NC's Best Drinking IPAs/ DIPAs

Surprised Local hasn't been mentioned more, although Bond Brothers is new and doesn't bottle. They switch up the hop profile per batch, but lately it's been drinking better than Pernicious. Not a big fan of their DIPA, as it leans more toward the Belgian side, but if you like orange in your DIPA, it's full of it. Also fwiw, Bond Bros raspberry berliner is damn tasty too, as is their imp stout.

 

Agree, I'm not a big fan of Bitter Enemy due to the Belgiany characteristic, but Local is great. $10 a crowler at the brewery isn't bad either.

 

Growlers at Ridgewood too...

 

Oh yeah I've gotten a couple there, and that's even cheaper. I do love crowlers for certain occasions though.

 

http://www.charlottefive.com/heist-brewery-ipas/

Cool article about Heist IPA's

 

Looks like NoDa just put out a NE style IPA in their taproom. Anyone tried it yet?

 

No but i saw where it was listed as an english ipa on the noda website. Gonna take a wild guess and say this has a typical malt backbone of a noda ipa along with overly bittered hoping for style. Not hating, just not getting my hopes up for another citra-quench-al like brew yet

 

I revisited Hoppyum on tap Saturday after not having it for years and was surprised at how much I liked it. I guess my palette has adjusted for it over time, because I was not a fan before.

 

I've always enjoyed it on tap but not so much from the bottle. I don't know if it's just because bottles sit around longer or aren't kept cold, but it always seems way maltier in that format.

 

I don't think I've ever had it from a bottle, but hard to say at this point.

 

I like it quite a bit, it is definitely solid. My little hole in the wall place I hang out at sometimes usually have both Hoppyum and Highland ipa on tap, and I find myself going with Hoppyum alot more often.

 

Been lurking this thread for a while but haven't chimed in until now.

Finally made it down to Charlotte two weekends ago (from W-S) and I had to check out the Heist hype. I was lucky enough to get one of the last glasses of both All Is Ripe & Reformed before they kicked. I preferred both of those IPAs more than any other NC IPA I've had to date since moving down here a year ago. Definitely a Charlotte gem!

And unrelated...but I had a can of NoDa's Par 4 the other day and was very impressed. Definitely near the top of my session list.

 

Lynnwood has a new Azacca pale ale that is mango/apricot fruit salad and well worth trying - better than the D.A.V.E. Azacca I had tonight at Trophy. That Cloud Surfer was definitely tasty enough for a growler though.

 

Agree with both of the posters above in that Par 4 from Noda is one of the better sessions I've had and that I liked the Lynwood Azacca pale more than the new Trophy Azacca one (both 5.something pales).

The new batch of Cloud Surfer is definitely really good and I've drank a bunch of them in the last week, including a couple of growlers. Has a really awesome dank nose on it. That being said, it's basically a different beer IMO than the first batch, which was super hazy with the really soft mouthfeel like a good Northeast style IPA. This one doesn't really have those characteristics, more just a really good normal style IPA.

I've been choosing IPA's from both Trophy and Bond Brothers over Pernicious lately for my after-work pint.

 

Just an FYI - If you are planning to go to Heist for their IPA's...please check what they have on tap before you go. I went last night on a whim and they didn't have any IPA's (minus a session IPA) and in fact only had 4 (maybe 5) of their own beers on tap and had to have some guest taps to add some options.

 

Funny you say that... I was originally facing the same situation until I specifically asked about All Is Ripe, which is when the bartender handed me the "secret list" of stuff that was about to kick.

 

If that is the case, I will just let everyone else drink their IPA's and spend my money elsewhere around town. What brewery has a special hidden fucking tap list?

 

I was in DC a few weeks back and had Jade for the first time. Had it at ChurchKey and then got a six at Total Wines later. I really enjoyed it!

I'll be in VA in a couple of weeks (Gainsville & Lorton). Lot's of IPAs and DIPAs listed in this thread that I'd love to try.

What killer NC brews are available in that section of VA, what should I be on the lookout for?

 

Not sure if they always do that as it was my first time there but yeah it was odd. Why not just keep it available (publicly) until it kicks?