Specialty IPA's or regular IPA's, which do you prefer?

Regular IPA's but they should be balanced not hop bombs.

 

Not yet.

 

In my estimation, any IPA is crap after a month or so.
So, I prefer a fresh Imperial IPA.
My worst experience was standing in line and paying $80bucks for a case of Heady Topper, to then find it is a batch of crap bitter ale. While some may appreciate a nice cloying, bitter old can of beer, I prefer being blown away by tropical, fruity aroma and taste, in the first two weeks of the beer's life. So my missions is finding that week old brew and scarfing it up.

 

Drinking beer must be very stressful if you insist that a beer more than two weeks old is garbage.

 

HOPTIMUM
Thank you !!!!!

 

Not sure where you are in Pa, but it is readily available at Wegmans/Whole Foods. From a Black IPA perspective I would highly recommend.

 

Beer

 

I love all IPA's, but like previously mentioned, variety is the spice of life

 

I'm in the Lehigh Valley.

 

Do you have any local bottle shops? Where do you normally go to get bottles (besides a distributor). If you have nothing around you, I can always meet you in Reading if you are interested in trying it.

 

All IPAs!

 

I have recently gravitated to lower ABV IPAs and away from DIPAs. If a brewer can make a full-flavored, piney/grapefruity IPA and not have a ton of alcohol in it, it's a winner for me.

I tried Fat Head Head's Hunter recently. Now that's what I'm talkin' about! It's pushing my ABV limit at 7.5%, but it's one of the better IPAs I've had without going into DIPA territory. I'm content with something like that IPA any time I want something hoppy.

And Carton Boat beer, well, that's just a ridiculous amount of hop flavor at 4.2%.

 

I'm moving in your direction as well. I can really appreciate an IPA in the 4% to 7% range- I love DIPAs, of course, but I feel like it's more impressive to craft a tasty hop bomb in that abv range rather than the DIPA range. Carton Boat Beer was exemplary, as you said. Head Hunter, and their new one, Sunshine Daydream, are two other great examples.

 

If you haven't had Foray by Deschutes yet I'd suggest it as a Belgian IPA, it was the first BIPA I've had that didn't have the overpowering yeast, I thought it was very good

 

I typically frequent Wegman's for my less than case purchases.
Thanks for the offerr!! I might have to take you up on that....

 

The only stress I have had with regard to beer is buying a top rated DIPA ( and highly priced) and tasting a bitter grassy beer, because it is not fresh. I may have aggressively worded it, calling it crap, but there is nothing better as far as DIPA's go than a truly fresh DIPA. ( in my opinion) I've even found a home brew recipe, to void all that stress.

On the other hand, I love finding "old" Belgians on the store shelves. Already aged for consumption! Cheers.

 

Wegmans should def. have Wookey Jack. If they dont carry it for some reason let me know.

 

Nice, thanks for the tip kind sir. I've never seen or heard of that beer, but I'll keep my eyes open. I refuse to totally shut out a style until I've had a handful of examples, and thus far I've only had about 3, so I'm almost there but not quite. God know I love me some Deschutes, too.

When and if I do find a Belgian IPA I find agreeable, BA will be the first to know... Because uhh, no one else I know even remotely cares, but there may be several BAs who do! Cheers to that!

 

Here you go: http://www.beeradvocate.com/communi...street-series-foray-belgian-style-ipa.183825/