merely "good" to nirvana. 👁
 
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bkboiler said:
Had a double brew day yesterday.

A heavily hopped pale ale (cascade!) and a porter.

While I like porters, the pale ale will last longer since my wife and mother in law don't like hops.

So thats a distinct advantage to hoppy beers. They "last longer" 😆
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Not at my house :( IPA goes fast, anything else I brew tends to stick around. Good thing the non IPA beers tend to have longer shelf lives.
 
There are a lot of sub-par NEIPA's out there IMHO which is not helping matters. I personally enjoy the fact the a well made NEIPA has a nice hoppy quality without being overly bitter. I live near Treehouse, Trillium & Vitamin Sea and Bissel Brother is a couple hours away so that's my baseline. I still enjoy a nice firm bitter IPA though. Lawson's Sip of Sunshine is plenty bitter and it isn't even hazy. When it comes to home brewing, I might go back to the classic IPA's though as they are much easy to produce with limited equipment.
 
So many people seem to want to dictate what others should like. They don't like hazies, so they ***** about them and say they're defective and shouldn't be on the taps/shelves.

Fruit in beer (pastry sours for example)? Blasphemy! A lot of cane-waving "get off my lawn" types around here.

The reality is that beer, like everything else, is supply/demand driven. In the early 00's, the hop wars were about making IPA's more and more bitter. I liked IPAs then, but they got virtually undrinkable for my palate.

I like the flavor of many hops, love the aroma. NEIPAs that are well done are incredible...poorly done ones suck. That's pretty much like every other style of beer out there.

I drink the styles I like (IPAs, pale ales, belgians, imperial stouts, most classic European styles, etc. I like some sours. But regardless, I have the option to drink what I like and not drink the ones I don't. People act like they walk into a bar and it's 21 taps of hazies....maybe somewhere it's that way, but not here. It might be 5 of them, but there's always variety on tap around here.

I started brewing in the early 90's because imports were expensive and craft was nothing like today. I got back into it in 2014 because I wanted more access to NEIPAs and they were hard to come by around here. They were brewed (Toppling Goliath was good at the time), but you had to know someone to get any. I had had Treehouse and Trillium et al at that point and wanted to just brew my own.

If they come out with some new style that doesn't float my boat, I'm not going to complain, I'm just not going to buy/drink/brew it. Not sure why that's so hard....
 
Some people seems to forget that this is a homebrewing forum.

I'd like to see someone ask in the cheese forum what people whink about cheezwhiz, or in a classical music forum what people think about Russian hard bass, just to get offended at the answers. To each their own, yes, but we also have the right to discuss about what we dont like.
 
Hwk-I-St8 said:
People act like they walk into a bar and it's 21 taps of hazies
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There are definitely places like that around me...Aslin, Solace...I am looking at you! There are also plenty of options for other breweries and pubs with a solid mix of beer styles.

That is the beauty of brewing. You can always have the beers you enjoy on tap! I don't often brew a hazy, because they are so easy to find (plus $20-$30 worth of hops!!). If I do brew a Hazy I am shooting for haze vs murk in the 5.5% to 6.5% ABV range. The hoppy beers I brew tend to lean toward American IPAs and Pale Ales...medium bitterness, maybe a little light crystal, and different combos of classic American Hops and newer varieties. I have been on a Saison kick lately. It is amazing how much flavor you pack into a Belgian with maybe $20 or $25 worth of ingredients.
 

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