IPA Ignorance

I can see where you are coming from but what we call "styles" evolve from loosely applied names long ago.A brewer could describe a single beer as a Pale Ale, am IPA and a Bitter in the same sentence. Guinness sold exactly the same brew at different times as Stout and Porter.Mild these days tends to be dark , lightly hopped and of low gravity. In my grandfather's day they were pale, strong and heavily hopped though less so than bitters (Customers resorted to calling Pale Ale a Bitter to distinguish it from mild , they looked the same)........my grandfather simply wouldn't recognise a modern mild.
You simply cant nail down styles as they creep and evolve.Just as say a car of today and a car from 1930. Same name, quite different article.

 

Similar Problems arise with Märzen/Oktoberfest Beers.
A lot of US reviewers expect a dark beer when they buy a Märzen.So,when they review Pale Märzens (Hofbräu Oktoberfestbier,Paulaner Oktoberfestbier),they immediately give it bad ratings.
Of course,they do that, not knowing, that many Festbiers nowadays (incl. all 6 at the Munich Oktoberfest) are Pale

 

It already has it's own classification. American IPA is the official category. What the hell are you talking about? English Style IPA is also a category. Where do you see any negative connotation in either? The various judging contests use those two categories to denote the style created in England (whether or not to go to India...who cares?) and the more modern version using mostly American hops (and more of them).

People can review whatever they want however they want. I love Fuller's porter. When I review their IPA, even knowing that it is an English style IPA, it's still going to be somewhat bland. That's the nature of the style.

 

I'm fond of using these categories:
1. Beer
2. Not beer

 

It's beer...

 

Still warrants a discussion, though. After all, this is an entire website/forum devoted solely to beer.

 

Lol...

 

Cars were never meant to go fast! The first cars were slow!

 

Bruce Dickinson is a Beast.

 

I agree with that categorization of that beer, though. It's a blend of two very strong, distinct styles; thus it really should just be considered an American Strong Ale (a strong-ass beer!).

 

There is a third option: an IPA hopped the 19th-century way. Two Imperial shitloads of Goldings in a bone-dry beer (90% or more apparent attenuation). I keep telling people how magical really enormous amounts of whole-leaf Goldings are, but no-one listens.

 

How come Bass doesn't taste anything like Zombie Dust? They are both pale ales, right?

 

And that Märzen can be any colour in Germany from straw to black.

 

There's a fourth option:

IPA hopped the 19th-century way: Unfiltered

Then people would listen.

 

That's a great little exchange. And some handy number. Where did you find that?

Do you know why he mentions Evershed? Because that's one of the places Carl Jacobsen worked while in the UK. I'm lucky enough to have photos of his personal brewing record from that period.

This is a No. 6 Mild Ale and Pale Ale from Evershed:



The Mild is indeed dry-hopped at just under half a pound a barrel, which is a lot for a Mild. The Pale Ale is quite a way short of a pound at 0.8 lbs.

Beer OG lbs. brl. hops lbs. brl. dry hops
No. 6 Mild 1057.7 2.01 0.48
Pale Ale 1063.2 4.57 0.80

Once back in Copenhagen, I see in the records that Carl Jacobsen dry-hopped his Mild Ale with Saaz, but use East Kent hops for his Pale Ale.

 

I haven't tried the Guinness IPA but people comparing it to American IPAs is just dumb. I see the same thing when people have a basic lower abv stout and are saying stuff like "its too thin, it doesn't have enough flavor, etc" and are comparing it to some 10% abv stout containing coffee, hot pepper, vanilla, maple syrup and doughnuts

 

Kind of like when they're reviewing Stone Coffee Milk Stout?

 

I think there have been a lot of interesting posts and some very cool links provided in this thread. I do, however, think there are ways to make the OP's point without coming off as a jackass.

 

Yes! I've brought that one up a few times. I've gotten in to heated arguments with a couple friends about this. If you just don't like something then hey its fine with me, but comparing a beer to something it never was nor ever claimed to be is ridiculous

 

Exactly!