Ballantine IPA - Maybe A Macro Really Can Make A Great Craft IPA!

interesting-I remember it from years ago as being mediocre a best. It will be interesting to see what more folks think

 

I've passed it a couple times and am actually quite interested in trying it.

 

Once Pabst bought the beer from, I believe Ballantine was the brewery but im not certain, they change the original recipe and made it more "macro" friendly....less hops, eliminated dry hopping, etc. Changes were made several times.
Source: likely misquoted from Mitch Steele's book IPA

 

There have been a few threads since the re-launch of this beer. Check this one out for more info:
http://www.beeradvocate.com/communi...d-craft-beer-re-launches-in-northeast.203154/

I love it, myself, and am very happy to see it getting some good vibes. Hopefully it'll continue to sell well enough to be a regular product.

 

Unless something has changed, Pabst originally contract-brewed the new Ballantine India Pale Ale at the new Third Street Brewhouse of Cold Spring Brewing Co., Cold Spring, MN. (keg label below). There are no TTB COLA's for a Miller brewed version.

After P. Ballantine & Sons closed in 1972, the brand was purchased and brewed by the Falstaff Brewing Corp. The parent company of Falstaff, the S&P Corporation (which also owned General and Pearl) bought Pabst in 1985. Eventually S&P merged all their brands under the "Pabst Brewing Co." umbrella. That is how Pabst came to own the Ballantine brands.

The IPA did undergo much "dumbing down" - lowered IBU and ABV, shortened the aging period - during the Falstaff/Pabst era (the last batches came out Milwaukee in the mid-90s) but calling it "macro-friendly" might be a stretch. It was probably more of a cost savings decision for the ever-cheap S&P.

 

I was most impressed with the new Ballantine IPA.
Glad to see others enjoy it too.

 

I've had 2 750ml bottles. At $3.99 a bottle I thought the taste reflected the price. Nothing exceptional , but for what it is, it was enjoyable. Don't think I would buy again with so many great IPA's out there.

 

How long ago? When I first had it, there was nothing like it. edit -1974.

 

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/447/134337/?ba=Shroud0fdoom

This is a tasty brew, something I can come back to for regular consumption.

 

Picked up a six this weekend and in my opinion, it was very good. Will buy again.

 

I think it's very solid and well balanced.

 

I tried some a couple weeks ago and thought it was very good. If I see it in a store in Michigan I will buy it.

 

That's the truth. I consumed a lot of it even before that, when it was still brewed in Newark (about 15 miles from where I lived). The re-boot is not bad at all...quite good in fact even though it has a considerably different character than the original, but still quite good . If they could get rid of the 'citrusy' hop character and put more emphasis on a resiny/herbal character, it would be a bit closer to the original.

You're absolutely correct that there was nothing else like it back in the day. As far as I'm concerned, as good as some modern IPAs are, there's still nothing available today quite like the original BIPA (not commercially, anyway...although I've tasted homebrewed versions that nailed the character of the original almost perfectly).
If Pabst did ever decide to make the new version like it was made 50 years ago (with the long bulk aging that is traditional for IPA), it would be a pretty expensive beer.
Glad to see the brand's return to form, and impressed that Pabst did as good a job with it as they have. I've been told that it's also selling pretty well.

 

I can't wait to get my hands on some...I foresee a great debate...

 

LOL. I'm sure you're right. I've already been the recipient of some rather infantile "flames" on another site for daring to state that a mega brewer 50 years ago was making a world class IPA with a hop aroma that would rival anything made today.

The flames confused me, but didn't burn me.
It is, after all, only beer.

 

Possibly a bit earlier than that, but not much. It was so long ago I just do not remember it as anything special by today's standards-different than the rest available yes.

 

Did you get a chance to drink Smuttynose Cluster’s Last Stand?

Cheers!

P.S. For your reading pleasure: http://www.beeradvocate.com/communi...and-vs-pabsts-ballantine.217032/#post-2853438

 

There are probably trucks of this stuff driving right past me on I-94 from Cold Spring to places out east. Sad.