Chicagoland NE IPAs (2018)

Since these are becoming en vogue now, I figured I'd start a thread with various beers I've had that are or claim to be NE-style for everybody's reference. I'm going to keep it to Illinois stuff just to be simple.

Mikerphone Special Sauce - Obviously one of the biggest ones. Thick, juicy, very hazy, with a little "rind-like" bitterness; probably one of the closest to what most people consider the style.

Hubbard's Cave Fresh IIPA - Similar to SS in haze/juiciness (but not quite as thick), almost no carbonation whatsoever. I've only had V1 (V2 and 3 exist as well) but have heard all 3 versions share a similarly low carbonation.

Hailstorm Cumulus - Decently hazy and juicy, although not to the extent that Special Sauce is. Lightly bitter.

Maplewood Juice Pants - Not really hazy at all, and thin like a typical IPA. Not particularly NE IPA-like, but almost completely devoid of bitterness (which is probably one of the main reasons it's called an NE IPA).


I know Ram has done one (Juicy), but I haven't had it, so I can't speak to it.

Please feel free to add anything else to this list that you guys find!

 

It's interesting that most of Mikerphone's IPAs are in this style, and yeah, you're totally right about Son of Juice (just checked out their IG). Looks great!

Ah yeah, forgot about the Transient one (which I've heard is great).

Figures I'd try the bad batch.

I meant to clarify in the first post (then forgot); I figured I'd start this thread because threads like the Mikerphone one keep branching off into discussions about the style, so this might keep things on topic better.

 

I've had Cumulus twice (I bought a 4-pack), both cans have come out similarly. This is an admittedly badly-lit pic, but is accurate to how the beer looked both times:


It's definitely not Treehouse or even Special Sauce-level hazy, but it's almost completely opaque, which is what I meant. I haven't run into anything outside SS that's been comparable to the OG NE stuff in terms of look. Most of the stuff here has been in between. I agree that Hubbard's isn't that off-putting (I did drink my whole bottle in one night, so clearly I liked it), but it would've been much better with more carbonation, in my opinion. In terms of the 4 I mentioned in the OP, I'd rank them:

SS
Fresh IIPA
Cumulus
Juice Pants

In order of "truest to NE style" to least true to style.

 

Based on the Lincoln Ave tap version of Beer Hates Astronauts (hazier and more full than the bottled version), I'd like to see Half Acre give this style a shot, too. Hell, I'm surprised PW hasn't done one yet (and if/when they do, I'm sure there will be mass hysteria in Chicago).

 

Yeah, but Sure Bet has...*googles* mango puree in it, right? I think that disqualifies it from officially being from the unofficial NE style.