Chicagoland NE IPAs (2018)

then they need to stop throwing NE on every god damn beer they make.

 

Maybe they are just trolling craft beer consumers Milkstachio - NE Style Milk Stout!

 

I got one of the last two four-packs of Smoke Filled Room at Beer Temple, and missed out on the Orange Blaze Whatever - looks like that was a happy accident, as I Want to Believe was an absolute drainpour for me.

 

I really didn't enjoy IWTB when it first got released. The can I opened the other night was pretty damn good though, maybe it had to sit a little?

Not a big fan of Blazed Orange...its...okay I guess? Going to try a Smoke Filled Room shortly.

 

Agreed. I think they're just trying to cash in on the NE style hype train instead of just trying to make good beer. For me GB and reply hazy were good but both fell off to below mediocre after a week. The others I've had have been disappontments off the bat.

 

^this

I don't think alchemist IPAs look anything like the beer on the left. The beer on the left looks like a PW or FFF IPA. I like them too, just tend to want to call a spade a spade

 

Yeah, I won't be rushing out to buy the next batch. Sure NE-style hasn't been defined, but the fact that everyone pictures the same thing in their minds makes HB product fall flat at face value. Not good publicity when such great hazy/juicy beers are surfacing and your supporters are feeling ripped off. But what the hell do I know.

 

Blazed Orange is, dare I say, awful. The backend/aftertaste is...metallic? Or aspirin maybe? I'm going to let the other cans sit a couple days before trying it again. I am off the bandwagon for now.

Smoke Filled Room is meh, though at least I can drink it. Good thing I picked up a Permanent Funeral with the Hop Butcher cans. My taste buds will thank me later.

 

I'm dying to love this brewery, but they've been making it hard lately.

I haven't had the new brews yet but will this weekend.

 

Both Hop Butcher releases today were disappointing. The hype for this brewery needs to scale back a bit.

 

Yeah, I picked up the Orange one on a whim at the Beer Temple because after an hour in line for a single 12oz beer I figured "fuck it." It is fine, but at $16 I do feel a little taken advantage of by the excitement over the style as opposed to the actual beer itself.

I would have loved to see this one not labeled "NE-style" and also priced at $11 like Hoppy Days are Here Again, which, for my palate, is the most interesting beer they've put out. If nothing else that would reduce the feeling like they are cashing in on the market.

 

Anyone try exsqueeze me? Curious about this bad boy.

 

Yep. Unique and fantastic IMO. If you're a fan of Flightless & JIL, you'll love this one.

 

This.
What is interesting/funny or whatever is remembering when people first started calling stuff NE style and a lot of people were arguing that it isn't its own style and it should just be called an IPA? It seems we have hit the point where it is clear that it is definitely its own style when people are picking up something labelled as "NE style" and it is not what they expected at all.

 

Happily passing on both HB releases. The Blazed Orange doesn't even look like a grain bill for a NEIPA with that darker amber color. I always try to give the brewer the benefit of the doubt, but that looks like disingenuous marketing or the beer didn't turn out as intended. Either one is a major turn off for me.

Not sure if I'm getting burnt out on the style or just the wildly inconsistent attempts around Chicagoland.

 

Im getting burnt out on the style. Just so many options have hit since last summer. I did jump on the bandwagon big time and enjoyed JIL the most. Will be buying this style every now and then but not jumping on everything that comes out....

 

It's funny to read through Untappd. The consensus seems to enjoy it more than here, but every other comment is something to the effect of "not a NE IPA", "why are you calling it a NE IPA", etc.

Yeah it's great. It's super dank. (Knowing it's a Transient beer not a Mikerphone beer) I haven't had anything from Mikerphone like it - I think of special sauce as a lot sweeter. Probably haven't had enough Transient to know how it compares to their beers, but it's different from Juice is Loose. I think I like it better.

Edit: It reminded me a lot of TGB SOSUS, which I love.