Worst. IPA. Ever.

[oceanic_brew]

People had me way too pumped up to try a goose island IPA that once I did I was sadly let down. It wasn't the worse but there's a brewery here in Halifax called Unfiltered that I would consider the best I've ever tried and nothing can compare to those beers for me.

After those beers it's hard to be non-biased when trying some of decent ones around here.

I find some bands like that. I listen for a while but when I go back to the greats it's just like "yeahhh here we go!!"

 

[Wiscohio_brewer]

I had a double IPA at The Great Dane in Wausau, WI. It was just bitter. No hop flavor or aroma, just bitter. I was severely disappointed because some of their other beers are great, specifically Crop Circle Wheat. I honestly don't remember what the worst IPA I had was. I think I repress bad beers.

 

[uwmgdman]

This is an easy one for me. Florida Beer Swamp Ape Double IPA. Saw it when visiting family in Flordia about a year ago. Thought oh a local dIPA this has to be at least decent. It was &$&-ing terrible. Sickly sweet, not bitter not hoppy, a bit fusel. My BIL and I dumped it and I don't dump beers, well except for that one time with a pizza beer but that's off topic.

 

[bransona]

A local, Brother's Craft Brewing, makes just awful IPA's that are incredibly popular. Simcoe out the ass. Tastes like kitty whiz to me.

 

[filthyastronaut]

I recently had a bottle of Odell Tree Shaker, a double IPA with peaches, and it fell incredibly flat to me. Was within it's BB date and I am in the same city, so maybe a bad batch. Their Myrcenary Double IPA is quite well-regarded and I also found it to be underwhelming. All of this is surprising considering their flagship IPA is absolutely incredible, and they have wonderful hoppy beers like St. Lupulin, Runoff Red IPA, Perle White IPA, and their recent rye IPA.

 

[tmendick]

Tree shaker's quality has gone down significantly in the past 18 months IMO. It used to have a really good fruit punch with enough hops to keep it in the IPA territory

 

[MaryB]

NB Ranger... remember the bitter beer face commercials? Yeah the stuff was like drinking fresh skunk pee... tried 2 bottles, gave the other 4 away and they got dumped by everyone who tasted it...

 

[filthyastronaut]

Tree shaker's quality has gone down significantly in the past 18 months IMO. It used to have a really good fruit punch with enough hops to keep it in the IPA territory

Good to know I'm not alone.


As for Ranger, it really shouldn't taste like skunk pee. Unless you're just being colorful, sounds like a lightstruck bottle. I think Ranger gets an unfair rep with some, as it's harshly bitter from the Chinook but has a unique hop profile that dares to be different. It's supposed to be resinous and piney, first and foremost, and it has some grapefruit and a light caramel malt background to compliment it. I love it, personally. It's particularly great for the Colorado wilderness.

 

[stratslinger]

The worst I've ever had was, surprisingly a bad bottle of Green Flash West Coast. It was the first time I'd ever tried it (thank goodness I had the wherewithal to try it again and realize I just had a bad bottle). But that one seriously taste like I opened a packet of CTZ and just licked the inside of the packet - WAYYYY too much hop bitterness and a weird metallic twinge going on.

 

[MFWINZLOW]

The most horrific that I have recently had is from Three Daughters Brewing - Bimini Twist IPA - smells like Pinesol and the taste is so sweet that it is sickening when combined with whatever hop (maybe mowed grass from the side of the highway) they decided was a good idea to use. I never condemn beer to the drain. I powered through one can (I know...I'm a champ) and then subjected a few co-workes to the horror that is Bimini Twist. :rockin:

They refused to speak to me for a week.

Rates a 76 on BA - should be a 6.

To the OP other point about SN Torpedo...nope.
I really like it and am having a few right now - along with a few SN 2016 Beer Camp Tropical IPAs - good stuff! Buuuuurp!

 

[Wooden]

1. Sam Adams Grapefruit IPA
- thought it was gonna be, you know, something late hopped with lots of C' hops like citra/Amarillo (because really, that would not be THAT hard!).

Nope! Shoulda read the label and trusted my intuition that said Sam Adams would put some combination of stupid artificial flavoring and grapefruit juice in it... Ugh... Bought several 6 mo. ago and still have 3 left. Should pour these down the drain so I have 3 more bottles....

2. Squatters DIPA.
Wayyyyy too much hotness in it, all you could taste is the alcohol. I bought it because I thought it would be kind of like a cheaper/newer brewery type Bells Hopslam-type beer, and well, you get what you pay for. Not nuff malt balancing it out and not nuff flavor. Had to mix them with other beers. Still have a couple sitting around.

3. Blue Moon Belgian IPA
-IMO not much belgian or IPA in this one... But I do get some cat-piss aftertaste from one of the hops. Not hop forward enough, not belgian enough.... Gahhh... Very gimmicky, what do you expect from any blue moon that is anything other than the original Blue Moon.

 

[Queequeg]

There is only one contender for this.

Green King IPA

IPA not once

 

[BreezyBrew]

Pretty much any IPA from Smaltz Brewing. I've had 4 or 5 different knew over the years, and all absolutely horrid. Sickly sweet and no hops. Could pour on pancakes.

 

[whovous]

There is only one contender for this.

Green King IPA

IPA not once

+1. A monumentally bad beer in every respect. I've no idea why they label it an IPA. I'm not sure they should even call it beer!

 

[dyqik]

there is only one contender for this.

Green king ipa

ipa not once

+1

 

[dyqik]

There is only one contender for this.

Green King IPA

IPA not once

+2 (app double posted when I tried to edit, but it's worth repeating...)

Particularly when served on a fake hand pump in the King's College bar. We used to refer to it as Cam water.

 

[Paul_Aris]

I'm not a big fan of belgian IPAs or session IPAs. I couple of sessions I really like though are Founders All Day and Lagunitas Day Time IPA. Usually I reserve these for the times where I know I will be drinking for extended period of time like a party or a concert. Otherwise I like a bit of an IPA with more mouthfeel or a double.

 

[jschein]

+2 (app double posted when I tried to edit, but it's worth repeating...)

Particularly when served on a fake hand pump in the King's College bar. We used to refer to it as Cam water.

Beer Boys?

 

[Queequeg]

I think until you have tasted green king IPA you are in no position to claim an IPA is bad. To even call it an IPA is a joke

 

[jimmerz]

I pretty much only drink DIPA/IIPA's. As for the torpedo, I'm not a huge fan but I don't mind it. My friend has a big party every year and the beer selection is limited, he usually has torpedo as the only craft beer so I end up drinking that. Last year he had Hop Hunter, much better. He is a big SN fan.

I've had a lot of bad IPA's but most were "drinkable". I HATED DFH120. And most recently bought a 6pk of Guinness Nitro IPA, that was horrible! I gave those all away.

As for my favorites. Fat heads super juicy hop juju and lagunitas Waldo.

 

[Lefou]

I've sworn off any more Blue Moon seasonals. The last two of three were way below par. The Peach brown ale was a disappointment as was their latest Pils table beer offering. The Peach ale was sharply peachy and hoppy, bordering on a mild IPA, leaving a sour aftertaste. The Pils was more of a dark golden Octoberfest marzen color, malt-forward, but no head. The pumpkin ale was ok, though.

Wife brought home a 1liter imported saison du chateau from work. A guy's travel bag with beer sample from the Philly competition was overweight, so he was going to dump it, but she brought it home to me. Not a bad beer ... until the metallic taste hit. Now I know why he was going to dump it. I've brought beer home in carry-on from Germany before but that was long before the airlines started with the TSA hassles and charges.

 

[dyqik]

I think until you have tasted green king IPA you are in no position to claim an IPA is bad. To even call it an IPA is a joke

The only thing nearly as bad as its taste is its near ubiquity in Greene King run pubs, which make up the largest brewery pub chain in the UK.

 

[Hanglow]

It's absolutely fine for GK to call that beer an IPA, it has a hundred year history after all. IPAs in post war uk were just fairly weak bitters. It is most certainly ****e though and would be my pick for the worst "IPA" I've had

Bit of a shame what GK/Wells/Marstons etc and their ilk have done to their brands they've acquired over the years, sad to see (and taste)

 

[WestMichBrewer]

Torpedo the worst? Not sure about that one. I love torpedo. But I'd say the worst I had is diabolical IPA by north peak brewing in Michigan. Tasted way to piney for me. No fruit flavors just all pine. Not appealing.

I've had Diabolical a few times and I liked it!
Guess I like "piney".

 

[BreezyBrew]

It seems like people either love Stone's RuinTen or hate it. I loved it.

 

[beskone]

I had Knee Deep Lupulin River DIPA yesterday. Maybe not the worst ever but I wasn't feeling it, was overly harsh.

 

[lumpher]

I can't say it's a bad IPA, it's just a bad IPA for me; for me, the All Day IPA is one I can't get past.

The mouthfeel on this 1 is non-existent. If any at all, I'd have to say it reminds me of slimy water. The taste isn't bad, but the feel almost makes me gag.

 

[jekeane]

How Guiness Nitro IPA isn't number 1 on everyones hate list ill never know...

 

[brew703]

Abita Wrot Iron IPA is absolutely the worst IPA I've ever drank. Also all Sam Adams. Haven't found one that I like.
On the flip side, Parish Brewing Ghost in the machine is a DIPA and it's the best. Very smooth and citrusy at 100+ ibu.

 

[brewprint]

The worst I've had is the grapefruit Sam Adams rebel ipa. If you enjoy the taste of sand/dirt/mud in an ipa then this is for you!

 

[Calichusetts]

Yikes...how did this thread make a comeback. At this point, we can rename the thread "List of IPAs."

 

[daveMN]

Yikes...how did this thread make a comeback. At this point, we can rename the thread "List of IPAs."

You could, except that I'm choking down a Magic Hat Electric Peel grapefruit IPA. What a mess.

 

[LilLostCoveBrewer]

I love IPAs so it's hard to really label one "terrible" or "worst". However, I did have a Deviant Dales DIPA from a dingy bar one time and it was without doubt the worst beer I had ever tasted. It smelled and tasted like I was drinking dirty running sock juice! I swore the beer off for awhile and then had someone offer me one the other day. Not that bad, but not the sock juice as before. My guess is the dingy bar's draft lines were filthy.

Man, that beer still gives me the hibbie jibbies .... Yuck!

 

[johngg123]

I had a sip of a 2013 ranger last night, that was horrible.

A 2013 anything is a nasty IPA! But yeah I agree with the crowd on Ranger. Pretty bad. Great place to get fresh IPAS is grocery store or trader joes because they have really fast turn over. Even though trader joes keeps its beer warm, I've bought it while still cold to the touch from coming off the truck.

It blows my mind when liquor stores boast how they have 1000's of craft beers, but you walk in and it's all warm and dusty on the shelves. They just rotate the old beer into the cold box.

 

[Wooden]

The worst I've had is the grapefruit Sam Adams rebel ipa. If you enjoy the taste of sand/dirt/mud in an ipa then this is for you!

I wish I could have tasted the sand/dirt/mud in it. I would have welcomed an added dimension of complexity and mouthfeel those could have contributed to this beer...

 

[brewprint]

I wish I could have tasted the sand/dirt/mud in it. I would have welcomed an added dimension of complexity and mouthfeel those could have contributed to this beer...

Did you enjoy that beer?

 

[Wooden]

Did you enjoy that beer?

Ha! No. It was terrible .... It was in my top 3 worst "IPA's"

All I could taste was some kind of artificial grapefruit flavoring blanketing a very generic tasting "beer".

 

[brewprint]

Ha! No. It was terrible .... It was in my top 3 worst "IPA's"

All I could taste was some kind of artificial grapefruit flavoring blanketing a very generic tasting "beer".

Haha I wasn't sure.

I seriously can't believe the brewmaster let this one out. Most of their beers I enjoy. This one is utterly terrible.

 

[Altrez]

Nitro Guinness IPA is the worst beer I have ever had.

-Altez

 

[Wooden]

Haha I wasn't sure.

I seriously can't believe the brewmaster let this one out. Most of their beers I enjoy. This one is utterly terrible.

Yeah, I am not sure what they were getting at here. Sometimes I wonder, (because I see so many new flavors from them, esp. Along the lines of flavored beers) if they don't have some kind of strategy to like make a new "seasonal" flavored beer when, like they don't have the right market demand or right supply of ingredients, or what, for something else.

I mean, the grapefruit flavoring covers up a lot of what is going on in the base beer itself. Couldn't tell you much about what the base "beer" (malt/hops/etc) is/was, but I doubt it was designed for this beer...

Either that or they decided to go after a demographic of untapped market of potential craft beer drinkers, like women, under the misguided impression that marketing it with a label and artificial flavors resembling a fruit will make them (or their significant others) want to purchase it in hopes they will like beer...

I was so disappointed... I thought they were gonna make a "grapefruit" IPA by using lots of aroma hops with "grapefruit" flavors. I should have taken them literally (or read the fine print). Still, it is terrible. I get a lemon-pledge taste to be exact.