What happened to IPA?

[Miraculix]

All stereotypes regarding murrican diet proven true in one single pic plus replies to it

 

[Gadjobrinus]

All stereotypes regarding murrican diet proven true in one single pic plus replies to it

Easy there feller - 🤣

(Übrigens, meine Familie und ich lieben deutsches Essen und kochen es regelmäßig, und ich backe wöchentlich mehrere Laibe deutsches Brot. meine Familie stammt aus Deutschland. Aus fünf Jahrhunderten!)

 

[Miraculix]

Easy there feller - 🤣

View attachment 844680

(Übrigens, meine Familie und ich lieben deutsches Essen und kochen es regelmäßig, und ich backe wöchentlich mehrere Laibe deutsches Brot. meine Familie stammt aus Deutschland. Aus fünf Jahrhunderten!)

That looks more like it!

 

[OleBrewing]

when the trend of double IPAs craze hit the market, I was like ok much a much more hoppy beer and the malt was still there but the abv was probably a little high, the market saying wait a minute i don't want to drink two beers and equal a six pack. the session ipa came along and i thought this was the dumbest thing to come onto the market, a bland beer hopped up water essentially (and bittered water doesn't really quench the palate). at this point every brewery was making an ipa of some sort for customer base and they sell; all the while very few breweries really made a standout one. almost seems like some sort of school yard game i can make it more hoppy and citrusy orangy tangeriny enter what ever advertised flavor.

I never got into the ipa craze, I will stick with the mainstays in my opinion, Dog Fish Head, sierra nevada, two hearted, probably a couple of others but for lighter side i will always pick up summit APA

Eventually I think the market will shift away from the hop craze (which in my opinion has gone on long enough) the youngins will see the actual diverse of different beer and will proceed buying something else.

and an after thought, wish i could find a Lion Stout from Sri Lanka.

 

[Brew_Dude41]

I threw up minutes after this picture was taken (2009, Alaska). Arrogant Bastard is NOT meant to be drunk from the bottle!

EDIT: It's actually Double Bastard. Even worse!

There were many a Sunday morning that I could be found dragging the ball diamond prepping for a game nursing a hangover with an arrogant bastard 22 in my hand. Did wonders to chase away the headache, but nothing to help hydrate (that was the gallon of water and 2-32 oz Gatorades).
Ah to back to being dumb and in my 20's again. (Now just dumb)

 

[Dland]

I drink homebrew now almost exclusively, but in prehistoric times, my regular beer was Ballentine India Pale Ale. They spelled it out back then, before IPA was a thing. Sierra Nevada became my go to for a while after that, though I liked Lagunitas too.

Last time I bought a 'craft' IPA, in a fancy bottle for high dollars, with an essay on the back of label in small writing about how much care the expert brewers put into the brew...it tasted more like a bouquet of flowers than beer. It's even harder to find a really good store bought lager though.

 

[mashdar]

I drink homebrew now almost exclusively, but in prehistoric times, my regular beer was Ballentine India Pale Ale. They spelled it out back then, before IPA was a thing. Sierra Nevada became my go to for a while after that, though I liked Lagunitas too.

Last time I bought a 'craft' IPA, in a fancy bottle for high dollars, with an essay on the back of label in small writing about how much care the expert brewers put into the brew...it tasted more like a bouquet of flowers than beer. It's even harder to find a really good store bought lager though.

I don't know how far they are distributed, but I've been really impressed by Jack's Abby for lagers.

(Porch Fest has "modern" hops I don't care for, and I thought "copper* lager" more apt than "munich dunkel" for Red Tape, but generally very good )

*edit: It was previously called "amber lager" - I was confusing it with "copper legend"

 

[Dland]

I don't know how far they are distributed, but I've been really impressed by Jack's Abby for lagers.

(Porch Fest has "modern" hops I don't care for, and I thought "copper lager" more apt than "munich dunkel" for Red Tape, but generally very good )

I tried several Jack Abby's offerings, in a 'mixed flavor' pack a few years back and thought they were drinkable but only just, or if you had already had a few. However, I had some their "House Lager" recently and thought it was quite good. I'd buy it again, but have not seen it for sale where I live, but then again, I don't get out much. Fortunately plenty of good beer at home.

 

[balrog]

eally impressed by Jack's Abby

I'd buy it again

I have it around me in W. MA and will grab 15 pack of their house lager or blood orange wheat radler when they put it on special

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

Feel like I could have written this myself.

WELL. . . . The very reason I first started brewing beer was because I could not reliably get whatn I wanted in a beer. I can buy Sierra Nevada every day, and Two Hearted as well - So old school is at my finger tips. If they disappear - I have and can make reasonoble facimilies. I rarely buy or bother with "new" styles anymore. Tootie Fruity Sludge beer ruined THAT for me some time ago. The couple of "New" or "Cold" items I tried were wholey underwhelming. But the concept was cool, so I am working on a variation to suit my personal tastes. I did have a couple of "Brut" IPA's when that was a thing, that were very good, but of course they went away in a hurry. I can get pretty close to them at home If i get a hankering.

The current state of the bottle shop is a little sad - too many "trendy" and not enough for drinking. The age of 8-10% everything and "cold" "Pastry" "Imperial" "Hazy" taking up all the domestic shelf space. I also see a LOT of them gathering dust! Cool thing is; Bunches of imports that used to move SLOWLY from the shelves now turn over quickly, and suddenly I can buy tasty classic imports with much less fear of getting an old stale skunky unit. One change alaways brings another!

And all said and done - I can generally cure all my beer angst with a good brew day or two! That is the whole point I think.

I have never worried about styles or conforming to someone else's criteria. I don't get that at all. It's like trying to be the best Michael Jackson impersonator. I do understand trying to make beers similar to factory beers, so they can be improved or just because it's nice to have 5 gallons on tap, with an ingredient cost of $30.

I bought a Harley once, and they started sending me invitations to join a ridiculous owner's club. We've all seen other people on the road, with silly chin beards, shaved heads, rags on their heads, tattoos, and pretend biker outfits. Dentists and grocery store managers, pretending to be bad boys. A guy who fixed the AC in my house told me he was a "biker." No, he was an AC guy who owned a motorcycle. He would have been pounded if actual bikers had seen him wearing their stuff.

I never got into it. Never wanted to go to Sturgis or Daytona. That stuff is juvenile. I bought a motorcycle I thought was neat. I wasn't buying a cult. I never bought into any kind of beer cult, either. I just like good beer.

The complaints about judges are amusing to me, because I knew, from being old and knowing human nature well, that things like this were happening. I don't have to submit beers to 20 competitions to know many judges aren't fair or skilled, because that's how human beings are. Everyone witnesses judged competitions. We interview for jobs. We watch sporting events. We see famous trials. We know unfairness and stupidity are all around us. Life is basically an Ayn Rand novel, and acceptance by the majority is often a sign you're doing everything wrong.

I haven't bought beer in a store since some time last year. I would have to see something pretty interesting before I would buy store beer again.

 

[pcdiver]

I feel like I’m starting to understand the old “fool me once, shame on me, fool me twice, shame on you” saying.

I picked up a 4-pack of canned IPA from a very respected brewery here in Southern California. Packaged on 2/4/24 printed on the bottom. I crack one of these cans open and pour it into a glass. The tantalizing aroma practically fills the room. The can says Nelson, Simcoe, and Columbus. Looks like I’m in for a good time. There is a slight haze but it’s mostly clear and a light blonde color in the glass. 6.3% ABV is modest by today’s standards but still enough to get the job done. Based on aroma alone I feel like I could crawl into this beer and let it envelop me. This beer tells me I’ll be safe here, and to feel free to stay a while.

I take a sip. Hmm…. Not at rich as I’d expected. Another sip. Hmm… even less than before? What’s going on? How can something so enticing be so bland?

I hear time and time again from brewers talking about the new west coast ipa. How they’ve done everything they can to “make room for the hops”. Caramel/Crystal malt is gone. Pale malt has been replaced by the lightest possible Pilsner malts. Hot side hopping has been minimized if not downright eliminated. Lager yeast really gets out of the way and “lets the hops shine” they say. Brewing salts are approached from more of a German/Czech lager perspective now than that of the old English ways.

I understand the idea that dry hopping at rates of 4+ pounds per barrel introduces its own kind of bitterness. I get that crystal malt can give flavors that one might associate with oxidation. I get that neutral yeast strains may not compete with hop flavor and aroma. I do. But at the end of the day, does it make for a good/interesting beer? I’d argue no, it doesn’t. This isn’t just based off of my experience with this specific beer today. This is me getting tired of the same thing over and over again. Giving breweries chance after chance to show that what they say is real and meaningful. This isn’t some ‘old man yells at cloud’ sort of thing. It’s more of an ‘emperor’s new clothes’ sort of situation. These beers are out here completely bland and naked. No soul, no structure. They smell great but leave the rest of the experience empty. Yet everyone seems to be praising how great and put together they are. How brewers of these beers are constantly “pushing boundaries”. But fundamentally they are lacking. A true taste experience has to hit all aspects of our palate to really be interesting. It needs to be savory, and seasoned, and bitter, etc. But all in balance with each other of course. Lately these beers seem like they’re killing it in one department, and then just calling it a day. Completely neglecting the rest of the fundamentals and structure needed for a fully formed and balanced presentation. I’m trying not to be biased or one who expects things to be locked into a certain time and place. But I also understand taste and flavor, and how things that we might not enjoy (like bitterness) on their own still play a supporting roll in making things super inviting and interesting on the palate.

I get that brewing is a business and that they need to do what they can to keep the doors open and the lights on. The IBU wars were dumb. But that also doesn’t mean bitterness is bad. I think there is an opportunity here for brewers to take the power back a bit. It’s clear that consumers have driven the industry lately more so than the creators have. But this has lead to a neutered beer landscape in many ways. Craft beer doesn’t need to be offensive but it does need to push people out of their comfort zones. I experienced this with trying to understand hazies. I came around to at least understanding it and appreciating it for what it was.

But let’s also not forget that beer is for adults. Adults should learn to appreciate how things like bitterness can actually enhance the tasting experience. That stouts don’t need to taste like breakfast cereal. Coffee doesn’t always need cream and sugar. And if people need beer to be soft and unoffensive then maybe it’s ok to tell them to look elsewhere.

Craft breweries, some famously, would talk sh*t about macro lager and how it was bland and boring, and was appealing to an audience who didn’t actually like beer. Nowadays, likely from the rise of craft lager, it seems like it’s cool to talk sh*t on those breweries for talking sh*t. But that’s missing the point completely. They weren’t talking sh*t about the classic German and Czech lager breweries. They were talking on the companies that sold a watered down product that was more concerned with pleasing the uninitiated than the diehards. I love hops and hoppy beer. I just can’t help but feel disappointed that that’s what I’m seeing and tasting now from the craft scene.

They have gone cheap and more $$$$. Can’t blame it on COVID and supply chain issues anymore. 😉